Bathroom and kitchen design has always been about “people and making them feel better.” This according to Lun Cheak Tan, vice-president of industrial design at Kohler. In a recent interview with Monocle Magazine, the designer says his focus is to “elevate daily life” by easing burdens and streamlining tasks. The result has been the creation of intelligent toilets and touchless taps, ”beautiful and smart products that provide for the physical as well as the mental and spiritual well-being of the people using them.” The effect makes for a simpler, gentler experience in the home, Tans says, – what he calls a “more gracious life”.
The effect makes for a simpler, gentler experience in the home, Tans says – what he calls “more gracious life”.
The Monocle article states that a more gracious life “includes – at the most basic level – meeting essential health needs by choosing materials and finishes that are anti-bacterial and stay clean longer. It’s about using clean lines and forms to reduce the spread of germs too. But it goes further: every interaction we have with an object can influence our mood and state of mind, and therefore our mental and spiritual health. Via innovations such as daylight-sensitive lighting and self-flushing toilets, Kohler’s designers “choreograph our movements and tasks in a more beautiful way,” says Tan.
Smart tech is different to high-tech – and Kohler’s intelligent toilet shows that smart tech is meaningful and thoughtful as opposed to gimmicky. Allowing for personalised control, it has touchless open and close functions, an integrated bidet and a heated seat to elevate your bathroom experience. It’s designed to be hygienic and relaxing to boot.
For more information on Kohler’s gracious living ideas, read Monocle’s full article. For more bathroom and kitchen trends, please visit Knowles Plumbing’s TRENDS page or check out our Instagram FEED!