Artists have been communicating like this for thousands of years through paintings, but this Crisis Lamp marks a fairly recent practice of using more practical objects to comment on society. Here we have a functional light fixture that provides useful illumination, flaunts an aesthetically pleasing appearance, but also symbolizes the deterioration of the global economy.
This is done through the form and the materiality of the piece, beginning at the top with a lampshade shaped like a gold bar. As it morphs into its crooked neck the four flat sides buckle into a crumpled fabric of folded triangles. The spine of Meikstudio's Crisis Lamp narrows to nearly a point at its base, spreading out to produce a puddle of the golden metal. The lightbulb seems to have melted down the valuable brick as a figurative remark on international finance.
Key Themes Behind This Trend
- Upcycling as Social Commentary
- Creating functional products that comment on societal issues through their materiality or form.
- Deconstructed Luxury
- Using high-end materials or shapes while also including an element of destruction, such as crumpling or melting.
- Commentary Through Design
- Using design to communicate a message about social, political, or economic issues.
Where This Applies
- Interior Design
- Opportunities for designers to create statement pieces that merge function and social commentary.
- Art
- Artists can expand their mediums to include functional pieces that use upcycling and deconstructed luxury to make statements about global issues.
- Sustainability
- Opportunities for companies to upcycle or repurpose materials, transform them into luxury products and create a statement on global waste problems.
