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Light creates moods – Beyond Light

Light is more than lighting. Light can prevent and cure. It can accentuate moods, creating aggression as well as peace. Light can create confidence and romance. The design biennale BeyondRisør continues its experimental approach to design, from BeyondAcoustics in 2008...

Since the beginning, in 2005, BeyondRisør has developed from being a specialist-meeting place to becoming a network where design and economy meets. It is a space for knowledge and experience-based sharing of how good design can give companies a competitive edge. BeyondRisør runs in two-year project cycles with each final being the design biennale in Risør Norway. Its creative head is industrial designer Johan Verde, and it is owned by the local municipality of Risør.

“Industry – whether in Norway or otherwise – needs to sit up and take notice. Indeed, the very existence of BeyondRisør is indicative of an exciting, creative, collaborative and proactive climate for design in Norway. Starting here, this is a place where – with open minds and far-reaching ambitions – there is great potential for the future,” stated Henrietta Thompson, design and architecture editor, when speaking at BeyondRisør 2008.

BeyondRisør is a catalyst and at its core goal is the establishment of collaborative projects between designers, architects and industry. To reach this goal, every exhibition is framed by international speakers representing all sides of a product, as well as continues speed-dating sessions between industry and design.

BeyondRisør aims to create a guerrilla who breaks boundaries and make innovation happen regionally, nationally and internationally.

Including All – dining in a restaurant, its up to you to decide what mood will be through light.
© Designit

Since then seven Norwegian design teams, consisting of up-and-coming designers and recognized, well-established designers, have worked with the multi-disciplinary and open source minded pilot project – BeyondLight.“Ban the Bulb”
The world’s foremost symbol of creativity, the incandescent light, is about to be short-circuited by the environmental crisis. For years, activists have struggled to darken the light bulb, including Matt Prescott in “Ban the Bulb”. In 2009, BeyondRisør decided to attack the challenge of creating sustainable light.

BeyondLight challenges established facts and moves the barriers for what light is and can be. The results are products of sustainable design with a conscious awareness of new technology.

The design teams were challenged in three main areas in order to lead the projects in certain directions and to create inspiration; BeyondLight Positive, BeyondLight Practical and BeyondLight Protective. “Beyond” refers to the overall history surrounding the design process leading to the final prototypes.

Listed below are the seven projects making up BeyondLight.

BeyondLight Positiv

Is light effecting our health?

“Psychosomatic disorders are physical disorders resulting from various psychological and mental influences. If mental effects can provide physical suffering, maybe positive psychological impact can do the opposite,” wonders designer Daniel Rybakken.

01 Lumen Works

Induction magnetism makes it possible to create a more flexible and cradle to cradle friendly object that use less energy and at the same time give new identity to work lamps.
Petter Knudsen x Permafrost

02 Be Well Glow

Daylight is crucial for humans both physiologically and perceptually. Spending more and more time inside, people need artificial light. Be Well Glow combines the good feeling of daylight in an extra window box with interactive layers of artificial light colours where moods can be created just as light and shadows appears in real daylight situations.

Daniel Rybakken x Andreas Engesvik

BeyondLight Practical

Is it possible to develop sustainable and practical light?

“An important aspect in sustainable design is the involvement of the user. User aspect and involvement is important since innovation often leads to alienation. Genuine innovation is new technology where the user is taken care of,” says designer Ketil Wold.

03 Handy Shine

“How can we design a lamp that is mobile, user-friendly and practical in a work-environment or in the daily life at home?”

Off grid lamps are crucial for more than half of the world’s population; this project has the right target price to replace the polluting kerosene lamps in the third world. First off all it is practical, but never-the-less sustainable and playful.

K8

04 Adaptive Home

The light bulb of the future should not only be rechargeable and moveable, but also adaptive to different situations and installations. It brings new life to a transportable light source as an addition to a mounted chandelier.

Frøystad Klock x Ketil Wold

05 Including All

This project is an intuitive interactive light adjustment for all users. It is to be used in different situations, in restaurants as well as in coffee shops. It might seem obvious but does not exist.

Designit x Linda Evensen Design

BeyondLight Protective

Is it possible to create light that protects?

“In an “ugly” environment it is easy to attribute people negative characteristics. Our challenge is to create safe light,” says designer Marthe Skaale Johansen.

06 Outside Shine

New street lamps that make people feel comfortable and safe outside in the dark, thanks to new directions for the light beams and energy effective plasma technology. Instead of spotting and blending the pedestrian the surroundings and the path walked upon are lit up from the same cylindrical pole.

Marthe Skaale Johansen x mmw architects of Norway

07 Light Building

This project is a modern campfire for urban life. In cold and dark areas heat is as important as light, when waiting outside a cold night it’s nice to lean or sit on a surface that becomes warm.

Fantastic Norway AS x Are Røysamb

They shed light on the potential of the creativity that occurs in cross-disciplinary projects that relate to current needs and issues.

Design Biennale 2010

Together the seven pilot projects of BeyondLight constitute the exhibition at the design biennale 2010 in Risør, Norway. After that the exhibition will be at attractive locations, nationally as well as internationally. Whether or not the prototypes described above have developed into products depends on BeyondRisør’s ability to find producers for the projects.

“Working with design and product development the way we do is incredibly interesting. We act in accordance to a need in society, and the prototypes shed light on the potential of the creativity that occurs in cross-disciplinary projects. As with BeyondAcustics in 2008, BeyondLight has developed some groundbreaking prototypes that both Norwegian and international producers should embrace,” claims creative head, Johan Verde.

Light Building – waiting for the bus, you are accompanied by light and heat.
© Fantastic Norway