Swedish woven vinyl flooring producer, Bolon, has launched Elements, an exciting new flooring collection that brings the harmony of the natural world to interior spaces and the staff who operate there. “Elements provides a canvas for people to thrive,” says Petra Lundblad from Bolon’s design team.
Johannesburg and Cape Town-based KBAC Flooring, which this year is celebrating 50 years of operations, is the sole SA distributor of Bolon.
Demonstrating the positive effect that inspired design can have on human senses and wellbeing, the Elements collection reflects the tonality and textures of the natural environment. Its two warp threads have a grey and beige base woven into weft threads with shades that evoke elements such as oak, ash, cork, birch, marble, walnut, flint, wool, linen and silk. The weft threads run horizontally while warp threads are strung vertically on the loom.
With sustainability always a priority for Bolon, Elements’ development is based around a new type of yarn developed by Bolon’s R&D team: a profiled H-thread with a soft look but with enough resilience to cope with the high foot traffic common in large spaces. This means designers can use it to great effect across large areas to create a sense of unity in spaces of all sizes.
For the creation of Elements, Bolon commissioned the celebrated Shanghai-based design practice, Neri & Hu, to fashion an installation that communicates a contemporary, nature-inspired look that combines Scandinavian and East Asian design traditions. Neri & Hu says a tremendous amount of passion is woven into the Bolon fabric with each thread carefully chosen. “The creation of Elements was an inspiring collaboration that we will hopefully extend to future projects,” the company states.
The 10 designs of the Elements collection are available in rolls and 50cm x 50cm tiles with acoustic backing as an option. The new flooring – which has a 15-year warranty – is made from up to 33% recyclable material and is easy to clean without the need for chemicals.
Written by Jan de Beer
