August, 04 2017

During the days of Maison&Objet, the world’s most interesting home decoration fair, Seletti partners with its Paris retailer Fleux’ for a special presentation of the new Banana Lamps, part of the UN_LIMITED EDITIONS by Studio Job.

Fleux’ is the first commercial partner of Seletti’s to dedicate a whole set up to the project, giving Banana Lamps a perfect spot to be presented to the French and international markets on one of Paris’s busiest weeks.

Huey, Dewey and Louie are the names of the three different versions of the lamp, one of Studio Job’s signature pieces. “We had to make up a name to be able to define the three versions, these three names originating from Disney's Ducktales takes a spin on the nonsensical human urge give to objects names. It also makes fun of these corporate brands that spend an age naming a product to market it”, Studio Job says.

Thanks to the partnership with Seletti, Banana Lamps become something equally valuable in terms of design but, at the same time, democratically accessible to a wider audience because they are made in glass and resin.

“The Banana lamps are a bridge between art and design”, Studio Job highlights. “In 2015 we launched the bananas in a gallery as unique sculptures cast in bronze. We then 3D scanned the sculptures to capture the exact form and licensed them Seletti to cast them in resin. The sculpture then becomes a product. It is not only the difference in so called precious/non precious material it is made from that defines the bridge between art and design it's also the amount in which it's produced. In principle, we allowed Seletti to copy and produce high end souvenirs from our unique sculptures”.

Together with the Tiffany Tree Lamp, in fact, the Banana Lamps are part of the UN_LIMITED EDITIONS collection which combines the exclusive artistic imagery of Studio Job and the democratic soul of Seletti: as in fashion, where Haute Couture is in general not affordable for most, so Ready-To-Wear is created, so UN_LIMITED EDITIONS by Studio Job is a Ready-To-Love collection.

Together with the lighting projects, UN_LIMITED EDITIONS also feature Seletti's first foray into the upholstered furniture world. A sofa and a chair, along with the reinterpretation of two lamps that, in their limited edition version, have become one of the symbols of Job Smeets and Nynke Tynagel's creativity.

The Hot dog and Hamburger, iconic images of American pop culture, are transformed into actual furniture, creating the "Fast Food Furniture" collection.

The hot dog bun becomes the structure of the sofa, while the sausage is a cushion; likewise, the hamburger resting on its bun becomes a seat, a pickle turns into an armrest and a slice of tomato into the backrest.

Stefano Seletti, Art Director of the brand, continues: "For a brand like Seletti nothing is more liberating than taking some precious art pieces and turning them into something that is accessible to all. For us, it was a challenge to bring together the most interesting contemporary artists in the design world and jointly create a collection that embodies the exclusivity of the art while ensuring accessibility. Job and Nynke agreed to participate in this crazy adventure right from the start. Our goal is that these new objects invade homes all over the world."

Seletti’s collaboration with Studio Job in 2017 has also given birth to BLOW: a real design brand, a project that points to that idea of democratic design that has always distinguished Seletti. This new family of objects with a total "pop" design mood consists of rugs, neon lamps, folding chairs, mirrors and a set of porcelain dishes, soon to be joined by new products.