Colorful abstract sculpture on a wooden table, next to a blue patterned sofa and dark wood wall paneling.

Project Brief:

Design for beauty

Create a “market-ready” luminaire for an interior space. It should exhibit an elegant manipulation of line and plane, and can take the form of a pendant, sconce, or lamp. It should include laser cut plywood, paper, styrene, or acrylic components.

Colorful abstract sculpture resembling stacked geometric shapes and a mushroom cap with a black background.

Inspiration:

Collage of modern and colorful interior design and decor items, including abstract vases, geometric furniture, playful art pieces, and vibrant room settings.

Martine Bedin and Memphis Style

Sculptural, “off-balance” feeling, simple shapes, and bold colors placed in distinct shapes next to each other.

ideation and prototyping:

A collection of conceptual sketches of table lamps with various bases made of geometric shapes, some stacked or interconnected, and with shades in different styles.
Stacked pieces of cardboard, next to hand-drawn sketches of a creative lamp design.

building process:

Laser cutter etching circles on a piece of wood.
A laser cutting machine with a purple top and yellow caution labels, partially visible through a clear window, cutting a blue material with a star pattern.
A workspace with wooden roll shapes, some white electrical cords, a black cutting mat, and architectural or engineering drawings.

Wood and acrylic components were designed in Adobe Illustrator and laser cut

A workspace with craft supplies, including a glue bottle labeled 'Wood Glue,' a hot glue gun, a hand holding small foam blocks, and various tools on a cutting mat.
Stack of pink and black sanding pads with a wire clamp in a workshop.

Wood pieces were assembled around foam core, cut on a bandsaw, and sanded down. A channel was cut through the foam to allow the cord to pass through as the base.

A workshop table with a structure made of white cylindrical objects, some of which are painted white, and tools and supplies around it. In the background, a person is working at a station in a workshop or classroom.

Once the structure was assembled using wood glue it was spackled, sanded once more, and primed. The cylinders were then painted with four colors of acrylic paint. For the curved surfaces, sand was mixed in with the paint to add texture.

A person painting a large, colorful, abstract sculpture with a small brush. The sculpture features vibrant orange, red, and teal colors and is placed on a table.
A wooden table with art supplies, including a stack of colorful foam rings, a yellow paintbrush, paint palettes with red, purple, orange, and teal paints, a pink water bottle, a large orange paper lantern, various paint bottles, a paint tube, brushes, and electrical cords. There is lace paper towel underneath the foam rings and some scattered paper towels on the table. A window showing greenery and a screened door is in the background.

The shade was vacuum-formed out of styrene and painted with acrylic paint

final product: