Viscosity - Pendant Light
Yellow Goat, a major pioneer in the lighting design industry, assigned me with the task of creating and developing a concept for a pendant light. The project outline provided a high degree of freedom, where elements such as the target market and intended environment of the light was my decision. However, aspects such as the product's cost, appearance and size should be reflected through meaningful design choices. It is to be noted that this project is a simulated scenario for the purpose of education.
Ideation Phase
Based on the guidelines set out by Yellow Goat, a more detailed brief was created to inform the ideation process. Firstly, a
target market of middle-income earners seeking domestic kitchen lighting was established. Design ideas were then explored with key inspiration drawn from bees and honey (see slideshow). After receiving industry and peer feedback, it was decided that concept 1 would be pursued further. As demonstrated in the photos, concept 1's form is influenced from the viscous texture of honey. This can be seen in the curvy edges of the yellow honey-comb based body. It is to be noted that a few key changes were made to the design based on the feedback provided previously. The sketch of the final design can be seen in the last photo of the slideshow.
Prototyping
To gather a better understanding of the product’s form, a physical rapid prototype was created. The process also allowed for problems to be identified and solved earlier in the production process. An example of this was that difficulty was experienced in figuring out a suitable net for the light’s lid. This was particularly troublesome due to the angle of the slanted exterior. A few attempts were hence required to achieve the correct circumferences. After the rough nets for each of the parts of the assembly were achieved, production of the final product’s prototype commenced. This involved modelling the net in Adobe Illustrator to then be used for laser cutting, to achieve a precise assembly. The items were then assembled through the use of adhesives as shown in the slideshow.
Final Product
The final product of the project took the form of a hi-fidelity prototype. Studio photography of the outcome is displayed in the gallery below. If the project were to be pursued further, experimentation with the intended materials of the light would be conducted. The materials used would would be aluminum for the lid of the light and cloth for the curved base. Such experimentation would allow for refinement of the design before being put into production. 3D renders of the intended final appearance of the light can be seen at the bottom of the gallery.
