2025 | Professional

MUSE Design Awards Gold Winner

Shell Lamp

Entrant

Muneji Toh Architects

Category

Lighting Design - Wall Lamps / Lighting

Client's Name

Country / Region

Japan

We created a bracket lamp using various shells.
Shells that sleep in the sea show beautiful expressions by polishing shells. The technology for polishing shells has improved, and by making them as thin as possible without cracking them, the original beauty of the shells is revealed. Furthermore, thinly polished shells transmit light and reveal beautiful colors and patterns. Shells grown in various environments around the world have different colors and patterns and have their own unique beauty.
By applying shell polishing techniques, shells are transformed into the designs of lighting fixtures that are familiar to us from the perspective of product design. We bring out the original beauty of the shell, which is a natural object, and furthermore, by using lighting, we create a special lamp.
The shells emerge from the wall when illuminated. Thinly polished shells transmit light and reveal beautiful colors and patterns. This is due to the multi-layered structure of the shell's surface, which causes the refraction and reflection of light to appear in various colors. This phenomenon allows the creation of special lamps made of shells and light. Light passes through the mother-of-pearl part, and when the light is turned on, the shells change to a different expression. Furthermore, the appearance of the shell can be changed by polishing it in various techniques, and when light passes through it, it shows yet another appearance. Also, since shells are natural objects, even shells of the same species have different expressions and shapes, and no two are the same. There is a natural beauty that cannot be imitated by artificial colors and shapes created by humans.
By transforming previously unused shell into beautiful materials and creating lighting fixtures for use in everyday life, we recycle the shell of our marine resources. There are many types of shells around the world. By utilizing these shells from around the world and transforming them into beautiful materials, we hope to promote the use of shells worldwide.

Credits

Muneji Toh Architects
Muneji Toh
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