Metal in Croatian interior design
- by croatiaweek
- in Business
“Metal has been and remains an irreplaceable material in interior design.” We spoke with Mihoković Metal Solutions about their recent collaboration with Croatian product designers.
Used more and more often, metal has become an essential addition to wood, which is still the predominant material found in interior design.
Although metal is used sparingly in interiors, the trend of combining it with other materials largely depends on the design, processing and quality of metal parts. Furniture parts such as handles and legs, decorative elements, lighting fixtures, and similar can make an incredible impact on the final impression of a product and, consequently, an entire interior.
Croatian designers are more inclined to local manufacturing, and Mihoković Metal Solutions has proven to be the right address for the production of custom-made parts for their concepts.
“We have been collaborating with designers and companies that supply products for luxury brands for a long period of time. The quality of the materials used, the production process and finishing are key to succeeding in such a market,” says Marina Mihoković Dvorski, Sales Director at Mihoković Metal Solutions.
Marina Mihoković Dvorski(Photo: Marko Cuculić)
Notice how the careful processing of metal parts impacts the final product. Here are some of the successful collaborations between Mihoković Metal Solutions and Croatian designers in creating praiseworthy products.
(Photo: Marko Cuculić)
(Photo: Marko Cuculić)
MILLA & MILLI by Mundus Viridis
https://millamilli.com/
Milla & Milli, a brand of the Croatian wood processing company Mundus Viridis, uses metal as a substructure and for additional parts in almost every one of their products made of wood as a base material.
Milla & Milli’s entire production is based in Croatia and Mihoković Metal Solutions is their long-standing partner when it comes to producing metal parts.
“Metal is not only a logical choice, but also the best option available. In addition to high load capacity and adaptability to different product requirements, high-quality processing supports a final product’s exceptional design. It’s extremely important for us that the parts we incorporate are of superior quality and Mihoković Metal Solutions has proven to be just that,” the designers of this collection explain.
DizzConcept – THE PIA KITCHEN
https://www.dizzconcept.com/kuhinja-pia
When closed, the PIA kitchen looks like a living room cabinet with an integrated TV and indented shelf area, ideal for showcasing a small sculpture. The TV and its electricity sockets are integrated into the door hinge support. Besides saving space, it’s also possible to direct the TV screen at an angle of up to 180 degrees.
Marina Mihoković Dvorski explains the manufacturing process itself: “During production there’s always a certain amount of flexibility and adaptation to the concept brought to us by a designer or company. Laser cutting technology gives us numerous possibilities, along with our machines and tools for bending shapes, of course. Also, the joining parts need to be invisible, and this is achieved by sanding the joints later in the production process. Metal plasticization provides countless color options as well as gloss, matte, smooth and textured surface effects.”
We asked the designers more about their choice of materials for this project.
“Using metal in the PIA pop-up kitchen’s design wasn’t unintentional. The idea was to create an innovative, simple, functional, high-quality and visually unobtrusive product, and choosing metal as the base material contributed to all the desired characteristics,” designers from the DizzConcept collective share.
When asked what they would highlight from their collaboration with Mihoković Metal Solutions, they draw attention to environmental sustainability on both sides involved in the production process.
“We are focused on continuous improvements in environmental protection and pollution prevention while creating innovative solutions for small spaces. Working with a local metal manufacturer on this project enabled us to achieve a high level of efficiency in the use of natural resources and reduce our carbon footprint during the entire production process,” DizzConcept collective adds.
KP DIZAJN – TOVAR
Another one of Mihoković Metal Solutions’ collaborations with designers brings an interesting piece of interior decoration made entirely of metal.
Tovar is a minimalistic redesign of a traditional Mediterranean souvenir made of wood. It’s available in purple, yellow and blue, and the design is by Jasmina K. Pahič from KPdizajn.
“We’re primarily an interior design studio, but we also work on product design – mainly decorative items,” says Jasmina, a Croatian designer with an address in Koper, Slovenia.
“I’ve designed several objects from metal. I love exploring the various possibilities of this material. I’m primarily impressed by its durability and longevity. When you work with a material, over time you learn how it behaves, what its processing methods are, what you can do with it – and then your design adapts to those properties,” she adds.
We also asked Jasmina how she chose a Croatian manufacturer for this metal ornament.
“For any designer, it’s extremely important to find the right manufacturing partners for a concept to come to life. Our new Tovar series was made at Mihoković Metal Solutions, and as far as the collaboration is concerned – all I can say is that Tovar and I have finally found our place.”
GRUPA – DOT table
Kolekcija DOT sastoji se od dva pomoćna stolića različitih dimenzija i boja, koji se mogu kombinirati ili koristiti zasebno, ovisno o prostoru. DOT pomoćni stolići zamišljeni su kao nastavak Grupine kolekcije rasvjetnih tijela, dijeleći njihov vizualni stil i karakter.
The DOT collection consists of two side tables in different sizes and colors. Combined or placed separately, how the tables will be set up depends on the space they’re in. DOT side tables share the visual style and character of Grupa’s lighting design, acting as an extension to their previous collections.
DOT is an example of the use of metal as a base material and – in the case of this model – the only material. Their distinctive character was achieved with a metal substructure holding an aluminum plate.
“Our tendency of using metal in our product design has been present since the very beginning of our work as professionals. Metal ultimately reduces the amount of elements needed in the design of a product. For this reason, it serves as a material that is most compatible with what we consider the key characteristics that a product should satisfy. We apply our many years of working with this material – acquired knowledge, patterns and procedures – to the design and development of new products,” Tihana Taraba from Grupa tells us.
We asked the manufacturer what is most important to them when creating such products.
“Attention to detail is important during the engineering phase of the preparation, as well as all other stages of production. Manipulating parts at the production plant, running inspections during each process, and ensuring details such as precision in joining parts and the final protection i.e. packaging of the finished product – these factors make the difference,” says Marina Mihoković Dvorski.
Find out more about Mihoković Metal Solutions’ projects and services on www.mihokovic.hr
