Carry a light to rediscover furniture

On the occasion of Architect@Work in Stuttgart Walter Knoll, Nimbus and Stylepark together hosted a leisurely get-together at Fleiner Möbel by architare.

They’re queuing up at the entrance, in a perfect line as in Schiller’s day the students of the Karlsschule did in near-by Ludwigsburg, where Duke Karl Eugen once sought to raise the elite for his fiefdom. But those in the queue today have no wigs or tricorn hats. The new, battery-powered Roxxane Leggera 101 CL luminaires by Nimbus can stand anywhere as they don’t use cables and power sockets, and are as practical as they are functional. Not a matter of old hat by any means! So you simply grab a luminaire from the small host of them and head off. Because on the first three floors of Fleiner Möbel by architare someone had turned the main lights off.

To make certain the countless visitors, and there are many architects and interior designers among them, don’t get lost, the stairwells are illuminated by the compact and colorful Roxxane Fly, which glue to the glass fillings in the stairs as if they had always been part of things. And in the expansive rooms, specimens of the equally cordless Roxxane Leggera 52 CL table-top luminaire complement the joyous lighting spectacle. It’s a bit as if you were moving through a dark forest in which there are any number of secrets to be discovered. Robert Volhard, founder and Managing Director of Stylepark, commented on this in his short address, saying that when he wandered around the rooms cloaked in mysterious darkness and filled with luxurious things he felt a bit like a child in wonderland.

Thus, on one of the floors guests can discover a counter in one corner where you can not only find out all about the different types of leather that are used by Walter Knoll. As here, with expert advice at your elbow, you can test the different leather qualities with your own hands and using a magnifying glass actually see the differences between leather dyed right through and leather with a lacquered surface. It is no surprise that Walter Knoll has always attached great importance to craftsmanship and quality. But you can’t always feel the difference for yourself the way you can here – from the “Cashmere” nappa as soft as supple gloves through thick “Havanna” leather to sturdy saddle leather for shelves.

If you have managed after all the fun of discovery things managed to reach the very top, namely the fourth floor, then it is to find a drink and delicacies by Vincenzo Paradiso awaiting you. You can then lounge on a Walter Knoll sofa or armchair – and enjoy the evening in scintillating conversations about furniture, architecture, the trade fair, and much more besides. And anyone wanting a breath of fresh wintery air – outside on the roof terrace there’s a fireplace, mold wine, and Christmassy lights all round.

I don’t know who it was who had the bright idea of turning of the lights to force you to walk around with a light of your own to discover the wonderful world of furniture, but it was a stroke of genius.

Text: Thomas Wagner, Stylepark
Fotos: Oliver Lichtblau
Partners: Walter Knoll, Fleiner Möbel by architare, Stuttgart