The Lamp
There is only one use for a lamp. It lights the room up. Everything I have designed thus far needs to follow certain rules. The couch has to be large and comfortable. The reclining chair has to be able to recline. The coffee table has to have a flat surface to place things on. These objects have a certain look to them. If you really wanted to change how they are you would need to completely revolutionize it’s design. The lamp however, doesn’t have this. A lamp can look like anything, it can be anything, as long as it produces light you can call it a lamp. Lamps can be made out of anything. It is something that usually leans towards a more aesthetic approach when you are designing it.
People have been using sources of light ever since we discovered fire. Since humans cannot see very well at night we have been using light as a way to protect ourselves and go places that we never would have dreamed of. Being able to manipulate light has changed how humans live. We can stay up well past nightfall and as a result we have more time to learn and discover. The sun is no longer a source of life but a huge lamp.
So for this design I am actually going to focus on aesthetics. I said I would do this on the coffee table but I soon realized that it would make more sense for the coffee table, reclining chair, and couch to all match. I want this lamp to match as well but I want to make it stand out. The whole purpose of this project was to create an ergonomic furniture set. Not all of the furniture pieces are completely ergonomic when they are by themselves but when they are put together they make an ergonomic living room that utilizes the function of the living room as well as the space.
19 comments so far
10:25 am - 5-31-2013
I love this idea for lights, especially the upside down one. I would totally use that.
3:59 pm - 6-2-2013
Interesting approach… I think its so crazy how the introduction of ‘night lights’ in a domestic space has totally shaped the design of a home, not to mention our entire rhythm of life as a people- staying up well past sunset, while most other species are calling it a night. I can’t help but wonder at how that must be changing and evolving our DNA for better or worse? Anyway, I think it’s totally cool that your project is changing and growing in a new direction (from ergonomic to aesthetic and looking at the lamp as a design) it shows that working within the confines of a ‘quarterly project’ has stirred your brain in a new unexpected way!
5:30 pm - 6-2-2013
I think its cool that your finding a way to use light thats not only something you can easily utilize but also, works in junction with other objects in the room.
6:45 am - 6-5-2013
I’m interested to see what you will be using as the “shade”. I think that’s a very important part to the function of a lamp, as long as you’re not using super awesome bulbs that are soft on your eyes, it’s always a pain to look directly at the bulb. Definitely a less than desirable experience, but if you say you’ll be working on aesthetics there’s no doubt the shade will have a role. Interested to see what you’ll do here.