The collection of luminaires designed by Kauani Studio is an approach to nature through visual perception. The study and observation of plant elements, of their shapes and colours, of their textures and patterns, of their origins, mythologies and contexts, are the starting point for this collection of textile pieces by Kauani Studio, a project by Inés Llasera, a product designer from Madrid, and Inés Quezada, a Mexican textile designer.
Kauani means flowering in Nahuatl. This collection is a family of luminaries that draws on the indigenous Mexican flora, through which the aim is to highlight the shared history between Spain and Mexico.
Between the 16th and 19th centuries, the cuisine of New Spain produced a large part of our cultural melting pot. Indigenous, European, African, Asian and Arab influences were poured into a tradition that prevails today, blurring their origins. Chili or pepper, cactus or prickly pear, corn or maize, tomato or tomato, lime or lemon, beans or beans are terms used today in both cultures to refer to the same element, adapted to each territory.
The geometries of agaves, the textures of cacti and the seeds of the mamey or soursop are some of the elements of species on which this collection is based.
All the pieces are made of knitted fabric, which consists of a series of loops linked together in such a way as to construct a mesh. A network of connections, of different threads, colours and materials, creates a skin that stretches and adapts to give shape to a vast system of evocations. By revisiting recognisable elements, altering their scale and interacting with light – emulating the gesture of holding a leaf up to the light or looking at it under a microscope – the hidden languages of the dot are clearly revealed.
The project seeks to worship the non-human elements that have been building our civilisations and that silently sustain them. It aims to strengthen the links between Spain and Mexico by exploring motifs that occupy a central place in the cultures of both countries. If in the still lifes of Zurbarán or Sánchez Cotán we see, under radiant lighting, lemons, apples or cabbages, in the ornamental schemes of the pyramids of Mitla, in Oaxaca, we find cocoa and corn inscribed in the sobriety of the stone. This duality gives rise to a study of the expressive quality of objects as symbols of the everyday and the spiritual.
Kauani believes that contemporary design requires a new way of conceiving craftsmanship that can bring together manual knowledge, experimentation and awareness. Maintaining attention to detail and avoiding standardised production are the touchstones for his approach to disciplines that can interweave knowledge and encourage innovation and cultural enrichment.
Project: Colección Kauani.
Design: Kauani Studio. Inés Llasera e Inés Quezada.
Photography: Andrés Valentín Gamazo, Maru Serrano, Rebeca Sayago y Yago Castromil.
Text: Kauani Studio.
Inés Llasera
She is a product designer based in Madrid. She co-founded the design studio Tornasol Studio in 2017, and since then has been creating pieces of furniture, lighting, shop windows and spatial installations. Her methodology focuses on material exploration, the search for identity and artisanal experimentation. She currently works as a window dresser for Hermès and is Program Leader of the Master’s Degree in Product Design at the IED Instituto Europeo de Diseño in Madrid.
Inés Quezada
She is a Mexican textile designer specialising in knitted fabrics. Her work explores the versatility of textiles as a material and applies it to garments, objects, lighting, art and architecture. She focuses on the relationship between traditional textiles and contemporary design combined with new technologies, with projects on different scales ranging from the production of unique pieces, which she weaves by hand, to collections intended for industrial development. Her work emphasises the transition between the initial source, which she often finds in nature, and the final clarity of form. She is co-founder of Kauani, a project involving textile lamps inspired by native Mexican flora, and is a teacher and technician on the Fashion Degree at IE University.
Project by Kauani Studio
