Archinect - News

Snøhetta completes Swarovski's luminous crystal manufacturing facility in Austria

2019-01-30T20:49:00-05:00

Snøhetta's new Swarovski Manufaktur in Wattens, Austria brings creative design, rapid prototyping, and technical production under one porous roof.

To enter the Manufaktur, visitors first walk through a bridge from Campus 311, a new office location in an old factory building that has an interior with a dark color palette. Visitors then walk into the brighter interior of the Manufaktur, which features white walls and light birch wood panels that cover the floor and a sculptural platform on the second floor.

Photo © David Schreyer.

In designing the building, Snøhetta drew inspiration from the ephemeral elements of a crystal, like incorporating natural daylight. “Crystals only come to life with light, so for us it is the intense presence of that daylight that is the most important aesthetic aspect of this building,” said Patrick Lüth, Managing Director of Snøhetta’s Studio in Innsbruck.

The self-supporting, white steel ceiling consists of a r...

Daniel Libeskind gets to design the new Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree Star

2018-05-17T14:02:00-04:00

Many big-name architects enjoy dabbling in product design and use their brand recognition to sell chairs, tableware, shoes, and anything in-between—but getting to design the new star topping the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree in New York City is one of the rarer commissions. Daniel Libeskind was just tapped by Swarovski to create a replacement for the current star the crystal company had first unveiled in 2004.

Daniel Libeskind and Nadja Swarovski. Image courtesy of Swarovski.

While designs for the new tree topper aren't available yet, an initial release announced a three-dimensional structure "radiant with light," inspired by the cosmos, and exemplifying Libeskind's trademark dramatic architectural lines.

"The new Swarovski Star for the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree is inspired by the beauty of starlight–something that radiates meaning and mystery into the world," Libeskind hinted at his inspiration. "The Star is a symbol that represents our greatest ambitions for hope, unity...

Jimenez Lai, Marjan Van Aubel and TAKT PROJECT unveil their crystalline innovations

2017-06-20T17:39:00-04:00

Design Miami took place last week in Basel, wrapping up over the weekend. One of the installations on display showcased work by Swarovski's Designers of the Future. The crystal empire commissioned three designers to craft a new prototype or design statement, highlighting the crystal and using Swarovski's diverse resources at hand. Established in 2006, the award encourages collaboration with young designers and acknowledges technological and conceptual innovations that work across disciplines. This years recipients were Jimenez Lai, Marjan Van Aubel and TAKT PROJECT.

Jimenez Lai created a terrazzo that re-uses and up-cycles 'second quality' crystals that do not meet Swarovski's quality control. With this material, Lai also created Terrazzo Palazzo. Formed by freestanding structures, his deconstructed palazzo served as the architectural environment housing the installation.

The Dutch designer Marjan van Aubel utilized solar technology to design Cyanometer. Working with the Energy Re...

Jimenez Lai named as one of the 2017 Swarovski Designers of the Future Award

2017-04-11T14:34:00-04:00

Perennial-favorite, Jimenez Lai, has been named as one Swarovski's 2017 Designers of the Future. Along with the story-teller and founder of the firm Bureau Spectacular, the crystal company has also knighted industrial-designer, Marjan van Aubel, and the "design do tank", Takt Project. In conjunction with Design Miami, the chosen designers will put forth innovative projects inspired by the transparent quartz Swarovski is famous for at this years event. While the winners will each create separate pieces, they will be exhibited as a single installation for Design Miami/Basel 2017.

Marjan van Aubel is experimenting with solar technology to develop a series of living light objects and Trakt Project is collaborating with MICRON3DP to produce a series of tabletop objects that will be 3D printed with Swarovski crystals. Lai will produce a surface-based installation for the event while also responsible for creating the overall architectural character of the piece, designing a string of three ...

Jeanne Gang's "Thinning Ice" exhibit in Miami

2014-12-09T12:40:00-05:00

[Jeanne Gang] had just come back from a trip on which she’d been using binoculars with Swarovski lenses and had become intrigued by the optical aspect of the crystal company’s output. She had also become interested in James Balog’s Extreme Ice Survey, a long-term project that documents glacier shrinkage using time-lapse photography [...] One challenge the studio faced was communicating the size of the glaciers photographed by Balog, and the extent of the devastation caused by global warming.

Swarovski Crystal to build luxury towers in Pune, India. Seriously.

2012-12-07T13:15:00-05:00

Gateway Towers 1 is designed to please even the most exacting and fussy Corinthians. That's why every home here is fully automated, giving you the most advanced technology of the century and making your life smooth and easy. Even the amenities have been handpicked with special attention, right from the designer fixtures to the Swarovski lobbies to the private theatre within the towers.