Bethan Laura Wood, a designer known for her ongoing experimentation with shapes and colours, designs a collection of mirrors using glass of different transparencies and artisan craftsmanship.
The three Hooptical models,
available in rectangular or square shape (the latter offered in two
different sizes), feature a surface decorated with elements, positioned
in the two opposite corners of the mirror (or at the bottom right in the
smaller square version), that combine four semicircles made of three
types of glass: natural, cased and metallised. The reflected
semicircular shape is transformed into a perfect circle that seems to
float.
Each decoration is the
result of intricate handcrafting, that begins with modelling the glass
inside a mould to give it the desired shape. These rods are woven at
extremely high temperatures through a twisting process and then
positioned on a ‘centina’ rib-like wooden support and finally the
annealing oven. The rings in cased glass are embellished with coloured
glass chips that outline a subtle hue on the transparent glass; the
metallised ones are treated with a coating process called sputtering.
By
day, these decorative elements capture attention thanks to their
striking aesthetic; by night, with a wave of the hand that activates the
dimmable sensors, they are backlit and radiate a diffused glow. The
designer selected three colour combinations for the decorations,
available in various pairings to enhance the material aesthetic of the
glass. Hooptical is part of the Cassina Details Collection.