Designed by Frenchman Philippe Starck and manufactured by Germany’s Hansgrohe, the Axor Starck V mixer has at its heart a vortex of water. The magic begins when the glass tap is turned on – hit play and experience it for yourself:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hDJhhFy9gb8

Hansgrohe wanted to make the invisible visible by controlling and sculpting the water into a vortex, once they had done that Starck enigmatically says he just ‘drew a shape around it’ to create the design for the tap.

“Axor Starck V is a revolution, the essence of minimalism – a vortex, this wonder of nature, surrounded by complete transparency,” said designer Philippe Starck when describing the basic concept of his minimalist design. A body made of transparent crystal glass, so that you can see the vortex spin. An organic and sculptural shape, giving full scope to the vortex.

In addition to its beauty the mixer also boasts functionality.  The easy click-in design and safety-stop function make it really easy to remove the glass body from its base to clean it, for example – even without having to close the valve. The material has also been very carefully selected: crystal glass is high-quality and also dirt-resistant, which means that it can also be cleaned conveniently in the dishwasher.

The incredible faucet is available for regular drop-in sinks and vessel sinks (as a single hole installation) and as a two hole installation. In addition to the chrome and high-gloss white variant, the Axor manufacturing department also offers 12 other exclusive finishes, such as brushed nickel for the base and a sandblasted crystal glass variant for the body.

No matter which you choose, you’ll spend a lot of time watching the mixer create the vortex of water and send it along for your use. A transparent process, and one we have never given much thought to, will now endlessly fascinate us. It’s almost a shame to hide it in the bathroom!

Pictures: Hansgrohe