hem debuts collaborations with luca nichetto and arthur arbesser at stockholm design week

continuing to work with the world’s leading designers, swedish brand hem are launching their latest pieces in conjunction with stockholm design week 2018. venetian designer luca nichetto adds a floor lamp to the alphabeta lighting series and a trio of geometric throws by emerging fashion designer arthur arbesser take their place among a light-filled stockroom exhibiting the brand’s wide selection of versatile and affordable furniture and homewares.

all images courtesy of hem

swedish for home, hem‘s launch forms part of the brand’s mission to democratise design, streamlining processes and offering high design at affordable prices all over the world. together with vanguard designers and renowned european manufacturers, hem celebrates scandinavian design principles in a contemporary fashion, championing shipping efficiency, a feat they owe to the success of their digital channel and going directly from factory to consumer.

as part of the new launches, lucha nichetto introduces a floor lamp to the brand’s alphabeta family, a series of digitally customizable pendant lights debuted by the swedish favourite back in 2015. nichetto reimagins the design as a bi-directional floor lamp taking off from the design of a microphone stand which allows the piece to be easily adjusted and compacted.

offered in 1,024 different configurations, the alphabeta floor lamp can be customised using eight different shapes and four colourways. a chameleon-like lighting system customisable using an online configurator with a variety of choices that like the alphabet can be brought together with varying results and different definitions.

‘alphabeta is the classic lamp that you might buy as a single person but then move in with your girlfriend and you can buy another shade for your new needs‘, nichetto explains. ‘in that way you carry this product forever. this is a new ‘eco’ approach, not just using ecologically sound materials but creating a product that is as flexible and nomadic as the user.’

no stranger to hem, milan-based fashion designer arthur arbesser presents his fourth textile with the brand, returning to his origins and drawing from vienna’s design history. woven from thick 100% new zealand wool, the 3 designs echo modernist’s josef hoffman and wiener wekstätte’s favor of clean lines, whilst adding a two more playful components: colour and irregularity.

‘I admire how a certain kind of rigour, discipline and clear, precise lines are often mixed with soft, light and comfortable elements‘, arbesser comments. ‘however, I always add a playful, cheerful component that usually comes as a color. the throws I designed for hem aptly reflect my creative vision: geometric, timeless patterns are designed in deliberately chosen color compositions.’

hem was founded with the aim of offering quality design to everyone by streamlining processes and production methods. ‘the launch is a testament to hem’s commitment to democratizing quality design by working with the world’s leading creatives to come up with accessible design solutions,‘ hem’s founder and CEO, petrus palmér explains. 

a central saint martins graduate and now seasoned designer, arbesser is a fast emerging talent in europe. in 2013 he launched his own womenswear label, describing it as sophisticated yet bursting with energy and has since worked with italian online fashion retailer yoox on a capsule collection and become the creative director of italian label fay.