'luciferase' collection by nacho carbonell
all images courtesy of nacho carbonell


developing and producing experimental work with narrative implications,
pushing the boundaries between design and contemporary art, functional use and sculpture,
restraint and exuberance, beauty and ugliness, violence and gentleness,
spanish-born eindhoven-based designer nacho carbonell's newest body of work 'luciferase' -
which in latin is a photon-producing enzyme, present in the luminous organs of
certain plants and animals - is no exception.





the starting point for 'luciferase', was a simple pebble, a fragmented stone which
nacho collected in spain this past summer. in the past, having experimented with corn,
glass, latex, leather, paper and wood, with this collection of 15 light pieces,
nacho now defies the limits of epoxy resin, a liquid material solidified by heat,
which lets light through the LEDs placed inside its body. together, the combination of
synthetic elements (the resin) and technological components (the LEDs),
results in a body of bioluminescent creatures with a primitive appears,
reversing technical and aesthetic conventions. only one of the fifteen pieces contains a bulb,
concealed behind the resin which acts as a filter diffusing mystery.





in this family of lights, the exterior exhibits soft and velvety materials -
epoxy resin is mixed with different colored sands, sometimes covered with plaster
or metal dust - meant to resemble the skin of an unknown species. in contrast,
the interior diaphanous and translucent textures, made from epoxy resin that has been
mixed with colored pigments, referencing dentition, filaments, rocaille, straps, thorns, tongues etc.
some of the works conjure up the translucent sparkle of fine gemstones such as that of amethyst,
malachite or quartz, some lights looking almost as if they are the mouth of a carnivorous plant,
questioning the limits between abissology, genetic manipulation, mineralogy and vegetology.





all of the lamps share a similar form, a square base with stand and hollow,
circular element in which the LEDs are embedded.