fagerhult - SKYWALKER
Making the impossible possible
The 2018 Red Dot Award Winner Skywalker gives a brand new perspective on office space lighting. With a touch of magic, the design team from Above and the skilled engineers at Fagerhult managed to go beyond the possible.
Challenge
Not only we needed to fulfill the high standards, rules and requirements that comes with office lighting, the goal was clear - develop the next generation office luminaire.
The high level goals put us in a situation where boundaries needed to be pushed without compromising the performance and light comfort with multiple shadows as one problem to solve.
New technoloigies are available but the the architechtural context looks pretty much the same. Rectangular workdesks, interiors and ceilings are still fixed. Even if we could minimise it to barely nothing you should ask yourself for what purpose.
On top of this we have our relationship with Fagerhult stretching over more then a decade, resulted in 3 Red Dot winners in a row. Could we add another winner to the party?
Approach
With a no rules, no limitation approach we kicked of by asking architects, interior designers, property owners, light designers what problems they've encountered in their daily work. We needed to get an in depth understanding in their challenges.
The ideas derived from the survey lead us to a luminaire that could allow architects and interior designers to create spatiality, a body that interacts with space instead of disappearing. Instead of going horizontal we tilted the body vertically into a super slim and narrow unit.
By hiding a secondary LED strip in the upper beam, developing a brand new louver and optics - the magic was there. In theory. These ideas came to live by working close together with the talented engineers at Fagerhult in an iterative process.
Result
A combination of user insight, revolutionary technology and an open minded approach to the unknown, resulted in a minimalistic yet graceful and intriguing silhouette with extreme proportions. The original design intent was never compromised without compromising on light performance and comfort.
Skywalker, features a newly developed louvre - Beta Opti Nano, the latest space saving LED technology, fitted into a remarkably narrow casing measuring only 11.5 mm at the top and 36 mm at the widest part.
And finally, earlier this year we could add Skywalker to the Red Dot Award party.
“Actually, it is never a walk in the park to design a luminaire, as there are so many parameters to take into account. But of course, we can choose the level of difficulty and effort. This time, we wanted to create something extra ordinary.
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Skywalker takes the minimalistic concept into new levels with its technical optimization packaged in an elegant vertical form. Skywalker is a product of innovation and a desire to realize a vision.
Let there be light
The extreme proportions put us to the test. Even new suspension brackets needed to be developed
“The success of a new design concept is proven when put in production. You’re not successful until it is effectively implemented into serial production. Personally I’m proud of the finish of this product. Every detail fits seamlessly into another, without any disturbing joints or irregularities. You can see it and feel it.”
Work in progress
Process work includes testing various surfaces and exploring colours.
Context
Early designs where CADed and placed into different environments.
Red Dot Museum in Essen
The design was honored with a Red Dot Design award the summer 2018.
About Fagerhult
Fagerhult develops, produces and markets professional lighting solutions for public environments. Since 1945 they have united a passion for light with functional Scandinavian design. With a long-term focus on energy efficiency, via intelligent lighting controls and advanced LED technology, they aim to contribute to a lasting, light-loving world.
Capabilities
- Industrial Design
- CMF
Awards
