Section of Mela glass shade
Mela is a collection of pendant light and wall/ceiling light designed for Hand& Eye.
The lamp with a mouth blown, Opal glass shade in matt etched finish has a dimpled base which acts as a focal point on the otherwise smooth surface. The dimpled point becomes thinner and at the same time goes closer to the light source, making it shine brighter.
Designed in 2020, Mela is produced and sold by Hand & Eye (UK) since 2021. Buy Mela on Hand & Eye website (pendant and wall/ceiling).
Mela pendant
Mela wall/ceiling
Mela pendant / Photo © Nick Rochowski
Brass fixing of Mela pendant
Mela pendant
Mela ceiling (used with a bulb temperature of 3000k)
Mela wall
Development of Mela
Our objective for designing Mela lampshade was to create an archetypal form that relates to the production process and the material, which is mouth blown glass.
One of the characteristics of the mouth blown glass is a gradual change in the wall thickness over the profile, and we learned that acute angles tend to produce thinner wall.
We wanted to use this as a feature on the lighting in a simple yet effective way, and resulted in a gentle ellipsoid shape, through an exploration of archetypal, mouth blown glass forms such as antique wine bottles (image source here), and the more modern interpretation of those bottles by Tapio Wirkala. Gently curved ellipsoid surface diffuses the light evenly on the outside, and the dimple at the base works as a focal point, with the light shining brightest in the centre when the light is turned on, and the darkest when turned off.
Image source: SHA/BLM Historic Glass Bottle Identification & Information Website
Section sketch propped in studio kitchen
1:2 model of the shade
Fixing developments
Checking the fixing design on the actual glass shade
Testing the wall fixing