Glass and art deco inspirations

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Glass and art deco inspirations

Perth, 12^th September 2014

My visits to crafty glass manufacturers, hand blown and machined, has inspired me. We are so into modern LED lighting these days that you tend to forget that in the older days lamp and fitting manufacturing was a real art. Nowadays everything is mass produced with little originality, but there are also boundless opportunities through imaginative manufacturing process and clever material use. But somehow it all seems “computer” generated. There seems to be little room left for actual human craftsmanship. Today’s economy requires high volumes, fast production and low prices; that by definition excludes craftsmanship I would say.

If you look at the light fittings from the early days, think also at the art deco period, they are all very crafty, very ornamental. Unless we are talking very special projects with big budgets (some casinos have a tendency to go overboard with uber ornamental fixtures and designs) in today’s world everything is mostly mass produced and it is a shame to see hand crafted products slowly disappear. For that reason I am more than pleased to have the opportunity to take on this project where we can actually work with old fashioned craftsmen and on top of that manage the whole process from design to completion.

The sad thing is that hand crafted designs are generally expensive as compared to machined, multi mass produced, items. Handcrafted products may also take much longer and as such in this fast paced world people do not have the patience. Commercial interest has moulded people’s frame of mind into thinking the mass producers way with big budgets to spent. Compare the concept of the hyper market and department stores where you can find everything you “want” to the little specialist shop at the corner of your neighbourhood (if you still have one…).

Light Watch 5-153: Here are some crafty glass and art deco inspirations…have a great weekend