Clean/Design: ALAPE's washbasins and washstands

Good design is often invisible. Which is not to say insignificant. On the contrary, where design is not mainly about representation, but is applied to serve everyday needs, the interaction of form and function plays an essential role. A prime example of this is the bathroom. After all, generally speaking, we wash daily. A look at the long history of the bathroom and the culture associated with it shows the central importance of this activity, which in addition to its hygienic purpose frequently possesses a spiritual dimension.

But it wasn’t until piped water became a standard feature of human dwellings that the bathroom started to take on real design-historical interest. The founding of the Alape company dates back to the beginnings of bath furnishings as we know them today (in more advanced form). Since 1896, the firm has given key impetus to the development of trend-setting washplace solutions. Innovation is a part of the DNA of the historic manufacturing company, which is a pioneer in its field in terms of both the appearance and materials of its products. Particularly in the area of washbasins and washstands, the interplay between the form, function and material is especially pronounced.

At Alape, the material is the basis for the development of intelligent and elegant design solutions for the bathroom. The use of high-quality glazed steel – a composite of metal and vitreous enamel – is the ideal starting point for the visual and functional translation of the attractive material properties into products. Glazed steel not only combines the advantages of the two components, steel and glass – including scratch- and UV-resistance – but effectively creates the very prerequisite for formal clarity. Alape’s puristic design vocabulary is conceived in part in collaboration with outside design and architectural firms (for example, sieger design).

In developing its product lines, Alape takes into account the changing habits of consumers as well as new trends in the placement of the bath within the home. Today, the bathroom has become an architectural space – a circumstance that demands greater flexibility in planning. Alape pays close attention to the optimal interplay of design and architecture. The modular structure and flexibility of many of the company’s products allow custom design of the bath, which has evolved from a room of hygienic utility into a refuge of relaxation and pleasure in our hectic times.

The modularity of the products and the tremendous adaptability of glazed steel simplify the free planning and design of personalised bathroom environments. Solutions can be tailored to the respective needs and aesthetic preferences of the end customer as well as the different requirements of a project, drawing from the manufacturer’s large range of models. Where space is especially limited, Alape provides a wide selection of very small washplaces.

Washstands, for example, are freely configurable, allowing adaptation to complex spatial situations. The trend towards more colour in the bathroom is reflected in the diverse materials and surfaces in Alape’s programme of complementary furnishings, as well as in the basins and washstands themselves. Here, discreet architectural tones are enjoying increasing popularity – for example, anthracite and, in the Scandinavian countries, even black. An additional theme is surfaces such as matt enamel, which offers a special haptic quality. This variety means true added value.

And this is to remain so in the future. In keeping with the idea on which it was founded, Alape continues to research and advance new technological possibilities. By no means does this attitude stand in contradiction to the masterful craftsmanship that sets the company’s manufacturing processes apart. Rather, these competencies are perfectly united to create Alape’s distinguished contemporary design.

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