Billions of CDs are discarded across the world, often ending up in regular trash despite being recyclable. While they may take centuries to degrade, their material qualities still hold potential. Their circular form, reflective surface, rigidity, and ability to scatter light make them suitable for reuse in a design object. Eclipse uses these qualities to create a table lamp that is both functional and visually expressive. One quality of CDs that has mesmerised people is their rainbow-like reflection, an effect caused by light diffraction. The tiny, evenly spaced grooves on the surface of a CD, originally used to store data in the form of pits and lands, act like a diffraction grating. When white light falls on the surface, it splits into its component colours. Eclipse harnesses this optical property, allowing the discarded CD to become more than a waste object. It becomes a material that actively shapes the sensory experience of light.
Name
Eclipse
Year
2024
Typology
Location
Billions of CDs are discarded across the world, often ending up in regular trash despite being recyclable. While they may take centuries to degrade, their material qualities still hold potential. Their circular form, reflective surface, rigidity, and ability to scatter light make them suitable for reuse in a design object. Eclipse uses these qualities to create a table lamp that is both functional and visually expressive. One quality of CDs that has mesmerised people is their rainbow-like reflection, an effect caused by light diffraction. The tiny, evenly spaced grooves on the surface of a CD, originally used to store data in the form of pits and lands, act like a diffraction grating. When white light falls on the surface, it splits into its component colours. Eclipse harnesses this optical property, allowing the discarded CD to become more than a waste object. It becomes a material that actively shapes the sensory experience of light.
The idea was to create a lamp that did not hide the identity of the CD, but instead used its circular geometry and reflective quality as the primary design language. The form was developed through multiple explorations of shape, stacking, and orientation. Different arrangements of CDs were studied to understand how reflected light, shadow, density, and alignment could influence the final object.
The final design brings together stacked CDs, CD toppers, a central support structure, and a 3D-printed base. An LED strip is integrated within the composition, allowing light to pass through and reflect across the layered discs.
The Eclipse-Inspired Table Lamp captures the interplay of light and shadow seen during an eclipse through its sleek circular form. Made from recycled CDs, the lamp combines sustainability with artistic expression, while the Fibonacci-based arrangement creates dynamic reflections and a vibrant rainbow-like glow.
Since 2019
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