April 2013
1 post
It will be 10 years this summer since I moved in to the mighty city of London. I feel like I came to a point where it is ‘questioning’ time! Is London the right city to continue the minuscular life of mine? I decided to point out 5 top cities to live. So far I got: London, New York, Sydney, Tokyo, Berlin…
Berlin: never been (next in my trip list). New York: too aggressive....
July 2012
10 posts
1 tag
BBC Live Interview
The BBC live interview went really well! Here is the link you can listen to it (approx for 3mins: starting 0:40:09, ending 0:43:00).
1 tag
EL Sajjadah on BBC News Website!
As of this morning, we are on BBC News website! There is a nice video there, which will give you further insight into EL Sajjadah and our studio.
Also, we just received a call from the nice people of BBC and they asked us to talk about EL Sajjadah on their NewsHour programme 20:50 BST. And we said YES :)
This is going to be a LIVE programme and you will be able to listen to it here at World...
1 tag
EL Sajjadah on BBC Uzbekistan
Following our interview with the BBC this week, EL Sajjadah has appeared on the BBC Uzbekistan website. Take a look here (if you can speak Uzbek!).
1 tag
EL Sajjadah on Milliyet news website, Turkey
Read the article here.
1 tag
EL Sajjadah on Hurriyet, Turkey
See the article here.
1 tag
EL Sajjadah on Turkish News Website TRT
See the article here.
1 tag
EL Sajjadah on news site Haber Turk, Turkey
Read the article, accompanied with video, here
1 tag
EL Sajjadah You Tube video goes viral!
The Kickstarter Campaign video has had over 100k views in just 4 days!
As you will all appreciate, this is a big number! We cannot help but think: ‘If every single person out of that 100K people had pledged $1 each, then we would have already reached our $100,000 goal!’ :)
3 tags
Tetris Mirror & CMYK Shades installed at Nesta
CMYK Shade and Tetris Mirror have been selected to go on display at the Nesta Headquarters in London.
Nesta is an independent charity which aims to help people and organisations bring great ideas to life. They do this by providing investments and grants, and by mobilising research, networks and skills. They will be displaying 12 CMYK shades in each of their different colour combinations, and a...
1 tag
Holy Tech! EL Sajjadah is on Mashable
Today Mashable, one of the most influential technology blogs in the websphere posted about EL Sajjadah. This is great news for us, as Mashable have almost 3 million followers on Twitter, so it’s going out to a huuuuge worldwide audience!
Twitter has gone mad following the post, quickly becoming the trending topic! Literally hundreds of people have retweeted so far. Here’s a few of...
June 2012
7 posts
1 tag
EL Sajjadah on The Atlantic Cities blog
“Typically, to find the location of Mecca for the necessary five prayers per day, the world’s 1.6-billion Muslims might use a Qibla compass or a street sign. Outdoorsy types might use the sun’s location or moss on the trees. But in a world of ubiquitous GPS, surely there has to be a better, or at least nerdier, way.
Enter the Soner Ozenc Product Design Studio, which has...
EL Sajjadah on Core77 once again!
We were excited today to see that technology blog Core77 have picked up on our Kickstarter campaign, and have covered EL Sajjadah for a second time on their blog.
Astute readers (and design enthusiasts) might remember “EL Sajjadah” from MoMA’s Talk to Me exhibition, where it was very well-received; Soner is pleased to announce that it’s ready for production via...
1 tag
EL Sajjadah on Trend Hunter
With nearly 1.6 billion Muslim’s in the world, most of whom take their religious practice very seriously, it is surprising that certain items have not been brought into the 21st century like many other aspect of their lives; the EL Sajjadah Prayer Mat endeavors to do just that.
See the whole article here.
1 tag
EL Sajjadah on Design Launches
If divine intervention is what you seek, UK-based Soner Ozenc’s design is bound to have you praying harder.
See the whole article here.
1 tag
EL Sajjadah on Crazy Engineers blog
this could very well be the bridge of cultural understanding, while the Muslim community continues to practice its faith.
See the whole blog post here.
2 tags
inhabitat keeping a close eye on SOPDS...
Some kind words about SOPDS and EL Sajjadah on inhabitat today!
On SOPDS…
For years we’ve been keeping a close eye on UK-based Soner Ozenc, of SOPDS (Soner Ozenc Product Design Studio), who has wowed us repeatedly with his electroluminescent designs.
On EL Sajjadah…
Considering the long history and sublime beauty that marks Islamic art, this modern take on a centuries-old...
4 tags
Domestic Sluttery Blog Loving SOPDS Mirror range
Home & lifestyle blog Domestic Sluttery are rather keen on the SOPDS mirror range, with special mention to Tetris Mirror:
Soner Ozenc mirrors are neither expensive nor ugly. They’re super and rather good value. I love the Tetris mirror above, which is a magic £38. THIRTY EIGHT POUNDS! I’ve been wincing at prices in the hundreds for Venetian monstrosities that I don’t...
