Inspired by a poem from 11th Century Japanese poet Gyokuran, Sensitile founder Abhinand Lath took to design to produce a unique representation of the light and shadow created in bamboo forests. The aim was to create a system of channels which bend and disperse ambient or LED light and form a material that interacted with its surroundings. During his time at the University of Michigan this revolutionary surface was created, imitating the light filtration of bamboo strands.
In the prototyping beginnings of Sensitile Systems, Lath won the Boulevard Der Stars competition in collaboration with Zaha Hadid Architects who were greatly inspired by his new developments incorporating terrazzo. The new interactive surface enabled passive and active conducting of light without electricity due to fiberoptic conducting tubes. The end result is a playful and illuminating finish.
These terrazzo slabs are created with a fine concrete mix (6-18% of which is recycled content), inside which are the light conducting channels. The designs options are greatly varied, with over 50 colours to choose from and four finishes (polished, sandblasted, honed, and factory finish).
The light reflecting terminals come in squares, rectangles, circles, and small prisms, each with three pattern options. The tiles have four thickness variations (1/2″, 7/8″, 1-1/4″, and 1-3/4″) and four sizes (6″x6″, 12″x12″, 24″x24″, and 12″x24″). The slabs are available in two thicknesses (1-1/4″ and 1-9/16″) with custom thicknesses available.
This surface can be used on both floors and walls as well as countertops and feature walls.
A new post by Hanna Simpson, Diary of a Tile Addict, June 2019.