For its latest collaboration, GAN has partnered up with Neri&Hu, the multidisciplinary design studio that includes architects, graphic designers, master planners, interior and product designers. They are the authors of LAN, a collection of rugs, seating modules, and dividers.
LAN represents a synthesis of all these Neri&Hu skills: its design reinvents and questions the sofa typology by breaking it down into its various elements, which can then be assembled in different ways, organized around a rug that is an integral part of the set.
A seating module rests on the ground, over which a series of flat cushions and a tray can be arranged. Its defining element, however, is the backing, inspired by the adaptable oriental screen. A strip of hand embroidered fabric covers a metal structure, which serves as a backdrop for the composition and comfortably accommodates a series of moveable cushions, providing both warmth and comfort.
The indigo color palette used for the various modules and backrest, the screen, the rugs and the cushions inspires the name of the collection: LAN means blue in Mandarin. The designers wanted to pay homage to the eastern tradition of using indigo for dying fabrics that are usually used for home decoration.
The rug, made using pure new wool is manufactured using two different techniques: the base is a Glaoui, with a combination of flat-woven and knotted pile sections over which different layers of geometric motifs are embroidered by hand. The result is a richly integrated surface of lines and tones that combine beautifully with the rest of the grouping, lending it greater depth. LAN evokes the typical subtlety and beauty of the Orient.
Over the years, GAN has worked with different international designers. Neri&Hu, with offices both Shanghai (China) and London (Great Britain) are the authors of this collection that bears its unmistakeable professional stamp, fusing the sensibility of the East and the West, expressed through the traditions of GAN itself and its commitment to bringing together design and traditional craft.
