Design studio Ammunition and light manufacturer Gantri have partnered to design 3D-printed wall sconces and lamps made from a corn-based material.
Gantri and Ammunition‘s series comprises the Signal, Geo and Carve, which each include designs for wall fixtures, table lamps and floor lights that easily assemble and fit in any environment.
The lights are made from plastic-like material polylactic acid, or PLA. It is a polyester derived from plant sources such as corn and sugarcane, offering an alternative to petroleum-based plastics.
To manufacture the fixtures, the PLA is fed through Gantri’s in-house 3D printers, a process that the team claims is more sustainable than other methods.
“The whole point of 3D printing is obviously making it much more efficient for designers, but a side effect of it is that we can produce products in a much more environmentally friendly way because there’s less waste,” Gantri founder Ian Yang said.
Signal sets are influenced by the look of traffic signals – they all have a circular head fronted with slats on all three designs.
A silver pole extends from the head to the round base of the floor lamp, while the table light, attached to a cylindrical block, stands upright or can be positioned on its side.
Gio collection takes cues from 1970s Italian lighting designs, with its name providing a reference to Italian architect and industrial designer Gio Ponti.
The four versions, floor, task, desk and wall lamp share similar rounded forms. Silver rods connect the curved head to the floor lamp base, while a rotatable sphere head on the task lamp directs light in any direction.
For the Carve series, the team created the shape by imagining a block that was carved into to leave a circular form that bulges from a rectangular chunk.
Colour is added at the very end of the production process with a water-based paint formulated to give a smooth, scratch-resistant finish to the products.
Each light is available in five colour options named after hues found in nature: Carbon, Snow, Sedona Red, Forest Green and Stone.
Other lighting designers that are experimenting with 3D printed designs include lamp shades made with recycled plastic by Plumen and a pendant light by Tom Fereday and artist Susan Chen that uses a single piece of extruded clay.
Ammunition and Gantri 3D print lamps from plant-based materials [Dezeen]