La Flamme Alléchante
A flame safe to feel from a distance and up close
Like moths to a flame, we are naturally drawn to fire, yet we cannot touch it. The oldest form of lighting is a paradox: Fire represents warmth and safety but only with a certain distance.
The idea for the lamp began during my morning bike ride when I came across some broken bike-lane refractors lying on the street. Some were lightly dented, others were badly bashed out of shape. These refractors share the same paradox as fire as from a distance they are a guide to safety but up close could only result in danger. These used pieces of plastic became beautiful vessels and diffusers for my light and mist.
Inspired by the mesmerizing torch and cauldron for the 2024 Paris Olympics, by the French designer Mathieu Lehanneur, for my lamp I used an ultrasonic mister, a small computer fan, and powerful LEDs to form a water-based fire that could be guided using these plastic refractors.
I made two floor lamps, one small one that projects the flame in a slow and dispersed way, and one tall narrow one that projects the flame faster and in a more vertical direction. I chose to incorporate the refractors without altering their shape, so that they kept their imperfections. In that way, the lamp turns everyday street items we find all over New York City into a source of beauty. The base on the small model is broken, and the tall one is heavily scratched, with even a small hole through which the flame pokes out.
