Luxury Gadgets

Zaha Hadid - The multi-sensory kitchen in collaboration with DuPont

April 30th, 2006

“Z. Island” wasn’t created just to astonish and create talk. The kitchen environment conceived by Zaha Hadid in collaboration with Ernestomeda and DuPont presents innovations involving the processing of materials that will be useful for future kitchen manufacture, structural organization and the integration of advanced technologies.
The raw material of the Z. Island, Corian is extremely malleable, perfect for the creative requirements of an architect famous for the originality and complexity of his projects. DuPont has been working for years to increase the ductility and ease of processing of this material to broaden its applications and exalt its aesthetic and tactile qualities. No longer dedicated to isolated elements of the kitchen like the counter top or the sink, Corian has now been used to realize an entire kitchen (articulated in two compact functional blocks) and an ample modular system of closets and wall panelling.
The smooth, fluid, translucent surface, is pleasing to the eyes as well as to the touch. The elongated “fire-island” (with cooking range and grill) curves softly up to vertical on the right side; the “water-island” (with sink, drying rack and integrated dishwasher) is compact and hexagonal.
LED words flow across one side of the fire-island, while the opposite side houses a luminous spotlight, an LCD screen and just below that, an MP3 player, two USB ports and a CD or DVD player. In the central area an induction cooking surface, a food preparation area, and a food warming plate are integrated into the Corian counter top. Finally, three aroma diffusers emit special fragrances for evoking special atmospheres for special moments.

The wall closet modules are composed of undulating Corian cabinets, grafted onto an aluminium structure. Whereas sophisticated advanced acoustic and LED systems are incorporated into the wall panelling (a succession of flat and thermo-sculpted Corian surfaces). Thus, each panel becomes a source of sounds, music and coloured lights that filter through in the desired sequence.
Sensory involvement is total: a person cooking can surf the web, check their email, watch a film or program a batch of songs to listen to. A pattern of lights calibrated with the release of aromatic essences make it possible to create fascinating personalized effects.
Each experience is easily programmed through a “touch control” panel, situated at the center of the fire-island (illuminated by blu LEDs) with which one can access the multiple functions of the kitchen.

Entry Filed under: Design & Decor