Jean Nouvel designs “dazzling and lasting” kitchen for Reform - Archinect

Image: Reform / Jean Nouvel

Jean Nouvel has collaborated with Danish design company Reform on a new kitchen unit, the first designed by the Pritzker Prize-winning architect. Described as “tight and minimalist, yet characteristically dazzling and lasting,” the kitchen is defined by an understated, art deco design language. The kitchen is available in black or untreated metal, both featuring a monochrome design activated by diffuse reflections across their surface.

The kitchen is constructed of steel imbued with vertical ridges, finished in a high gloss, reflective surface. The countertops are available in stainless steel with gray and black Fenix laminate, complimenting and accentuating the unit’s reflectivity.

“Jean Nouvel and Reform occupy different ends of the design spectrum,” Reform said in a statement. “Where Jean Nouvel concerns himself with creating ‘visual landscapes’, Reform is dedicated to delivering extraordinary, yet accessible kitchen design. What the two parties have in common, however, is empathy with their audiences––a deep-seated need to create pleasant environments where human beings are stimulated and feel at ease. The kitchen is the manifestation of those similar sensibilities converging in a lasting kitchen with a vibrant and inviting atmosphere.”

The kitchen will be available from September 2021. News of the collaboration comes weeks after Ateliers Jean Nouvel released a construction update of the Hekla Tower for Paris’ La Défense district. Earlier this year, meanwhile, the French studio were announced as winners of a design competition for the Shenzhen Opera House with their project titled “Light of the Sea.”

Jean Nouvel is one of a number of major architects who have engaged in the design of kitchen units. Previously, BIG, Henning Larsen, and NORM Architects all collaborated with Reform on a series of “hacked IKEA kitchen cabinets.” For further inspiration, earlier this year our editorial team curated a series of 10 kitchen designs from around the world.