Asilia
“Asili” means “nature” in Swahili. The pattern of this lamp clearly draws inspiration from natural forms — but even before it was created, the lamp already had a destination: a unique interior in Kenya.
Making of Asilia
One of my favorite Platonic solids is the regular dodecahedron.
The pattern on Asilia consists of twelve stylized flowers, arranged in a specific relational structure. In some places, one flower overlaps with its neighbor; in others, it seems to absorb it.
If you look closely, you can see how the forms interact — these relationships are also visible in the sketch photos, where I marked the direction of flow with arrows.
The foundation of the pattern was based on geometry, but it was adapted to the organic, imperfect form of the gourd. Each “flower” needed slight adjustment to account for this. That’s the only way the surface could be covered with precision and harmony.
Plants embedded in resin
Asilia was made using a particularly thick gourd — something that allowed me to push the technique further.
Before this lamp, I had created a few smaller models (not shown on my website) where I experimented with embedding plants in resin.
Encapsulating real plants in epoxy on a spherical form turned out to be a serious challenge — not only technically, but also in terms of precision and visual clarity.
At the top of the lamp, you can see carefully embedded natural leaves — preserved in clear resin as part of the structure.
Perforation
Asilia features almost 22,000 holes.
While the pattern is structured on a dodecahedral grid and may appear repetitive at first glance, each “flower” is slightly different. This is due to the subtle irregularity of the gourd’s surface, which requires that each section be uniquely adapted.
The perforation technique is similar to what I used in the Ailsa and Leaferis lamps. However, this time I wanted to avoid linear divisions within the perforated surfaces — aiming for a more seamless, uninterrupted flow.
After drawing the design directly onto the gourd, I transferred each shape to tracing paper, scanned them, and brought them into a CAD program where I developed the hole layout digitally.
You can see this part of the process in the video below.
Later, I transferred the layouts back onto the gourd — shape by shape. It was the first time I used this multi-step approach. I enjoy experimenting with new methods — it’s part of how I keep evolving as an artist.
Painting
This lamp also introduced a new painting technique. Since it’s a pendant lamp — meant to be viewed from a distance — I wanted the pattern to be bold, clear, and high in contrast.
To achieve this, I first painted the entire gourd. Then, I carefully removed the paint from the flower shapes, leaving the background dark.
Why not just paint the background instead? Because only this reverse method gave me the even surface effect I was looking for on the exposed brown areas.
A pendant lamp returns
Before Asilia, the last time I created a pendant lamp was in 2011. Unlike a table or floor lamp, a pendant lamp can’t be simply moved or repositioned. It requires commitment — a defined space.
But it also has one clear advantage: the light patterns it casts.
Asilia creates striking, evenly distributed light projections — especially on the ceiling, where the forms seem almost painted in light.
A personal process
As with nearly every lamp I create, Asilia was a deeply engaging process — full of challenges, small discoveries, and quiet satisfaction.
It became another important step in my ongoing development — as a craftsman and as an artist.
The main gallery presents a selection of my latest lamps.
If you want to see an overview of all Calabarte lamps, you can do so in THIS GALLERY.