corian: not just your countertop anymore
Dupont, with their Corian line, has seemingly done more in the past few years to promote creative new approaches to lighting than any of the major lighting conglomerates.
Corian has a few major advantages: Its malleability allows it to be formed in a myriad of shapes and continuous surfaces; its durability and repairability allow it to be used a primary finished surface; and its translucency allows designers to integrate lighting features seamlessly into surfaces.
light platforms
B&N Industries produces some simple internally illuminated display boxes. Targeted at retail, they also could work nicely for hospitality and residential features.
ross lovegrove: ted talk video
Ross Lovegross created the Yamagiwa System X in the post below. Check out this great Ted video of Ross from 2005 where he is humorous, a touch cocky, and quickly covers his methods, goals and very cool studio space. Continue reading ross lovegrove: ted talk video
non-lighting inspiration: nervous system
Nervous System is a Boston area startup run by two MIT + Harvard grads with various degrees in biology, architecture and mathematics. So far, they are producing several lines of jewelry, but the possibilities for architecture and lighting are obvious.
yamagiwa system X
Yamagiwa’s System X definitely falls under the category of “NOT A DOWNLIGHT!”
light emitting wallpaper concept by jonas samson
Jonas Samson is a Dutch industrial designer who teased the blogosphere with a very cool illuminated surface concept. Unfortunately, beyond the images, there is no technical info floating around the web. I’m betting that he used either electroluminescent or light … Continue reading light emitting wallpaper concept by jonas samson
aqua creations
Aqua Creations is a Tel Aviv-based lighting manufacturer with a line of large-scale, silk-wrapped fixtures. This small company is using fantastic organic-inspired forms to explore and generate new formats in lighting. Many of their products are better classified as “light objects” rather than “light fixtures”.
gkd metal fabrics: media mesh
GKD Metal Fabrics is a supplier of interwoven metal meshes for large-scale architectural use.
GKD Mediamesh, a metal fabric product with integral LED video system, is an excellent example of the integration of green design + digital media in architecture. The walls can be used as architectural sun screens, cutting down on the solar heat load entering a building, while simultaneously retaining the views from inside the building and acting as a video screen from the outside.
modular arts wall panels
Modular Arts makes a series of decorative, textural wall panels. Cast from composite mineral powder, each 32″ square panel includes interlocking tongue and groove edges to ensure proper alignment.
Shapeways: 3D printing for the masses
Shapeways is a Philips spin-off company focused on bringing 3D rapid manufacturing technologies to main-stream consumers. Although they don’t sell any actual lighting fixtures, Shapeways offers an intriguing glimpse into the future of the lighting industry.
old-school show control: binloops
What in the world are the machines shown above?
sci-fi no more: 3d printing suppliers
Let’s say you want to create your own light fixture. If you can model in 3D, then having rapid prototypes machined or printed has become incredibly easy and relatively cheap to do. It opens up an entire new world of possibilities for designers, especially those of installation art or projects that are “pushing the edge of the envelope.”
greenpix media wall
GreenPIX is a landmark installation completed for the 2008 Beijing Olympics by Simone Giostra & Partners and Arup. It is a self contained, completely off-the-grid, low-resolution-video architectural surface. It is a unique hybrid, with solar cells integrated into the front of glass panels that are rear-illuminated with individual LED pixels.
lighting tattoos
Sha-Do is a series of pattern-projecting fixtures from a German designer, Peter Buning.
O2 Media Cloud
European cell phone provider O2 had a stunning booth at the 2005 CeBIT convention; four years later it remains a striking design.
birch and willow: biomass materials in lighting fixtures
Now this is “green” lighting: Birch and Willow, a small firm in Boston, uses weaves of wood and vines to create very organic (both literal and aesthetic) fixtures. The resulting designs create delightful plays of sparkle, shadow and pattern.
Continue reading “birch and willow: biomass materials in lighting fixtures”
Jason Bruges Studio
Jason Bruges Studio out of London specializes in interactive lighting installations. The work is delightfully esoteric, plus their site has plenty of unique eye candy.
LFSS: Light fixtures from recycled water bottles
Check out the gorgeous pieces on Lisa Foo & Su Sim’s blog page. Lisa Foo is an architect and Su Sim is a landscape architect, both from Malaysia.
Continue reading “LFSS: Light fixtures from recycled water bottles”
U2 360: Video Screen or Transformer?
U2’s concerts might run long on the media hype, but they are certainly a tour de force of design, staging, and technology. Their latest tour includes an electro-mechanical wonder as its centerpiece, a 360° viewable LED screen that expands and contracts over the band.
we love mad men: authentic lighting from the 60’s
If there is one thing that AMC‘s Mad Men proves, it’s that your grandparents were so much cooler than you. Here at Lucept, we’re gearing up for the show’s third season opener on August 16, and to celebrate, we’ve put together a sampling of authentic 1960’s lighting design.
Continue reading “we love mad men: authentic lighting from the 60’s”
