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The new Isomi showroom in Clerkenwell, designed by Paul Crofts Studio, is a gallery where the charm of an authentic 1800’s Clerkenwell courtyard meets a super reduced material palette. Inspired by the brand’s concept of a single material per edition, the interior is stripped back and paired up with blackened steel.
The Concrete range of reception desks will be developed into an expansive collection alongside Isomi’s successful existing ranges in solid surface material, further establishing Isomi as a brand which is driven by a true understanding of materials and manufacturing processes.
The move to extend the company’s output into concrete was conceived when designer Paul Crofts began exploring the possibilities of applying this architectural material to furniture products. After extensive research into the production process, and discussions with industrial concrete companies across Europe, Crofts and the Isomi team found a solution in which the Concrete range could be produced without recourse to the fibreglass imitation ‘concrete’ used by many others in this field.
As is a common theme in Paul Crofts’s work, the visual aesthetic of the Concrete range is in direct response to the material in question. Design cues are taken from the material’s application in architecture and structural detailing, and forms are deliberately minimal to highlight the material’s intrinsic quality.
In the showroom, a ribbon of metal folds and turns to create exhibition walls and a staircase balustrade. The original features such as a crane and double loading doors are reinstated to give nod to the honesty of the industrial design.
Celebrating the family business model, the visitor’s journey starts at the courtyard level with a working studio offering an insight into the current direction and design experiments. The upper floor is a minimalist, light-flooded room showcasing the brand’s latest edition. The client interaction unfolds at the actual edition pieces keeping the interior free of any additional furniture.