ZAI Collection
June, 2022
“There was a time for us to embrace the coexistence of space and time. The threshold moment of opening the door not only acts as a point of physical transition but also embodies anticipations towards the unfolding things in a different world behind the door. It is the quest for the dual nature of door handles essentially guides us to realize this Zai collection for Ento.”
– Lyndon Neri & Rossana Hu
The simple everyday act of opening a door is both mundane and sublime, repeated thousands of times in our lifetime, it nevertheless can evoke an array of emotions. It marks the transition from one space to another, while the handle itself is the physical point of contact in this threshold moment. The feeling of grasping a handle could take you backwards in time, a journey through memory, or it can take you forwards, anticipating what is to be found.
“Zai” means “again” in Chinese. To create this emotional resonance, the Zai collection is inspired by the timeless aesthetic of the flat metal profile, with a gentle radius bend that forms to the curvature of our hands. This simple intuitive form is applied to each version of the design: the door handle, Dreykipp handle, and door pull. Fabricated in brass with various finishes, the tactile feeling
of the cold metal material in the hand is balanced by the visual refinement of the rounded shapes.
For the door pull, in particular, there is an emphasis on the mounted aspect of the attachment, highlighting its utility. A tilted version beckons the user, like an invitation to access. A non-tilted version of the door pull is also available in customized lengths.
Client / Brand: Ento,Italy
Neri&Hu Design and Research Office
Partners-in-charge: Lyndon Neri, Rossana Hu
Design Team: Nicolas Fardet, Wanru Lee, Ath Supornchai
All right reserved by Neri&Hu Design and Research Office
Award:
ADA Archiproducts Design Award competition 2022, Archiproducts, Italy / Systems, Components and Materials / Winner