Piolucent: The Modular Tectonic Lampshade
From the minds behind the world’s first circular mannequin design, Kelly Sant and Arash Kaynama, the pair have continued to press the envelope on sustainability in product design with their latest creation.
Introducing Piolucent: a highly customisable and resource-efficient custom build lampshade.
A modular constructed shading system, Piolucent brings interchangeable modern design to your surroundings, whatever the mood and whatever the room. Designed to allow you to be able to easily change styles and keep your room feeling modern, up to date and fresh.
Inspired by the shifting plates of the Earth, Piolucent looks to apply this geological process to lampshades, producing ever-evolving luminosity. Building also off the patented design of Mannequino, Piolucent uses the same idea of flat-packed 2D panels that use snap-lock fitting to form a 3D shape. And as with the Mannequino, this build mechanism is intuitive and requires no tools, meaning a ‘Pio’ lampshade can be quickly assembled, deconstructed, and re-assembled with little thought.
You can see just how easy the process is on Piolucent’s YouTube video instructions here, but essentially, all you need to do is curl each sheet and match the numbered hooks with their respective holes. Beginning with the smallest sheet, known as the ‘core’, assemble your desired light by repeating this process for the medium and large sheets. It’s easy as 1-2-3!
With numerous colours and sheet patterns, including dots and slats, Piolucent’s versatile form allows for many interesting shapes and lighting combinations. The ability to construct and customise the style and effects of the shade gives you a blank canvas to keep experimenting with the mood in your environment. Accentuate the design of a cool bulb, or downlight the room with some intimacy-inducing black panels, or jazz it up with some new colours - the possibilities are almost endless, plus the designers will create new panel design drops over time to add to the lamp later- watch this space!
The wraps also store away flat taking up minimal storage space, allowing you to build your library of effects and keep them handy for when you fancy a change of scene.
Your Pio is made of polypropylene; a non-toxic, long-chain thermoplastic, which has numerous applications and a global network of recyclability. Indeed, because of polypropylene’s long molecular structure, there is little downcycling involved, which means it can be recycled many times and not lose its characteristic properties. Additionally, there are no metal components, which means the whole product can be returned to its high-value natural state and reused as if from new. This is part of Piolucent’s contribution to the circular economy, to eliminate harmful waste and operate within a closed loop of resources, reducing its carbon footprint wherever possible.
Piolucent’s high speed factory is located at ARCC Innovations in South Cambridgeshire, and Pios are available to purchase on Piolucent’s website from as little as £20 upwards (excluding shipping). Piolucent shades will make a lovely Christmas gift this year. The store will include a special deal for two - one for you, one for a friend - you can share panels and looks!
The Pio is all about moments and bringing them to life with your own hands, constructing the moments with Pio panels. How will you decorate your Piolucent?
Buy your Pio today here.