FEB EDITION 2018

Leading Light
In this era, lamp designers are pushing boundaries with their newest pieces. Recent designs are avantgarde
and edgy; they are often inspiring and thrilling, making them sought-after pieces, reports LARA
OLADUNNI.
Tomiwa Phillips has just acquired an unusual
bedside lamp. A week ago, he had been in
search of a rare bedside lamp to accentuate the
minimalist design of his bedroom. He got a
Luku Home Wave Ikat lampshade. e lamp,
designed by Copper and Silk, is a bold lampshade
handmade with satin- nished cotton fabric with a
pattern by textile artist and designer, Ptolemy Mann.
In this era, lamp designers are pushing boundaries
with their newest pieces. Lamp designs are avant-garde
and edgy, they are oen inspiring and thrilling to
behold. Most of them are a fusion of modern and
classical designs that have become collectors' items.
Biodun Adepegba, an interior decorator, says lamp
manufacturers have come to understand the shi in
taste of consumers for rare extravagance piece, hence
they are producing lamps tailored to meet these
demands.
According to her, most new designs are in uenced
by 19th and 20th Centuries English, French and
American lights.
“Some of the pieces we stock are made by Charles
Edwards,” she says. “He is famous for lanterns. His
pieces have graced halls of presidential villas, houses of
rich men the world over. His designs are for people
who crave for lamps or lanterns with classical air made
nely for people of class.”
Truly, like Charles Edwards's pieces, newest designs
are right for people who desire elegant lighting in their
homes. ey add that unique experience to the entire
beauty of hotels, palaces, houses, as they come in every
shape, size, mood and with many a different cultural
reference like Moorish, Gothic, Parisian, Mid-century
Modern, and even plain, old-fashioned English. ere
are designs to hang in halls, outside on gateposts or
THE LUXURY REPORTER
walls, and inside on brackets.
In addition, latest designs of bedside lamps are
equally sought-aer. ere are also interesting designs
of hanging lights and chandeliers, desk and standard
lamps. Manufacturers are customising designs in their
collections speci cally to suit a client's taste. Deigns
can either be scaled up or down, re-colour or rework in
other ways from the original design. For instance, Sé
Trophy lamp by Nika Zupanc, in gloss ceramic, is a
collector's item any day.
“If there is a design a client loves and wants to
replicate, we can get our partners abroad to do that,”
says Obioma Chibuzor, a lamp dealer, and “if you have
in mind something that does not yet exist, we can help
you bring it to life or achieve it.”
Furthermore, there are lamps designed as an abovethe-dining-table
light that enables home owners walk
around the table without knocking down the light. It
also allows them move furniture in the home around
without fear of damaging it. With various exquisite
designs, today the lamp has become synonymous with
good taste and a stylish, modern interior. For the rst
time since its creation, the classic design has been
twisted. e latest update involves incorporating an
LED light xture hidden behind a diffuser, as well as a
dimmer, reducing power consumption to 18 watts.
Italian brand, Flos, has a reputation for having an
iconic lamp for every occasion. e designs have
leveraged its 1960s and 1970s creative heritage to fuel
its amazing forward momentum. e Arco lamp
usually comes with powerful illumination.
e marble-based “pendant” oor lamp with the
arched metal arm designed by Achille and Pier
Giacomo Castiglioni in 1962 for Flos, is perhaps the
most recognisable lamp in the world. Flos is known
globally for its series of timeless designs from the 1960s
and 1970s. Today, Flos is in pursuance of new
technological challenges with a fervour one can easily
describe as wild.
In addition, 1960s designs are now meeting modern
technology. Other interesting designs are built around
impressive technological innovations. For instance,
Italian Antonio Citterio's new Kelvin LED oor lamp
has a button, which when held for an extra second, the
sensors kick in to allow the LED to read and
compensate for the level of atmospheric light around it.
And Starck's brand-new Light Photon, a glossy OLED
(organic LED) limited-edition table lamp of 500 is the
largest OLED lamp in the world and completely
unfeasible to create in signi cant numbers. ey are
expensive to make, as lamp making is moving from
electricity to electronics.
erefore, lamp designs are more about doing the
unusual, crazy things. “e world over, especially in
Homes
Italy, lamp designers, like shoes or bags designers, do
very crazy pieces that end up being regarded as
beautiful products. It is about being a crazy and being a
visionary,” says Adepegba.
Adepegba further explains that many Italian design
companies are now talking of green innovations when
it comes to lamp designs. “Designers are now replacing
plastic components in their oeuvre, since the
beginning of the year, with eco alternative materials.
For instance, this Flos' all-time bestseller, an allpolycarbonate
table lamp by Philippe Starck called
Miss Sissi – a new eco-plastic polymer created from the
byproducts of the sugar-beet and cane industry - will
replace the current oil-based plastic. Italian designers
do not compromise either on quality or conceptually.”
e n e w b i o p l a s t i c , k n o w n a s a P H A
(polyhydroxyalkanoate), is made from a sweetsmelling
mass that can be manipulated into a material
just like polycarbonate. Being a byproduct, it has
reportedly zero impact upon the food cycle, requires
no organic solvents and is fully biodegradable in water
aer a number of hours. ere is still work to be done
on re ning the material, plus the setting up of factories
and production in Italy to allow for a serious amount of
consumer production. ey have also yet to establish
exactly how to add colour with the longevity needed
for a lamp that is designed to last many years, but the
entire project is revolutionary, and potentially
revolution-starting.
Be that as it may, so long as consumers of luxury
pieces are always incapable of stopping themselves
from falling in love with statement pieces lamps
inclusive, designers will never stop rede ning their
cras.
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