April 2012
2 posts
1 tag
Tetris Mirror goes down well with it8bit blog...
‘Made up of thirteen interlocking parts that together form a perfect rectangle, but can be re-arranged any way your line-clearing heart desires. Make your own with the step by step tutorial at instructables.’
Tetris Mirror received many ‘likes’ and ‘re blogs’ by it8bit readers, click here to see the post, and scroll down to see the great reaction!
1 tag
Tetris Mirror Instructable!
We have just published a guide to making your own Tetris Mirror on the Instructables website, click here to check it out. It has also been entered into the website’s game.life2challenge competition, so please vote if you think it’s a winner!
October 2011
1 post
1 tag
The Grindist Sees El Sajjadah's Market Potential
‘Grindists should find it an inspiring and practical window into the future of creativity and work, as well as a provocative look at how the commercial world misses some potential uses of technology. Imagine the market potential, for instance, of Soner Ozenc’s prayer rug, that lights up when it’s pointed in the direction of Mecca, the Qibla towards which more than a billion Muslims are meant...
September 2011
6 posts
1 tag
El Sajjadah Inspiring Artists
It seems El Sajjadah has recently inspired the very talented pop up book designer Robert Sabuda:
‘To get new ideas, Mr. Sabuda looks to other fields, such as architecture, fine art and industrial design, for inspiration. His latest discovery came from a Museum of Modern Art exhibit about communication between people and objects. The exhibit included a Muslim prayer rug with...
1 tag
'Talk to Me' Review by Art Tattler
‘Thoughtful projects in the exhibition connect religious practices and rituals with contemporary technology. Examples include Soner Ozenc’s El Sajjadah• (2005), a Muslim prayer rug that lights up when correctly positioned facing Mecca’
Read the full review here
1 tag
'Talk to Me' Review by The City Review
‘This prayer rug stood out in a show filled with dazzling innovations.’ The City Review
Read the full review here.
1 tag
Revolutionary Cool Sajjadah 1426
‘Soner Ozenc is the master thoughts behind this Sajjadah 1426. is a little carpet utilized by Muslims as a base which will offer a clear and isolated platform to carry out their prayers. It is not compulsory but wouldn’t it be fantastic to have this mini sajjadah that can show and direct towards the holy metropolis of Mecca which is the direction that Muslims ought to carry out their...
1 tag
El Sajjadah in Web Magazine Sensory Impact
“When the average person travels 7,400 miles a year, it is easy to appreciate why a Muslim might invest in the ‘Sajadah 1426’. Muslims pray five times daily towards the direction of Mecca, and whilst a plethora of gizmos and gadgets, not least the humble compass, can come in handy for the job, Soner Ozenc has designed an all-in-one solution.”
Read the whole post here
1 tag
PhysComp : What is Physical Interaction ?
‘Bumbed to see fabrics and technology combined so beautifully.’ Yoonjo is Exposed
Read the whole blog post here
August 2011
4 posts
1 tag
Illywords Review of 'Talk to Me' at MoMA
‘Others offer simple solutions to problems most people didn’t even imagine existed: Soner Ozenc’s El Sajjadah came up with a Muslim prayer rug that lights up when correctly positioned facing Mecca.’
Read the full article here
1 tag
Through the Eyes of a Lotus
Lotusland Fine Art posted a couple of photo’s of El Sajjadah on their photo blog, visit the blog here.
1 tag
Design, Interface and The Future of Technology
El Sajjadah prayer mat mentioned in article on Future Learning Spaces website
‘this transcendental mixture of technology and ritual – is precisely the aim behind Soner Ozenc’s El Sajjadah, a Muslim prayer rug that makes use of electroluminescent printing technologies to point the person in the direction of Mecca, increasing its brightness as it is rotated in the correct direction.’...
1 tag
Islam Today Features El Sajjadah
‘An Islamic prayer rug that lights up when facing Mecca is one of among a hundred items on display at the Museum of Modern Art’s new exhibition which takes a closer look at how people communicate with machines.’
See the full article here.
July 2011
8 posts
1 tag
El Sajjadah on CNET News
‘In another religious-themed display, U.K. design studio Soner Ozenc created El Sajjadah, a prayer rug that points the praying person in the direction of Mecca via a compass module that connects with electroluminescent prints on the rug’s surface. The pattern on the carpet grows brighter and brighter as the rug is turned in the right direction.’ Leslie Katz, CNET News
1 tag
El Sajjadah Gets First Mention in Huffington Post...
‘Mounted in the air is “El Sajjadah,” an electroluminescent prayer rug that lights up as it is turned in the direction of Mecca.’ Paul Needham, Huffington Post.
