illumini Decanter 2010, Thumbler Tumbler 2010 and illumini Light (prototype) 2011
Designer-makers Karen Cunningham and Mandi King established illumini in 2010 after completing the two-year Associate Program in JamFactory’s Glass Studio. Through their highly skilled and intuitive understanding of glass, combined with their clean and contemporary design language, illumini has produced a range of items which actively bridges design and craft.
Illumini prototyped their designs through two JamFactory Glass Studio’s Special Projects program. The porgram ensures varied training opportunities, and a depth of experiences for JamFactory’s Associates whilst providing independent artists, designers and craft practitioners with the means and facility to realise their designs and artworks in glass.
In developing their products, illumini set design parameters to a single phenomenological property of glass. For the illumini Decanter, they exploited glass’s tack and stretch, cleverly using a tack point hole in the design as an ergonomic handle and contact point to aerate the wine, whilst the solid cast glass component in the illumini Light uses glass’s ability to conduct and diffuse light.
SIMONE LeAMON
Ricotta, 2011 and La Prima Ballerina, 2011
Simone LeAmon has a multidisciplinary approach to design and art that has seen her develop designs and concepts for graphics, lighting, furniture, interiors, public art, motorcycle apparel, fashion and jewellery.
Ricotta and La Prima Ballerina have been developed over two years, through a collaboration with Melbourne-based lighting manufacturer Rakumba.
The Rakumba Design Collaborations began with LeAmon undertaking a residency where she spent one day a week at the Rakumba factory over a period of six months. Immersing herself within the company allowed LeAmon to learn about lampshade production and Rakumba’s manufacturing capacity, with a special focus on understanding the skill set embedded within the staff. The free exchange of ideas between LeAmon and the staff in the factory fed the design and development of these lamps.
Ricotta’s design is informed by the skills of one of Rukumba’s wire frame makers. To celebrate his years of knowledge, an inverse shade has been created where the shade is on the inside and the wire is expressed on the outside. The name stems from the grid pattern created by the pleating and wire which resembles the grid on the plastic barrel of a ricotta cheese mould.
La Prima Ballerina is based on a traditional shade form originating in the 19th century. Having fallen out of fashion few contemporary shade makers possess the high level of technical skill required to produce it.
LUCELUX
Stretchlight, 2008 Peppered Sunlight, 2009 and Splashlight, 2011
Lucelux is an Australian lighting design company based in Wagga Wagga, NSW. It was established by designer and metalsmith Rohan Nicol as a way to expand his practice beyond studio based jewellery. Works in the Lucelux range have been developed through a unique partnership with local manufacturer Precisions Signs.
Stretchlight is inspired by the inexplicable forces of the “Big Bang”—in particular, the form of the light reflects the theory that matter was distributed throughout the universe via rhythmic waves of energy, where it was compressed by gravity into the stars and planets. After early prototype attempts to produce the diffuser on borrowed vacuum-forming equipment resulted in limited success, Rohan approach local skilled vacuum formers to produce his prototypes. With the prohibitive costs of tooling a unique partnership has developed with designer and manufacturer, whereby Precision signs have invested in the project, providing the tooling free of charge and producing a small initial run of each design.
Peppered Sunlight underwent rigorous prototyping and has employed new print technologies to create its distinctive patterned diffuser. The light is dimmable and height-adjustable, and its interchangeable diffusers create lighting effects that are reflective of dappled light through trees. The ingenuity of this design was rewarded with the Bombay Sapphire Design Discovery Award in 2009.
Splashlight is currently in the prototyping stage, unlike the vacuumed formed lights, this design is spun aluminium.
Prototyping: Making Ideas will exhibit at The JamFactory, Gallery One from 3 September to 23 October.
Posts
