Hasta La Ideas

Milan 2014: Milan designer Alberto Biagetti has created a furniture collection inspired by his home city that incorporates materials salvaged from its aristocratic palazzos.

The Bonjour Milàn collection developed by Biagetti’s studio, Atelier Biagetti, comprises a cabinet, a lamp, a large table and groups of side tables made from materials including discarded tiles.

“All of our pieces are hand made in Milan and each material has been selected to represent an historical era, a sort of sedimentation of materials,” the designer told Dezeen.

“This idea made us think that maybe in the future people will search for plastic in the ground as one of the most precious materials, as happens today with many materials that become more precious and rare over time.”

Hexagonal tiles taken from typical Milanese residences act as surfaces for side tables that feature bases made from rectangular brass profiles.

The structure of each table creates a seemingly delicate contrast to the weighty tiles, which are positioned at different heights.

“When I found these parts of a wonderful old floor with this incredible patina I thought that was a treasure and the perfect starting point,” explained Biagetti.

A mixture of discarded materials including copper, brass, plastic laminate and wood are applied to the glass surfaces of the table and cabinet and arranged in patterns that resemble sectional views of stratified rock or earth.

The patterns spread across the glass top of the table and continue onto the upper portion of the supporting trestles, while the top and bottom of the glass cabinet are covered in opaque materials that conceal its contents.

The Parabola lamp features an adjustable brass base supporting a parabolic dish that is inspired by the shape of the huge antennae used for space research.

A small reflector at the centre of the dish directs light onto the domed surface, which projects an even light into the room.

Each of the pieces in the collection is unique due to the irregular combination of available materials and the use of handmade production processes.

The collection was launched at a preview event in Paris last week ahead of a presentation at Atelier Biagetti’s Milan showroom from 8-13 April.

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to make furniture by Atelier Biagetti appeared first on Dezeen.

These autonomous lamps by Dutch designer Bob de Graaf seek out human companions then follow them around, and go in search of the darkest spots in the house ( + movie).

De Graaf‘s interactive lights, collectively called Species of Illumination, were given the ability to act like creatures via a series of sensors, motors and stretchable cables that allow them to freely determine their actions.

The series consists of two lights. Wallace uses sensors to go in search of the darkest spot in a room and bring light to it. Once it has done that, the lamp works out where the next darkest point is and moves on to repeat the process.

Wallace is affixed to the ceiling at one end and has three pieces of wire that support a head on the end of a long electrical cable, which is encircled by a series of rings with copper wire threaded through each one.

Darwin, meanwhile, is a desk lamp that uses solar power to generate its electricity. During the day it trundles around on wheels seeking out sunlight to charge its battery, but in the evening it wonders around the house looking for movement and accompanying people with its beam of light.

Sensors in Darwin’s head allow people to interact with it. When a hand is held directly in front of the light, it tracks the movement and follows. Take the hand away and the light stops moving.

Darwin features two wheels made from tightly coiled wire, a black body with a solar panel on its back and a bulbous white head.

“The interaction and emotional relationship Wallace and Darwin bring contribute to people’s wellbeing, in the same way that pets do,” explained de Graaf. “The movement of living creatures triggers sensations, emotions and communication.”

“I think my lights are very much animate objects,” he continued. “At this point I’m still pretty sure they are not alive, but I think there will be a moment where the boundaries become more blurred.”

The idea was conceived after the designer created a radio-controlled box with an abstract head and began experimenting with it in a park in Eindhoven, the Netherlands, in 2011. The designer was surprised to find that passersby began to wave at it, pet it and chase it as though it were a pet.

De Graaf then experimented with removing the human-control element to make something more autonomous, and presented the Species of Illumination lamps as part of his graduation from the Design Academy Eindhoven last year.

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go in search of humans and dark spots appeared first on Dezeen.

This pendant lamp based on a flower by Russian designer Constantin Bolimond would open and illuminate when it senses low light.

“The idea came about thanks to flowers that begin to bloom when the sun shines,” Bolimond told Dezeen.

Constantin Bolimond’s Bloom lamp concept would act in the opposite way to normal flowers.

Instead of unfurling its bud-like cover in sunlight, the lamp’s optical sensor would react when it gets dark and cause the petals to gradually spread out as the light decreases.

Different materials and colours could be used to create the six petals, which would act together as a shade and regulate the amount of light dispersed from the small bulb positioned in the centre.

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at night by Constantin Bolimond appeared first on Dezeen.

Dutch designer Daniel Hulsbergen created this intricate lamp from materials similar to those he used as a child to make model gliders.

Daniel Hulsbergen of Studio Daniel designed the Satori Lamp for Dutch furniture design company Odesi. Hulsbergen used slender sticks of balsa wood to create the layered octagonal lamp.

“The materials used for building model gliders have some unique properties,” he said. “They are extremely light and very strong for their weight.”

The inner layer framing the light bulb is covered with a soft white canvas used for spanning model aircraft wings, which diffuses the light.

The outer layer forms a cage-like structure with a small section on each of the four sides also covered with fabric.

When light shines through the lamp, the frame creates shadow patterns on the ceiling and walls.

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by Studio Daniel for Odesi appeared first on Dezeen.

Stockholm 2014: Swedish collective Note Design Studio has added a floor lamp and triple pendant design to its collection based on grain silos for lighting brand Zero.

The Silo Trio and Silo Floor by Note Design Studio debuted on Zero‘s stand at Stockholm Furniture Fair and Northern Light Fair earlier this month.

“[These are] two logical follow-ups requested by architects, with the same industrial simplicity and clearness as its original,” said the studio.

Three of the silo-shaped shades are connected in a row by a horizontal bar that runs through the top of each pendant to form the suspended light.

The floor lamp balances on a slender stem, connected to the head by a hinge so the light source can pivot up and down. Its long cable flows out of the back of the shade.

All variations are made from aluminium and come in an extended range of colours.

The Silo lamp was originally launched as a pendant in Zero’s collection at last year’s Stockholm Design Week.

At this year’s event, the brand also showcased spherical glass lamps that appear to be steamed up and a light that resembles a poster tube.

Note Design Studio launched a sofa with a base that extends outwards to become a side table and a series of colourful ash tables at the fair.

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Silo lamp collection for Zero appeared first on Dezeen.