London Design Fair: Crea-Re Studio debut exclusive Papier Mâché lamp collection
Crea-Re Studio will be debuting its brand new product, designed especially for London Design Fair, later this month. Papier Mâché Lamps collection is called "Morphe," they are durable and made from 100 per cent recycled materials. That’s pretty impressive. We caught up with Crea-Re Studios, Marie Fiter, to find out more about it.
How were you commissioned?
It is a new project from 2017 that was created especially for London Design Fair which I am participating in this September.
What was the brief from the client and how much were they involved?
Crea-Re Studio based in Barcelona offers a wide range of eco-friendly lamps made from paper mâché and wood. The name of our brand derives from creativity CREA and from recycling RE. We are a couple of designers: Maria Fiter (Polish) – projects eco-friendly lighting and Marco Migliorisi (Italy) – designs eco-cases for music instruments.
How did the brief affect the materials and design choices?
The materials used in their production are paper obtained from recycling bits of old newspapers and ecological, certified water based glue. Lamps are available in several colours obtained from natural pigments. All these components, as well as the process of lamp formation, are environmentally friendly and ecological. Lamps are compostable. To obtain this shapes of lampshades I used an old technique of making sculptures. It includes the preparation of the clay model and making a plaster cast. Wet papier mâché is applied to the plaster cast and dries for a few weeks. Later on, it is removed from the cast.
How did your previous experience help you with this project?:
My previous experience in work with papier mâché technique helped me to obtain a smooth surface of the lamps as well as new shapes.
Can you explain the layout of the project?
The name of the new collection of Papier Mâché Lamps is "Morphe", derived from Greek, means "shape". The form of lamps has many connotations with the zoomorphic or amorphous shapes of things like eggs, amoebas, oblong stones riddled by sea waves. Their smooth and oval surface is accentuated by irregular recesses, unique wrinkles in each of the lamps. Morphe lamps are very lightweight and durable. Except for the practical function, lamps can be an essential element of any interior decor.
What problems or challenges did you face?
To obtain a smooth surface of lampshades, the process of drying must be held in stable conditions.
What do you feel were the most unusual design elements of the project?
The technique of lamp formation and its material- papier mâché- gives the possibility to create any shape of the lampshade without harm to the natural environment.
How do you think this project is pushing design forward and What makes it special?
Lamps are made from recycled paper, certified and water based cellulosic glue, natural pigments. The process of lamp formation in a plaster cast is environmentally friendly. Lamps are compostable.
London Design Fair runs from 21- 24 September.
