What we are currently experiencing in the world is a shift in values. A crisis like COVID-19 leads us to question how we want to live, who is important to us, how we should spend our time. As our needs change, we focus on enduring values such as family, community, and an emphasis on our physical and mental well-being. When it comes to the objects that we surround ourselves with, themes such as lasting value, longevity, and quality are coming to the forefront. It is no longer only about what is good for the individual today, but also what will be useful and relevant tomorrow.
Observing how our living environments are changing - as cities around the world are becoming denser - nature and personal space are becoming even more important. At the same time, these changes are being accompanied by the effects of a new work culture in which we work in a home office more than ever and as a consequence of this, the home is becoming more relevant. Investments are being made in the quality of personal living spaces.
The desire for authenticity is growing, for materiality, tactility, and haptics - as an antipole to our increasingly digital environment. The more uncertain the outside world is for us, the more important places of regeneration become. The desire to promote our own well-being, and themes of self-care, continue to make the bathroom a more prominent space. The bathroom is increasingly taking on other functions as a private spa, a gym, or perhaps simply as a personal place of longing.
The Bathroom as a Living Space
In architecture, the demand for more free space is expressed in a transformation that has taken place from closed rooms towards open, adaptable zones. The Dornbracht brand has developed the bathroom and kitchen into living spaces, curating a range of products that are both style-defining and timeless for over 70 years. As a place for individual rituals, the Dornbracht Bath follows the needs of its users. Whether energizing, revitalizing, decelerating, or protecting - all baths share a feeling of "arriving." The architectures of their CYO bathrooms, "Metropolitan" and "Oasis," reflect this change; they were created by Mike Meiré. The new product concept from Sieger design combines Dornbracht's history with the current zeitgeist to create a wide and inspiring collection that allows for a high degree of design freedom.
The new CYO collection features a sculptural C-shaped spout that defines the design and is complemented by the circular handles that accompany it. The collection explores the many ways in which the bathroom space can be transformed from an ordinary room into a vessel for living. CYO offers products for the washbasin, bathtub, and shower, with a variety of matching accessories to complete the series.
With the goal of incorporating more individuality in the bathroom, the collection has an innovative design concept for the handles, providing a wide selection of inserts in various finishes that allows for a high degree of versatility. The inserts can be individually combined and easily exchanged. Six surfaces made of natural stones and rich textures extend the possibilities for unique characterization. This variety allows the collection to become the focal point of an individual architectural concept.
The Oasis Bathroom
In the Oasis bathroom, a former functional zone becomes an energetic living space, a personal place for self-care, prevention, and balance between inside and outside. Characterized by the need for free space, Oasis stands for a fresh understanding of architecture - one that focuses on people, their needs, and their desires. The bathroom becomes an open zone that shapes itself with its use. Changeable and flexible, with its delicate glass enclosure, Oasis dissolves boundaries by bringing the outside in and connects the interior with nature.
The circle serves as the central architectural theme. It runs throughout the entire design, which culminates in the center of the room with CYO. The fitting anchors the properties of the space, while elements such as the mobile shower curtain become part of the bathroom's architecture. The Oasis bathroom stands for the theme of new flexible location and zoning, for the freedom to define one's zone individually. The Oasis bathroom combines black marble with finely polished concrete, colored ceramics, and the CYO fitting in Dark Platinum matte.
The Metropolitan Bathroom
The world's metropolises stimulate progress and inspire millions of people, but they also demand a lot. The bathroom, as an exclusive retreat, can be a space to recharge after spending time in the hustle and bustle of big cities. The design of the Metropolitan Bathroom is based upon the idea of creating a balance between the relaxing inside and the exciting outside world. Inspired by a design from the company’s archive from 1969, CYO bridges the gap between design history and the present.
With refined bi-structural finishes and gravitational volume, the universal design creates a luxurious space. The Metropolitan bathroom architecture opens up to a view of the city: the international metropolis, a space for individual development that is energizing, activating, and balancing. In this environment, CYO makes a commitment to the understanding of beauty beyond origin, time, and space.
In its choice of materials, the Metropolitan bathroom deliberately plays with contrasts: elegant green marble, which evokes associations of nature with natural materials, is combined with concrete and the CYO fitting in brass. As a formal reminiscence of the design language of the new CYO, the architecture takes up the circle and the curve - visible in elements such as the solitary stool and the arched window.
