Studio Drift

Merging natural forms with state-of-the-art technology, the Dutch design duo creates daring light installations that ignite the imagination.

- Hannah Martin

Punctuating the courtyard of London’s CitizenM hotel, 14 newly installed light fixtures rise and fall in rhythm, each one swathed in water-resistant fabric and suspended by a motorized steel cable. Midair, the sail-like pendants balloon out, catching the wind in their bellies and occasionally whipping back and forth, like a troupe of renegade petticoats. Guests can’t help but stop and stare.

Hypnotic and magical, the project marks the first outdoor installation by Studio Drift, the Amsterdam design firm founded by Ralph Nauta and Lonneke Gordijn in 2006. “We had to think about the rain, the cold, the docking station that would power the lights overnight,” says Nauta, adding that the courtyard fixtures expand upon the duo’s Shylight series, examples of which can be found at the Dutch city’s Rijksmuseum.