EMPTINESS: LIGHT & DARKNESS
Emptiness’ is deemed as the ‘Clear Light’, where one come face to face with his own nonexistence, discovering nothing but space that is open, clear and free.
Imagert board for design direction
Emptiness is said to hold nothing and represents a space that is free and open. It would be viable to then point out that emptiness also holds the possibility of being filled, as Kenya Hara, Muji’s Creative Director, has said. This theme of emptiness hence explores not merely the nothingness of the dark, but the possibilities within the imaginative darkness. This idea emanates from the conscious creation of the dark. Negative spaces, in this instance the shadows and darkness devoid of illumination, are interpreted to be the emptiness that holds nothing, yet everything.
INTENT & DESIGN DIRECTION
The third and final installation to the project is Eclipse, a hanging pendant lamp. Unfortunately, Eclipse is only an abstracted lighting design, which is not fabricated for this project, but acts as a completion to the triad of lights on a conceptual level.
FINAL DESIGN
Taking cue from the phenomenon of solar eclipses, Eclipse is intentionally designed to articulate the juxtaposed relationship between light and darkness. The lamp casts circular shadows on both the ceiling and the ground due to the chrome reflective ellipse that rises and sinks to create an inverse play of light and shadow.
Ellipse in motion
This elicits the conscious creation of darkness whereby the focus is not on creating light, but creating the shadows. Due to its questionable functionality, Eclipse is a lamp for contemplation, where users could immerse and reflect under the lamp all while witnessing the interplay between light and shadow as the ellipse moves.
