The Ripple Effect

I have never come across a concept that I found emotionally stimulating such as this. You have to watch the video in order to understand and possibly share the same experience. But first, let me explain...

The Ripple Effect is derived from jagged glass domes that come in two different styles with halogen lights and a brass base, the smaller domes shine through the bigger domes producing the imitation of water movement as they slowly rotate, and due to their uneven shape they generate different kinds of light and shadow effects, making the space even more striking at every turn! Click here to watch.

Rotganzen: Melting Diso Balls

Those stunning melting disco balls are made by Rotganzen, an artist collective based situated in the Netherlands. Consisting of styrofoam and polyurethane foam with a top layer of mirror mosaic pieces, those balls look as though they have been overly utilized and drained from all the motion! However the designers see them as "a figure of overly voluptuous but sagging forms" and their main inspiration came from a human belly,YES you read it right, and I'm referring to the kind that deforms with age. Despite the odd influence it's quite inspiring and the end result is remarkable, I would love to own a few and place them randomly anywhere just for the vivacity and the light that they echo.

Lee Broom: Crystal Bulb

Interior and Product Designer Lee Broom is behind this amazing creativity. He had those crystal bulbs hand blown and cut in a certain way to reflect beautiful shadows when lit. It is classfied as industrial, however with the decanter pattern it can be an elegant touch in any corner of any room, no matter what the theme is. I absolutely love!

Sponge, The Outdoor Lamp

Designed by Miguel Angel Garcia Belmonte and made out of ceramic, those gorgeous lamps beam from within giving you just the perfect amount of light for a lovely and warm aura. I really like the concept and personally do not believe that you need a yard to have those beauties in your possession, you can simply place it in any corner around your home and it will give you the same effect! I feel so relaxed just looking at them...

London Design Festival 2011

The London Design Festival is a yearly nine-day design event that was first organized in September 2003 to display different works of art and design of the people of the city. The programme consists of  installations, seminars and exhibitions, mostly free of charge permitting the visitors to take part and acquire products. There were over 250 events going on and I am only posting my favorites, starting with in my opinion, the best compared to the rest:

"Perspectives" at St.Paul's Cathedral generated by Sir Christopher Wren, where amazing architect John Pawson who collaborated with Swarovski Crystal Palace created an installation that was meant to reinforce Sir Christopher Wren's intention, that each and every one of his buildings need to embrace a scientific feature. Therefore Pawson designed  a colossal lens formed of metal and Swarovski crystal to allow the visitors to view the details beneath the spectacular staircase as you are looking down from the top, which emphasizes Pawson's huge appreciation for the masterpiece and that this sweet gesture is merely to take notice of Sir Christopher Wren's outstanding work.

Iris

Fredrickson Stallard and Swarovski Crystal Palace have joined forces to create this astonishing brand new assortment corresponding to the human eye, Iris. A design that is composed of four crystal pieces and distinct steel metal parts.  


"These are grand structures with antiquarian aesthetics that resemble imposing utilitarian surgical and photographic lamps. Each has an individual outer ‘skin’ created by the careful use of varied natural metal treatments and patinas, ranging from gold leaf to rust."


With the use of those particular materials, Iris impressively personifies the fascination of the human eye.  

Markus Johansson: Cirrata Octopus Lamp

It is pretty obvious what exactly inspired Swedish designer Markus Johansson, right? This unconventional piece of work is made out of corian polymer, one of my favorite (costly) materials because it radiates modernism and can be molded it into any shape or form that you desire.

UAE Interiors Exhibition May 2011

I recently attended the interiors exhibition that was held in Abu Dhabi last week and it turned out to be highly beneficial as I was introduced to many innovative designs. For the most part the exhibition consisted of international companies, some of which had an objective of finding a representative in the Middle East (mainly in the UAE) that they took this opportunity to expose their products to the locals, also used it to gain an idea on how the local react to new and different forms of design.

I also had the privilege of talking directly to some of the designers that I particularly liked, I find myself a lot more drawn into the artwork when the master behind the creation takes you through the journey of how and why it was produced.

I personally was in awe of all the bespoke pieces that were beautifully and carefully hand-made. 

I've attached my favorites:

Luke Irwin Rug

Jars of Light

This is not something you would find in your kitchen cabinet or fridge!

The marmalade jelly inspired lamp is designed by Semiki Studio. It consists of stained gel with LED lighting absorbed in it. The best thing about it is that it looks like a regular jar of jam up until you turn it upside down, where the colored light in the jar is then dispersed. Also, the bubbles within the gel add more effect to the luminescence, giving it a better radiance in any dark room. 

Even after knowing all that, I'd still make an attempt to dip my finger in and taste it. It just looks too flavorful to be left alone.

Pendant Scrap Lights

Those gorgeous pendant lights have been created by Graypants’ from stacked rings of cardboard folded into ridges and troughs. I couldn’t think of a better way to make use of extra cardboard!

[Image via Inhabitat ]