Page 51 - Designing Ways 256

nest where you can sit, lie down, read, Agape that naturally develop an intense dialogue
and relax, like a tribute to Jacques-Louis For nearly 50 years, Agape has been with any space, becoming elements of an
David’s iconic painting, The Death of synonymous with design culture. architectural vocabulary of the senses.
Marat. The brand, founded by the brothers International by nature, Agape also has
“In the interiors of my architecture, Giampaolo and Emanuele Benedini, deep ties to Mantua, the Renaissance city
the bathroom is a very important space. offers more than 550 functional products and extraordinary architectural workshop
The placement of the tub is even more so. for bathroom spaces. Washbasins, taps, where its headquarters are located. dw
Even in the most complicated setups, you furniture, bathtubs, lights, and accessories Photography credit: Agape
should leave it free-standing, like a ship at designed by masters of contemporary
sea. A spot where the light comes in, near design and architecture. Timeless objects www.agapedesign.it
a window with a view of the sky, the city,
and the landscape,” describes Jean Nouvel.
A vision of the bathtub as an epicentre
of well-being finds its concrete expression
in “Face à Face”, an eye-catching project
requiring space around it. An outdoor
location is easy to imagine.
The poetics of two-dimensionality
continue in the collection’s washbasins,
available in countertop, wall-mounted,
and freestanding versions. All channeled,
thanks to the suitably inclined plane of
the basin, their vertical and horizontal
surfaces combine for a rigorous
architectural structure. A towel bar or
storage component may be added.
These abstract objects use contrasts
to enhance, like the bathtub, the almost
baroque splendor of the marble. This
is due to the collaborators' choice of
material, which is of fundamental
importance to Jean Nouvel and Agape: it
must be natural, with a long history, like
the finest of marbles. For a bathroom,
matter and formal purity find new
architectural synthesis.

dw • Issue 256 51