Whilst researching the state of light in the modern age, an image of a church I visited in Florence, Italy, suddenly came to my mind. There was a semi-underground space directly underneath the chapel, and although it was dimly lit, I remember that there was a hint of daylight shining through the small window, and the atmosphere felt crisp and clear.
A grain of light was floating among that space, flickering, and wavering. It was a single candle flame.
As I trace back the vivid memories and ponder, there is no doubt that the existence of fire, which has been used by humans since ancient times, is closely connected to our lives even today. People gather around fire to pray, eat, and talk by its light, and creates a warm scene of light that accompanies human life. I feel that these sceneries continue to create new emotions that move our hearts deeply.
“hymn” was presented in Milan, Italy, in 2019 as a prototype work based on the concept of the primitive light, fire. After another two years of development, it has been commercialized as a new ambient lighting by Ambientec in 2021.
The acrylic component is inherited from the original prototype design, and is integrated with a delicate arm which balances and allows it to rise, creating a fragile and irregular texture of transforming light under the analog but invisible force of magnets.
The overall design that supports the acrylic component is inspired by the traditional apparatus for lighting fire. For the design to settle into our living space, the geometric form of hymn is made up of soft lines and minimalistic yet cutting edge details, realized by Ambientec's technology. Tools that have emerged from the relationship between light and human life have provided hints to better understand fire itself.
The aim of this ambient lighting is not to reproduce or simulate fire in a realistic way. It is about reinterpreting the existence of fire and sublimating its fundamental appeal into an experiential value that expands the concept of our daily lives.
My emotional memories are always accompanied by light. I hope that the light emitted by hymn will create a new emotional experience to the viewer, just like the candle I saw in Italy.
hymn
2021 / presented in Milan - ITALY
Ambientec
Salone del Mobile. Milano, supersalone 2021
Concept, Design: Hiroto Yoshizoe
Development: Yoshinori Kuno, Yasushi Eguchi, Mitsuhiro Yoshida (Ambientec)
Film Direction / Sound: Shunsuke Watanabe (uranographia)
Photography (product): Hiroshi Iwasaki
Photography (scenery): Rie Amano
Logo Design, illustration: Junya Maejima
Special thanks: Maho Yoshizoe, Yutaka Mita, Riyoko Takahashi, Kano Yamada, Mari Odaka, Kenichi Kaneko, Iyo Hasegawa, Ami Haraguchi, Hideto Hyodo, Kenichi Ochiai, Hisato Hidaka, Yui Otani, Mika Kamimura, Minako Kasano, Masahiro Morita
Special sponsor: kudan house, malamute, AMAHARE