Formafantasma uses saxophones and a brass pendulum to track the passing of time
London Design Festival 2014: Italian design duo Formafantasma has installed a range of unusual timepieces in the showroom of British furniture brand Established & Sons.
Andrea Trimarchi and Simone Farresin of Formafantasma created the time-themed installation, titled From Then On, to mark Established & Sons' tenth anniversary.
"From Then On was an ambitious proposal from a design studio I greatly admire," said Established & Sons CEO Maurizio Mussati. "We made a joint decision to look at the passing of time, with our tenth anniversary approaching."
Each of the clocks by the duo marks the passing of time using the qualities of a different material.
The first is made from a disk of white Carrara marble, split into a central circular section and a surrounding ring.
The clock shows the passing of an hour using a prominent vein running through the centre of the face, which rotates 360 degrees over 60 minutes to align on the hour.
Another piece comprises two saxophones hooked up to a frame, programmed to sound every 15 minutes to "announce and celebrate the experience of daily life as it evolves".
A fan that opens around a brass disk gradually unfolds over the space of five minutes, forming a full circle before snapping back shut.
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The final clock comprises a long brass rod with a small brush on its end, hung from a horizontal beam.
The pole swings like a pendulum so the bristles sweep back and forth over a curved brass strip every second, polishing the material bit by bit to prevent oxidisation.
From Then On will remain at Established & Sons' showroom, 5-7 Wenlock Road, N1 7SL, for the duration of the London Design Festival, which continues until 21 September.
Photography is by Peer Lindgreen.