Leisure and design

Items of equipment used for sport and leisure have one thing in common: at least one piece of aluminium. This is because the use of aluminium brings lightness and reliability to our leisure activities and is thus also preferred for use in professional sports. Photo: Teufel Lautsprecher

Top performances using aluminium

In sport, aluminium helps ambitious amateurs and professionals achieve their goals. For example, aluminium studs give footballers the right grip and cycle frames made from aluminium provide racing cyclists with the necessary stability und lightness. Even if it is only a piece of aluminium in the shape of a carbine swivel that performs reliably when climbing Mount Everest, aluminium is an extremely robust and corrosion resistant material that one can rely on – even in tricky situations. Photo: Specialized

Aluminium lightens the load of everyday life

Many articles of daily use are made from or contain aluminium for reasons of functionality and/or aesthetics. Whether it be aluminium pans, aluminium foil or aluminium ladders. A simple comparison shows how aluminium lightens life’s daily burden.

Furthermore, the flexible design and elegant appearance of aluminium is an inspiration around the house and at work. Because office furniture and interior design elements made from aluminium create a luxurious ambience that fascinates time and time again.

Even textile designers are now turning to aluminium when they want to integrate certain shiny effects in materials in order to interpret articles of clothing anew. For instance, fancy yarn in shirts and blouses or in ladies’ stockings – for a dazzling appearance. This demands high-tech solutions in the processing of aluminium.

Living in an elegant ambience

Today, living means more than just having a roof over one’s head. It reflects the character of the occupants and their personal attitude to life. In the kitchen, silvery fronts made from aluminium are increasingly replacing the country style favoured by grandma and aluminium bed-frames are a good selling line for a Swedish furniture store. Aluminium is not only a trendy material whose flexibility and formability causes every designer’s heart to miss a beat, it has also proven itself in every way and thus captured a firm place in German homes and offices.

Best entertainment using aluminium

Aluminium is the optimal link in the symbiosis between design and technology. Aluminium is therefore increasingly being used to embellish entertainment media such as hi-fi units or MP3 players. Brushed aluminium can be used for optical upgrading as well as for functional elements. Thanks to aluminium, the soft-touch elements that have already been used repeatedly by discerning manufacturers only require material that is a few millimetres thick. Photo: Lautsprecher Teufel

Aluminium in product design

Aldo Rossi’s La Cupola espresso coffee maker, the Hot Bertaa kettle or Philippe Starck’s long-legged Juicy Salif lemon squeezer, all made by Alessi, are examples of products where the designer has chosen aluminium because of its properties in order to achieve the desired shape and functionality.

A multitude of product designers use aluminium to optimise every aspect of everyday objects, whether wall lamps or pendants in ever new fanciful shapes, picture frames, writing utensils or everyday items such as ladders or cookware. 

Aluminium in fine art

Finally, aluminium is also popular in fine art, for example, for creating sculptures with a novel iconography that are also resistant to the elements when placed in the open.

Further innovations are foamed aluminium or aluminium artefacts for the design of individual surface structures, and both industry and artists will make greater use of these in equal measure in the future.

Ecologically expedient and sustainable

Aluminium plays out its strengths even after the utilisation phase has come to an end because aluminium parts can be recycled without loss in a resource-conserving manner and then used in a new application. Aluminium is thus an efficient and eco-friendly material. Awareness of trends and the environment combines with aluminium to create a positive balance for the future.

Aluminium encyclopaedia

Sports equipment

Equipment made from aluminium is used in many sports, from mountaineering to hiking, mainly because of weight saving.

Art

Aluminium is used as a material in sculpture and architecture as well as a background in painting.