Lexus presents Sparks of Tomorrow installation at Milan Design Week
- Lexus returns to Milan Design Week (6-12 June) to showcase its design philosophy and demonstrate how this exemplifies its commitment to sustainability
- Award-winning designer Germane Barnes will present his vision for an electrified future in an immersive installation Lexus: Sparks of Tomorrow
- Installation produced in partnership with lighting brand Aqua Creations, to celebrate the RZ, an all-new battery-electric vehicle that signals Lexus’s carbon-neutral future
- Display of prototypes from the Lexus Design Award 2022 finalists
- Students at London’s Royal College of Art will present radical new luxury transport concepts developed in a creative postgraduate programme commissioned by Lexus
- Aqua Creations will partner with Lexus in creating a lounge for rest, relaxation, and reflection, featuring its new ToTeM lighting collection
Lexus has announced details of its participation in this year’s Milan Design Week*, one of the world’s leading contemporary design events. Since 2005 Lexus has hosted immersive experiences for visitors to the event, partnering with leading talent such as Philippe Nigro, Neri Oxman, Sou Fujimoto, and Rhizomatics, to create new design works inspired by the brand’s values and vision.
This year Lexus will present Sparks of Tomorrow, consisting of three elements inspired by Lexus’s human-centred, future-oriented approach to design. It will feature an immersive installation by award-winning architect and designer Germane Barnes, with lighting studio Aqua Creations; prototype creations from the Lexus Design Award 2022 finalists; and work by students at London’s Royal College of Art envisioning luxury mobility concepts for Lexus in the year 2040.
Sparks of Tomorrow has been created by Barnes, in partnership with Aqua Creations, to highlight Lexus’s commitment to expert craftsmanship and use of quality materials. The installation is inspired by the Lexus RZ, the first dedicated battery electric model in the Lexus line-up, which will go on sale shortly. The installation is centred on a three-dimensional scale sculpture of the RZ, rendered in steel and illuminated. The car’s frame glows and is suspended just above the ground, expressing the emergence of a more sustainable future.
Building on this principle of a concept coming to life, the installation will feature Aqua Creations’ Code 130° collection of colourful pendant lights illuminating the vehicle. The lighting creates an elegant, physical embodiment of electricity that reflects the RZ’s design.
A lounge area adjacent to the installation will feature Aqua Creations’ new ToTeM lighting collection, providing discrete areas for rest and recharging, reflecting Lexus’s omotenashi (exceptional hospitality).
Visitors will also have the opportunity to explore the work of the six finalists in the Lexus Design Award 2022. These were chosen for their originality in contributing to a better tomorrow and their expression of the Lexus brand’s core principles of Anticipate, Innovate, and Captivate. This year’s finalists are Charlotte Böhning and Mary Lempres (USA/Germany and USA/Norway), Wondaleaf (Malaysia), Team Dunamis (Nigeria), Poh Yun Ru (Singapore), Kristil and Shamina (Russia) and Kou Mikuni (Japan).
Now in its 10th year, the award celebrates up-and-coming creative talent from around the world. This year’s Grand Prix winner will be announced on 12 May, selected by a panel comprising renowned creative visionaries Paola Antonelli, Anupama Kundoo, Bruce Mau and Simon Humphries.
Lexus’s presentation will also include the work of postgraduate students from London’s Royal College of Art. Their radical visions for new luxury transport concepts were produced in a creative programme, Lexus 2040: The Soul of Future Premium, commissioned by Lexus in partnership with the RCA.
The challenge was to explore new vehicle architectures to meet changes in European city life, society and demographics and to re-imagine the role the Lexus brand might play in the region’s mobility landscape beyond the next two decades. It inspired original work from 20 postgraduate students at the RCA’s Intelligent Mobility Design Centre, an interdisciplinary centre of design and research excellence. The winner, Richard Newman, was selected at a judging event held at the RCA in March: Richard Newman Flying ALTO concept wins Lexus RCA future mobility challenge
Duration of Lexus: Sparks of Tomorrow
6 – 12 June, 11:00 – 21:00 CET
Venue
Superstudio Più (Art Point), Via Tortona, 27 20144 – Milano, Italy
Exhibits
Installation created by Germane Barnes with Aqua Creations
Designs by the six finalists in the Lexus Design Award 2022
Designs by students at the Royal College of Art (RCA) in London
ENDS
