Justin Nagelberg and Matthew Waldman of design brand Nooka, have conceived The Sa, an innovative geometric umbrella that reimagines structure, form, and aesthetics, with improved efficiency and recyclability. Beyond it’s completely new canopy design, The Sa also innovates with its environmentally conscious material choices, has a completely innovative internalized handle mechanism and magnetic closure system, and features many other groundbreaking new features.
Like origami, The Sa uses planar tension to generate its form. The inner and outer canopies expand and contract in unison to open and close the umbrella. This new design allows the umbrella to be lighter, since it does not need the added weight of an inner metal skeleton. Also, since there are no exposed, moving components, the umbrella is stronger and will last longer. Furthermore, since the material is flexible when not in tension, it can easily bounce back into shape, even when exposed to high winds.
In addition to the completely new canopy form, this umbrella is also the first umbrella to use an internalized mechanism. This is possible because the distance between the open and closed positions on the Sa can be shorter than with traditional umbrellas.
To fully close the canopy, designers have embedded magnets along the perimeter of the panels. This will allow of an effortless, consistently tight closure of the umbrella. Also, when opening the umbrella, the magnets will naturally release themselves as the outward force increases.
The Sa can be preordered starting at $69 USD here.
all images and video courtesy of THE SA