Rosie Li, left, and Flos Seki-Han designs for Lumens (Seki-Han photo by Robert Rieger; Rosie Li photo courtesy of Lumens)
Lighting retailer Lumens launched two exclusive lighting collections this month.
Rosie Li Studio‘s new lighting collection, Jewel Block, is now available exclusively through lumens.com. The collection draws on early 20th-century pressed glass architectural tiles, train signal lights and crystalline formations. For this collection, Rosie Li, a Brooklyn-based artist and sculptural lighting designer, developed three custom pressed glass lenses, each featuring lenticular patterns that bend, refract and scatter light in rhythmic, prismatic way. Prices range from $950 to $32,800. Pieces include sconces, a pendant, a table and floor lamp, and a flush mount.
A Rosie Li Studio wall sconce (photo courtesy of Lumens)
Lumens has also brought Seki-Han, an archival Flos design by Afra and Tobia Scarpa, to the U.S. for the first time with an exclusive retail partnership. The launch includes a reissue of the original floor lamp with updates for contemporary living, as well as a new linear suspension version of the same light. Produced by FLOS until 1966, Seki-Han is a rare and little-known example of Italian modernist design. With two slender, parallel wooden blades enclosing a tubular light source, Seki-Han embodies Scarpa’s refined sculptural sensibilities.
Tobia Scarpa with Biagio_courtesy Studio Tobia Scarpa
At the suggestion of Piero Gandini, executive chairman of the Flos B&B Italia Group, Scarpa worked closely with Flos’ R&D team to evolve Seki-Han for a contemporary audience with updated materials and technology.
Once fixed in place, the wooden blades — now crafted with ash wood — have been reengineered to move and rotate, allowing the user to control the degree of aperture and the intensity of the light flow. The reedition also features a custom designed linear LED tube developed by Flos specifically for this piece, featuring a warm color temperature that complements the wood material, 360º light emission, and an integrated dimmer function. Finally, Seki-Han is now also available as a suspension light, originally conceived only as a floor lamp.
“Championing historically significant design that resonates with how we live today is something Lumens is deeply committed to,” said Dana Gers, chief marketing officer at Lumens, in a release. “This reissue reflects Scarpa’s indelible mark on the landscape of modernist design, and FLOS’ rich legacy of Italian craftsmanship. We’re thrilled to have such a rare and inspiring design exclusive to Lumens.”
