Menu launches the Hashira collection, a modern, Nordic take on the traditional Japanese rice paper lantern. A fusion of East and West, tradition and modernity, and a perfect balance of aesthetics and proportion and simplicity and character, Hashira is a new collection of floor, table, and pendant lamps for modern spaces. Designed by Norm Architects, the collection takes its cues from visits to traditional Japanese Washi paper makers and its name from the Japanese word for column or pillar. The cylindrical Hashira floor lamp rises majestically from the floor. The translucent fabric shade not only acts as a diffuser, projecting the light in multiple directions while creating a cozy, glare-free ambiance, but it also adds palpable appeal that enhances the softness of an interior, acoustically as well as tactilely. Shaped from the basic geometric form in architecture, the slender Hashira table lamp is set on a wooden base that underpins the minimalist expression and is visible through the translucent fabric shade that softly diffuses the light in multiple directions. Spreading ambient light in a room, the Hashira collection makes for purposeful lighting above a dining table, in a reception area, or on a table in a hotel bedroom, bringing a sense of understated luxury and purpose to interior spaces, Norm Architects.