See the full write up for the MoMA exhibition ‘Talk to Me’ here
1 tag
El Sajjadah in New York Times Review
El Sajjadah prayer mat was pictured and mentioned as an object with “practical and potentially life changing applications” in the recent New York Times write up on MoMA’s Exhibition ‘Talk to Me’. See the whole review here.
1 tag
The New Conversation, 'Talk to Me' Review
‘“El Sajjadah” is a rug embedded with a compass module that points the prayerful in the direction of Mecca; the carpet pattern glows brighter as it gets closer to its exact position.’
Read in full here.
1 tag
El Sajjadah on You Say Too Website
‘As one of the main aims of a~Sajjadah 1426′ was to emphasize the values of the patterns on the prayer rug, lighting those patterns up was considered as the main approach from the very first stages of the concept. There were several technology alternatives to achieve this effect: mini LEDs, fibre optics, EL wire embroidery and EL panel. After the experiments done, the most appropriate one...
1 tag
Animal New York Selects Best Bits from 'Talk to...
‘It’s like Pee Wee’s Playhouse for brilliant geniuses at MoMA’s special exhibit Talk To Me,rounding up a whopping 194 communication-themed works, interfaces, devices and visualizations. There’s a finger implant that reads aloud into an ear implant, a plastic wide-open-mouth prosthesis for awkward mumblers, a Muslim prayer robo-rug that lights up neon when facing Mecca and so much more,...
1 tag
Wall Street Journal Picks El Sajjadah as...
‘Turkish-born Soner Ozenc created an electroluminescent sheet entitled “El Sajjadah.” Serving as a prayer rug, the glowing item is embedded with a compass module. As the person praying turns the rug in the correct direction, the carpet pattern’s brightness grows.’ Alexandra Cheney, Speakeasy, Wall Street Journal.
To Read the whole article click here
1 tag
El Sajjadah a Favourite for Core77
‘Life displays ways designers search for the “meaning of life in their own empirical and suggestive ways; two of our faves are Soner Ozenc’s “El Sajjadah,” a prayer mat that lights up when positioned to face Mecca and Goldsmiths University London’s “The Prayer Companion,” a T-shaped ticker that gives cloistered nuns real-time news of world issues...
May 2011
2 posts
1 tag
El Sajjadah Part of 'New Olds' Exhibition in...
‘Depending on the time of year, Muslims may pray up to three times every day while it is dark – the prayers at 6 pm, midnight, and 6 am. And although one might be reluctant to look at profane issues associated with such a deeply founded religious ritual, it makes sense to ask about suitable lighting for prayers in darkness. To date this question was solved by means of quite normal...
1 tag
CMYK Shade in New York Times
CMYK featured in the Home section of the New York Times today!
April 2011
1 post
1 tag
El Sajjadah Appears in Video on NY1
Click here to see the video, you’ll find El Sajjadah 57 seconds in…
March 2011
1 post
1 tag
El Sajjadah on id BEST
See the id BEST post here.
January 2011
1 post
1 tag
Parched office blog post on El Sajjadah
Not the lengthiest of blog posts! But nice all the same. Click here to view it.
December 2010
1 post
1 tag
El Sajjadah on Tech Cracks
See The Tech Cracks post here.
November 2010
1 post
1 tag
20 Geekiest Rug Designs
‘A prayer rug is the only and indispensable necessity the Muslims need to perform their prayer 5 times a day. Utilizing Electro Luminescent Phosphore Printing technology, ‘Sajjadah 1426′ prayer rug indicates the direction via the data coming from a compass module embedded inside it: the closer to the direction of Mecca it is turned, the brighter the patterns illuminate. The hi-tech prayer...
September 2010
1 post
1 tag
Innovative Cool Sajjadah 1426
El Sajjadah posted on Home Furniture Catalogues website
August 2010
1 post
1 tag
“If the world of Tron had a mosque, these would be its prayer rugs….Next...”
– Philosufi
July 2010
2 posts
1 tag
El Sajjadah on Decodir
‘Soner Ozenc is the master mind behind this Sajjadah 1426. Sajjadah is a small carpet used by Muslims as a base which will provide a clean and isolated platform to perform their prayers. It’s not compulsory but wouldn’t it be great to have this mini sajjadah that can show and direct towards the holy city of Mecca which is the direction that Muslims should perform their prayers.’
...
1 tag
El Sajjadah blog post on I Wear The Truth
‘Came across this great product back in 2005 while researching on innovative products, Islamic art and design, and contemporary Islamic tshirts for the Muslim market, only to forget about it the very next day. Five years on, I stumbled upon it again on a tech website and I feel this is an opportunity to share this great product and have it seen and remembered by more people.’
Read...
