First came aquariums: glass sided pools or glass tanks in which living aquatic animals or plants are kept. Then sleek infinity pools began to introduce the glass-sided feature into luxury hotels and domestic settings. Now, Axolo‘s Exence takes the trend to our bathrooms. Scaled-down, domesticated and accessible, it “is an exceptional equilibrium of lines and volumes in a synthesis formed by simplicity and refinement.”

Exence. Designed by Giovanni Ronzoni, Luisia Frigeria and Fabrizio Proserpio for Axolo.

Designed by Giovanni Ronzoni, Luisia Frigeria and Fabrizio Proserpio, Exence is “an absolute protagonist in the innovation and in the development of the furnishing concept according to Axolo in order to transform everyday life into everyday living.”  The refined Italian design is a far cry from your traditional functional bathroom fixtures.  Sculptural and fluid, the “counter surface” morphs into a sink.  A rectangular column structures the system, anchoring the unit to the ground and providing drainage for the sink, a surface for the faucet and storage. Its solid form provides sharp contrast to the ethereal glass sink which emerges from the wall and appears to float over the ground. “First quality materials, among which multi-layered wood lacquered with ebony, the sinuous form of the washbasin realized with curves crystal integrated into the furniture, the mixing tap and siphon inserted into the rigorous [structure] become the maximum expression of aesthetics.”

Charles Martino’s Fold sink for I Conci, a freestanding sink with its subtle creasing affect (achieved in a two-inch thick slab of marble) is another example of sculptural and unconventional bathroom design.  Neither piece solves storage concerns or strives to be the ultimate in functionality – but instead operates as a piece of art.