Creative Lighting Products Shine at Cultural Expo

Light furnishing design occupies a high position in Taiwan's cultural/creative industry

By MICHELLE HSU

Since its inception four years ago, the Taiwan International Cultural and Creative Industry Expo has built up a solid reputation in the creative world. Through cooperation between the organizer, the Ministry of Culture (MOC), and leading brands, the expo powerfully conveys the spirit of localization and has garnered increasing international exposure.

The lighting products displayed in the “Furniture and Home Furnishings Zone” of the latest expo, held last December, fully reflected the expo's theme of “Industrial Art Design,” adding a rich local flavor with works that not only offered the functions of modern devices but also provided an alluring medium linking the products to their “roots.”

Light furnishing design occupies a high position in Taiwan's cultural/creative industry. The expo gave visitors an opportunity to discover more manifestations of artistic value, design possibilities, and customization.

Following are descriptions of a few of the highly imaginative works on display. Whether created by individual studios or brand organizations, all are remarkably ingenious.

Chinese Style

Bonho International attempts to combine Chinese culture and life. Its display area at the expo was full of all kinds of “Chinese style” products, of which “Taiwan Centennial Blessing” was the most compelling. The exterior of this work looks like a simple tea ceremony with a carved pattern on the outside like a traditional Chinese window grille. This not only expresses the beauty of the age and provides functionality, but is also symbolic of the pursuit of ideals and aspirations.

To exemplify four types of tea in a unique way, there are four matching colors--clouded red, blue, yellow, and orange--that lend a more oriental flavor to the work. What's really special about the product, however, is that with a simple manual reconfiguration it can be formed into a four-sided lamp like those carried by Chinese maids in ancient times.

A faint glimmer of light shines through the words “Happiness, Wealth, Longevity, and Matrimonial Bliss,” the most simple--and also the most profound--traditional Chinese blessings.

“Happiness” represents the wish to live without fear, to have an abundance of all that you need; “Wealth” represents the wish for good fortune; “Longevity” represents the wish for the family line to stretch from the distant past far into the future; and “Matrimonial Bliss” represents the hope for inner fulfillment and joy. These four auspicious words not only bring a local flavor to this product but also convey the human sentiment of the Taiwanese people.

With its combination of lighting and tea appreciation, this creative product highlights the value of traditional culture in modern life. It seems as if a user can open the latticed window shutters and perceive the delightful aroma of tea and, through the words “Happiness, Wealth, Longevity and Matrimonial Bliss,” feel a link between the past and the future.

Human Air

Another exhibitor, MAN2MAX, infuses its works with an adaptation of the structure of the human body, so that its lamps possess a richly 'human' air along with cultural significance. The “body posture” of most of its lamps can be changed in terms of height, angle, and direction to adjust the light source. The works are made of lightweight recyclable aluminum and use energy-saving LED bulbs, making them both environmentally friendly and energy efficient. These are superbly modernist green lamps.

“Happy to Learn” is a MAN2MAX table lamp with a lead character, Max, who has two wheels under his feet as he marches swiftly to take in new knowledge, revealing a very enthusiastic attitude toward learning. His two fists serve as the source of light, as if he is using his power to concentrate all the illuminating brightness he can into his hands.

The table lamp “Sense of Mission” expressed a warrior's spirit of pressing on toward his goal, with no turning back. The lamp has the form of a warrior with a hand-held light saber that extinguishes the darkness. The height, angle, and direction of the light source are all fully adjustable by altering the warrior's fighting posture.

“Far Sighted” is a table lamp that implies expanding one's horizons. It literally provides sight far into the distance, with the lead character, Max, perching on a height that provides a broad field of vision. The higher you stand, it implies, the further you see and the better you are able to create a brighter future. The work has the form of a giraffe, whose long neck allows wider vision. This is a creative expression that combines human and animal perspectives built around the theme of “Far Sightedness.”

“In Time” is a work rich in meaning. Starting out from a musical perspective--the idea that music is the energy most able to make people feel happy--it goes on to develop the theme that happiness should be “in time.” The human hand holding the guitar in this work seems to evoke the melodious sound of jubilant folk music.

The work “Curious” uses a telescope to symbolize the innate desire of the human mind to explore, bringing across the fact that people use their curiosity to explore the world and shed light on the meaning of things. Using a telescope, humans are able to look up to the stars, to explore the vastness of the universe, and to catch a glimpse of the mystery outside the window.

Modern Simplicity

Xcellent Lighting, another exhibitor, is well known for its advanced optical technology, sustainable management planning, and simple creative designs. It lit up visitors' eyes at the expo with its unique lighting products.

"Singleblade" is a convenient table lamp you can take with you wherever you go in your home, using either AC power or a rechargeable battery. The lamp has a simple, neat, and stylish appearance, and offers four brightness levels chosen by touching the surface of the lamp base. The high thermal conductivity of the aluminum base reduces light fade, and the metallic painted lamp holder provides not only stability but also a battery charging function.

The “Leaf” lamp has three or six leaves which project light in a kind of pyramidal shape. The intersecting and merging light projected from each of the leaves provides a uniform glow. The “Leaf” hanging lamp is particularly suitable for use over dining tables, in the kitchen, or for decorative display, since it has a long vertical-line design that can be used to segment space.

The “Flight” chandelier brings natural esthetics into modern life. A single “Flight” lamp appears aloof and pure, while several of the lamps together project the image of a flock of seagulls penetrating space in an elegant display.

Customized Creation 

The Yee Fore Company's exhibit introduced a variety of customized and personalized light furnishings. The firm offers DIY night lights, table lamps, and lamps featuring printed copies of paintings.

Yee Fore produces high-quality table lamps that are waterproof, easy to clean, and  artistic. They take creative works of art like paintings and photographs and turn them into indoor lighting artworks which add a warm, romantic atmosphere to their surroundings. Millers impressionist “Gleaners” and pop art master Andy Warhol's prints, for example, are transformed from cold museum displays into warm bedside lights that induce comfortable sleep.