Huguet
Our team at Pentagram were invited to collaborate with the Mallorcan artisan hydraulic tile, cement and terrazzo producer Huguet to create a unique collection of tiles and objects. These tiles are data visualizations of Frederic Chopin’s famous 24 Preludes, which the composer wrote while living in Mallorca from 1838 to 1839. Their designs fuse the math-based nature of musical notation with the lyrical experience of listening to each piece.
Each tile visualizes one of the 24 compositions, with different shapes and colours representing defining musical elements. Colour denotes whether the piece was written in a major key (reds, pinks, and yellows) or minor key (blues and greens). Thick horizontal stripes represent tempo, with more bars signifying a greater number of beats per minute. Conversely, thick vertical stripes signify the number of octaves each piece covers. The run time of each piece, in minutes, is shown by thinner, white bars running vertically. Finally, the musical characteristic of each piece—elegiac, scherzoidal, cantabile, and more—is visualized by the primary geometric shape that gives each title its defining character.
Full project details︎
In collaboration with Giorgia Lupi, Ting Fang Cheng, Phil Cox.
Designed in Illustrator. 2021.
Each tile visualizes one of the 24 compositions, with different shapes and colours representing defining musical elements. Colour denotes whether the piece was written in a major key (reds, pinks, and yellows) or minor key (blues and greens). Thick horizontal stripes represent tempo, with more bars signifying a greater number of beats per minute. Conversely, thick vertical stripes signify the number of octaves each piece covers. The run time of each piece, in minutes, is shown by thinner, white bars running vertically. Finally, the musical characteristic of each piece—elegiac, scherzoidal, cantabile, and more—is visualized by the primary geometric shape that gives each title its defining character.
Full project details︎
In collaboration with Giorgia Lupi, Ting Fang Cheng, Phil Cox.
Designed in Illustrator. 2021.
