“Nothing is static, everything is in a state of flux, shifting, sometimes imperceptibly, sometimes cataclysmically and in life as with the Carbon Collection our perceptions depend upon the angle from which we are viewing from”.
Adam Court, OKHA Creative Director.

In keeping with the curious design philosophy of OKHA, an interior design studio based in Cape Town, the Carbon Collection comprises six objects that challenge preconceived notions of structure, beauty and imagined realities: Black Rain, High Voltage, Law & Disorder, Mondo, Rock Sculpture and Omega V.

These six projects bring into question aesthetic conformity and the presupposed need for order and equi-balance. Contrary to accepted norms of balance and symmetry, these projects revel in asymmetry and a non-conformist provocation where form is unpredictable, non-uniform and beauty a multilingual dialogue between mind and heart.

The elegant MONDO coffee table is a paradoxical puzzle. The seemingly discordant composition of vertical and horizontal wafer-thin steel profiles fuses together to create two perfectly concentric and symmetrical squares. The vertical supports are diametrically opposed only visually revealing one pair of supports at a time. It is about equilibrium and imbalance, random and systematic.

CHANTEL's rock sculptures are pure sculptural works that reaffirm the casual (or perhaps intuitive) arrangement of the facet present throughout the collection. They evoke fossilized crystalline formations, reminding us of the structural order and disorder rooted in nature.

Likewise, each new perspective of LAW & DISORDER project reveals unexpected proportional and compositional changes. Seen from above, the three stainless steel legs and drum-shaped lampshade form a triangle surrounded by a harmonious balance, similar to the universal modeling structures of fractals and elements in perfect orbit. In profile, Law & Disorder surprises and confuses as the three vertical flanges of the base jut out at seemingly disproportionate and irregular angles.

HIGH VOLTAGE, on the other hand, replicates the shape of a pylon, its perforated lampshade texturizes and filters the light. The powder coated steel bars run diagonally and form support beams. As you move around the lamp, a second set of bars becomes visible, cross-engraving the first.

Perhaps the most profound project of the whole collection is without a doubt BLACK RAIN. A mirror that, unlike any other, faceted, recessed and elongated, replicates the sculpted and changing tectonic plates and evokes the wells of the hard black winter rain.

Sixth and final element, the OMEGA V console. Vertical lines sculpted in a carbon black finish refer to a mantra of meditative minimalism. The solid oak wood frame and stepped solid brass legs pay homage to the architectural inspiration of Art Deco.

For all six projects in the Carbon Collection, the color chosen is black. The emphasis is on pure form, graphic expressionism and absolute values.


INFO/PHOTO COURTESY: www.okha.com