Japandi: refined Japanese minimalism and sober Nordic elegance

21 June 2022

East and West meet on the common ground of sober elegance. From the Scandinavian countries to Japan, the journey is shorter thanks to an unexpected communion of styles, color choices and materials that define the “Japandi” style. The word is a crasis between Japanese and Scandinavian because it is from these two cultures that this style derives. Two cultures geographically distant but closer thanks to more than one design principle. The essential elegance, the preference for materials of natural inspiration – wood in the first place – and for neutral colors, the absence of frills but not of beauty declined in a spontaneously refined way. It is a style with great charm but also with interesting design implications: neutral and light colors, natural materials and regular shapes are all elements that make Japandi a versatile approach to be applied in different contexts. Far from being monotonous, the Japanese style offers unexpected creative ideas in the furnishings.

Cone Lamp by Kristina Dam

Cone is a collection of Kristina Dam lamps that interprets the Japanese style in a contemporary way. As the name suggests, the cone is the reference figure and the collection includes floor, suspension and table variants. The detail that characterizes it is the unusual but successful combination of brushed aluminum and elements in walnut.

Tearoom by Nick Ross for Menu

Despite being an essential style, the japandi does not neglect the desire for comfort, expressed in a very special way by this sofa characterized by reassuring rounded shapes and a backrest which, in the “high back” version, is higher than the ordinary. Thus offering silence and privacy.

9602 Floor Lamp by Paavo Tynell for Gubi

This lamp represents an excellent example of the encounter between East and West. Designed by the Finnish Paavo Tynell and produced by the Danish company Gubi, the 9602 is a thin stem that culminates in a lampshade whose shape is inspired by the hats of Chinese rice bearers. Pure elegance, informal but of great effect.

Studio by Norr11

This sofa interprets the more creative and contemporary side of the Japanese style: characterized by organic and generous shapes, it evokes the aesthetics of the 70s, softening it with pure and essential color and formal choices. It is a modular system that can take on customized dimensions to be integrated with the movable armrest element.

Grande by Fogia

Handmade by skilled wood craftsmen, Fogia is a table that blends Scandinavian aesthetics – the company is Swedish – and Japanese taste in a single soul. And it is a table designed for a domestic context in which life flows smoothly and in the same environment you can eat, work, plan and socialize.

Velasca by Ludovica and Roberto Palomba for Punt

Velasca is a sculptural and functional piece of furniture, an element in which aesthetics and practicality converge thanks to the always concrete approach and innate taste of Ludovica and Roberto Palomba. The sideboard is characterized by the grooves of the wood that dictate its visual rhythm and by the additional shelf present in the extendable version.

Mantiqueira by Domingos Tótora for Tacchini

The Japanese aesthetic is devoid of frills but not of decorative elements, always carrying a function as well. In the case of the Mantiqueira collection, these are vases with organic and sculptural shapes made with recycled cardboard which in the hands of Tótora, passing through an articulated process of transformation, takes on an evocative and precious aspect.

Develius by Edward van Vliet and Formakami by Jaime Hayon for & Tradition

Modular and archetypal, Develius is the sofa designed by Edward van Vliet to adapt to any living environment. The style is essential but rich in configuration options: it reflects the design concreteness and completeness of the Japanese style. For the same brand, Jaime Hayon interprets this style in an ethereal but characterful way with the Formakami lamp collection (on the cover). Inspired by the traditional paper lanterns of Asian countries, it updates their shapes and proportions.

Up by Giuseppe Viganò for Saba

The “raw cut” finish is the aesthetic detail that characterizes this sofa, comfortable and with classic proportions. It is a modular sofa, padded with goose down, which hides a backrest extension mechanism to make it even more comfortable and devoted to relaxation.

Mass by Lin + Lu and Kizu by Lars Tornøe for New Works

Mass is a daybed with essential lines that lends itself perfectly to a Japanese-style interior. The wooden base defines its profile and is combined, in a perfect play of proportions, with the upholstered fabric surface. The Kizu series of lamps is a skilful meeting of materials: the marble base delicate light veins recall the white of the upper part inspiring balance and inviting inner calm.

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