LEXUS ANNOUNCES 2024 MIAMI ART & DESIGN WEEK INSTALLATION IN COLLABORATION WITH CRAFTING PLASTICS
Lexus has announced its collaboration with award-winning design and research studio Crafting Plastics to present an interactive, multi-sensory installation during Miami Art & Design Week 2024. In partnership with the Institute of Contemporary Art, Miami (ICA Miami), the installation will be on view in the Museum’s sculpture garden this December. To accompany the installation, Lexus will debut a new product extension developed in collaboration with clean fragrance brand DILO, for which four additional designers–Germane Barnes, Suchi Reddy, T. Sakhi, Michael Bennet (Studio Kër)–will join Crafting Plastics to create a capsule collection of 26 limited-edition collectible design objects.
Titled Liminal Cycles, the installation’s central sculpture is directly inspired by the Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV) Lexus LF-ZC concept car and is made from environmentally responsive bioplastic materials, welcoming viewers to explore Crafting Plastics’ and Lexus’ innovations in personalisation and responsiveness within responsible design. The installation will be on show from 4 December throughout Miami Art & Design Week.
Liminal Cycles will explore the developing concept of SDVs (Software Defined Vehicles), meaning a vehicle with software-enabled personalisation and adaptability. Taking its dedication to personal and responsible luxury to the next level, Lexus invites viewers on a multi-sensory exploration of the dynamic innovations in sustainable materials and reactive software, signalling toward a future of customisable in-vehicle experiences.
Through its collaboration with Crafting Plastics, Lexus will present four interactive and sensory-responsive sculptural pieces, including a central sculpture designed to reference the Lexus LF-ZC at scale. To embody Lexus’ ethos of connectivity, craftsmanship, sensory design, and commitment to advancing sustainability research, Liminal Cycles depicts the Lexus LF-ZC as a living, breathing organism in harmony with its surroundings. The four-part installation will engage viewers through sight, smell, sound and touch with reactive changes to the sculptures’ colour, amplified sound, and an aromatic mist the new Lexus in Design fragrance developed in partnership with DILO.
The central sculpture employs UV-responsive material skin and photochromic components to respond to environmental stimuli such as the viewer’s proximity and environmental conditions like temperature and light, in real-time. Alongside the central piece, two satellite installations transform interior design elements of the Lexus LF-ZC into interactive sensory experiences. The concept car’s steering wheel and headrest forms are each reimagined as complimentary sculptures, enlisting environmentally responsive technology to prompt visual, tactile, auditory and olfactory responses triggered by the viewer’s touch. Finally, a bioplastic lattice design and UV-responsive material skin are incorporated into a wind-activated third satellite sculpture, revealing the Lexus logo in a striking and unique optical experience emphasizing the ephemeral nature of materials derived from natural environments.
“We are thrilled to return to ICA Miami with another large-scale project, this time with revelatory design studio Crafting Plastics,” says Heather Updegraff, General Manager of Lexus International Strategic Communications.
Vlasta and Miroslav are pushing the boundaries of technological and material capabilities, and we are honoured to collaborate with them in creating an immersive work that represents some of the most exciting concepts being developed at Lexus today.”
Founded by Vlasta Kubušová and Miroslav Král, Crafting Plastics has quickly become a global advocate for the adoption of bioplastics within design and fashion industries. With their pioneering use of plant-based biopolymer materials to create design objects, installations, functional fashion items and accessories, Crafting Plastics continues to demonstrate the accessibility, durability, and functionality of biobased materials for varying use cases. The studio is credited with its groundbreaking development of the material brand, NUATAN, a plastic-like, bio-based material series that is biodegradable and made of 100% renewable resources, leaving no microplastics behind.
Guided by the intention to design products with a built-in lifespan, embracing both utility and an eventual reintegration into the natural world, Crafting Plastics’ practice ranges from small-scale products such as eyewear to large-scale installations and collaborations with renowned brands like Dior, Cash App, Nike, and more. Crafting Plastics has long been committed to expanding the possibilities of sustainable materials, making the duo a natural collaborator to join Lexus in its exploration of circular materials, technology, and personalisation.
“We’re honoured to collaborate with Lexus, whose commitment to sustainability and innovation, aligns closely with our own mission,” comments Vlasta Kubušová, co-founder of Crafting Plastics. “Through this collaboration we have fully integrated sustainable material innovation into a luxury context to showcase the potential of bio-based materials that are durable, scalable and responsive. We hope this sensory installation allows viewers to explore these possibilities in a tangible and memorable experience.”
2024 marks Lexus’ third year partnering with ICA Miami to present Lexus in Design during Miami Art & Design Week.
“Sustainability is a critical focus for ICA Miami in our practices across the museum, so it is wonderful to partner once again with Lexus to raise awareness about sustainable design,” said Alex Gartenfeld, Irma and Norman Braman Artistic Director of ICA Miami. “Vlasta and Miroslav have a truly innovative and exciting approach to using sustainable materials, and we are thrilled to provide this platform for their work.”
Accompanying the Liminal Cycles installation is a new Lexus in Design capsule collection developed in collaboration with a group of leading design talent as well as clean fragrance brand, DILO. Alongside Crafting Plastics, renowned designers Germane Barnes, Suchi Reddy, T. Sakhi, and Michael Bennet (aka Studio Kër) will each create editions of distinct design objects. Each edition of five will embody the core aspects of Lexus’ brand ethos–personalisation, sustainability, materiality, technology, and performance. DILO will create a custom scent inspired by the collection, which will be integrated into the Liminal Cycles installation and design objects and will also be featured as a limited-edition candle.
The limited-edition collection will be on view and available for purchase at ICA Miami, coinciding with the unveiling of Liminal Cycles. Design objects from the capsule collection and the limited-edition Lexus in Design candle will be available for purchase at HBX.com with sales profits going toward support of ICA Miami’s sustainability initiatives.
Returning this year will be the Lexus Art Series: Art and Innovation talks with Whitewall, a program of engaging discussions between Lexus collaborators, ambassadors, and industry leaders across the art and design worlds. Details on the Lexus Art Series are to be announced.
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