Author: S.T. Lore
Client: Claustrum Steel Inc.
Designer: Takeshi Endo
Pages: 3 paragraphs
Format: Web
Year: 2016
OPEN TO CONCLUSION
An empty star field. Silent and endless. Distant lights transmit life — possible and remote. Against this universe we possess steel chips of technology.
Located in Ginza, Tokyo, Claustrum Steel Inc. views a complete world view with citizen access to similar items: keys, phone, pen, credit card, digital storage, and encrypted information. Claustrum designs functional items to facilitate our urban survival by offering a series of open, lock and close capsules that reflect our bio-isolation.
Torch glares cut through metal. A fiery glow pulses. Sparks shower into a black liquid. Illuminating ways out of this darkening world.
All materials used are earth-bound and durable: life-cycle costs are considered VIA longevity and high-strength. Stainless steel is processed to mimic the urban exteriors (of grime, of darkness, of weather) and enhance our knowledge of any unconscious segregation. By manipulating the surface, elemental markings are revealed and the alloyed steel is then drilled, cut, polished, blackened, and angled (mirror, minimal, and sleek). All depth appears in the surface. Every process is visible. Aesthetics are purposefully neutral, culturally discrete and universally pleasing to pursue a continuum between human consciousness and our basic element: CARBON
Opening with a machine cut precision. Folding along a rectangular path. Beyond the sprawling and complex beauty of material architecture, a gateway is revealed into the personal.
It takes discipline to discover another world and intelligent research to navigate modular habitats. Claustrum creates technology with dedicated and sophisticated workmanship: requiring the fewest practical elements to operate with effortless realism. Human actions move articles with intuitive motion. Weight and balance is bounded by singular lines — simple in form — pure in material — modern life is felt with a new awareness of the physical self.