alessilux x foreverlamp

‘U2Mi2’ by frederic gooris all images courtesy of alessi and foreverlamp

‘alessilux’ is a new project by italian design brand alessi which aims to dissolve the boundaries between light bulb and luminary. the company’s first move into the world of lighting, they challenged a group of three young designers: giovanni alessi anghini, gabriele chiave and frederic gooris to re-imagine the light bulbs as an object of design. something with a personality that becomes a protagonist – through new innovative shapes and colors –  in the environment in which it is placed. debuting at milan design week 2011, production and distribution of the products has been given to the technical and manufacturing skills of foreverlamp.

‘U2Mi2’ by frederic gooris‘when we were small, robots were the classic illustration of how technology would improve our lives in the future. back then, improvement was synonymous with greater comfort. today the word improvement places more emphasis on sustainability: using fewer resources to maintain our level of comfort without consuming our surroundings.’

a cute little robot – called ‘U2Mi2’ [you too, me too] – takes us by the hand and shows us a first glimpse of the future of LED light bulbs, one of those technological breakthroughs that will have a truly profound impact on our environment.

‘vienna’ by frederic gooris‘‘vienna’ brings to mind fairytale-like ballrooms and amazing opera houses with crystal chandeliers, filled with the music of mozart and strauss. it was also in these days that the industrial revolution took off with inventions such as the light bulb. so here is the question: what would the light bulb have looked like if back then they had the same possibilities we have today?’ 

‘paraffina’ by frederic gooris
‘the use of oil lamps began thousands of years ago and for ages they were the only source of continuous light.’

this new oil lamp is named after paraffin – once one of the most popular fuels – that the wick sucked up little by little from the tank through the principle of capillarity. Just like its predecessor, this new ‘paraffina’ is now equally efficient with its precious source of energy.

‘polaris’ by frederic gooris
‘‘polaris’, also known as the north star, shines particularly brightly in the sky; almost motionless, it is an eternal beacon that has guided countless sailors home safely. like his eponymous celestial brother, ‘polaris’ is part of a family of light bulbs that will lead the way into a new era of energy saving illumination and lighting design.‘

‘abatjour’ by giovanni alessi anghini and gabriele chiave‘‘abatjour’ is neither a full-blown lamp nor merely a light bulb: it’s a new game, an unexpected transformation of identity.  it feels at ease inside a lamp but tries to replace when it’s absent…it adds tone and importance while knowingly  representing a small step toward a new way of understanding light.’

‘flame’ by giovanni alessi anghini and gabriele chiave‘born form memories of the first sources of light,  from the poetry of the past and the atmospheres and moods that the  old candles and oil lamps were able to create: ‘flame’ immediately stood out as a design rich in symbolic  and emotional value in which careful work could ensure the right level of wonderment and ironically experiment with the relationship between the most ancient sources of light and the modern world, remaining aware of its past but with an eye to our future.’

‘tamtam’ by frederic gooris is about beating the drum, signaling the dawn of a new day in light(ing) design.
‘the ‘tam-tam’ is a traditional drum that was used to pass messages over longer distances or to make important announcements. through its elegant passe-partout design, ‘tamtam’ is meant to quickly diffuse into our homes and thus spread the message that LED light bulbs can be so much more than a mere redesign of traditional light bulbs.

‘ricordo’ by frederic gooris‘some objects, though no longer used and obsolete today, are still so familiar to all of us it seems we never lived without them. the oil lamp is one of these objects, which now exist only in our memory [ricordo in italian]. when it comes to lighting, we have come a long way in a short time, and with the breakthrough of LED technology, we are yet to experience another revolution. looking into the future, it is a good thing to remember the past.’

‘lumière’ by giovanni alessi anghini and gabriele chiave‘with the aim of evoking memories of forgotten objects, old customs and meanings and with the exceptional protagonists like the new sources of light redesigned with an eye on content, ‘lumière’ proposes and, in a way, enhances the experience of the alessilux project.’

‘DR. wall’ by giovanni alessi anghini and gabriele chiave‘with the aim of simplicity and purifying its essence, of enhancing and increasing the value of the light bulbs project, the ‘DR’ series proposes curves and materials that evoke memories of objects from the 1960’s but using a technology developed in the new millenium.’

‘DR. ceiling’ by giovanni alessi anghini and gabriele chiave

installation view of the ‘alessilux’ products on display during milan design week 2011 image © designboom

alessilux lamp products on show during milan design week 2011 image © designboom

‘vienna’ by frederic gooris in pink and green variations image © designboom