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The ancient lustre of brass is being given a brand new sheen. From high-end designers to mass retailers, brass is re-emerging in lighting and home accessories, updating a material that has typically been used for bed headboards and, in India, traditional trays and pots.
Some say the trend derives from what's happening on the accessories scene, where hardware on handbags is being made from brass. In the hands of design visionaries in Japan, London, Russia and the US, brass retains its durability and pleasantly burnished gleam, but is being given a modern edge.
London-based designer Tom Dixon (www.tomdixon.net), who was named that city's designer of the year in 2006 and has worked on projects as diverse as a Habitat store in London, the Tokyo Hipster's Club and the Marie Helene de Taillac Boutique in Paris, has put out a series of brass Beat Lights (right). Available in three sizes, the ceiling pendant lights are made of hand-beaten brass, inspired by temples in India, and given a black patina. The result is something modern and architectural, with a whimsical ethnic feel.
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For the 'Tubes' by Studio T (www.blankblank.net), a design collective based in New York, brass is fashioned into sleek tubular shapes. In addition to wood and chromed steel, the brass lamps feature simple, sculptural pendant lines.
Brass lighting is being designed as much for commercial as residential spaces. Japan's Ubushina (www.ubushina.com) created a dramatic floor lamp in brass for the lobby of the Hotel Claska, in Meguro, Tokyo. The same material was picked up in pendant lights for the ceiling and wall-mounted lights. The original colour was maintained and no shading added.
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It's not just lamps and lights that are being given the brass treatment. The metal is a resurgent favourite for all types of home accents.
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