Shades

Rapid prototyping | Material exploration | Product design

DIY Design and Fabrication

Construct a lampshade out of foam core held together solely by mechanical interlocking schemes.

Moodboards

Form design inspirations.

Mechanical design inspirations.

Sketches

Design Process

Prototypes

I set a challenge for myself to use foam core for this assignment because I have not had chances to use foam core to construct models. I wanted to explore the textures and properties of foam core and experiment with transferring textures from other materials (like paper) to foam core.
Because foam core cannot be laser-cut, cutting smooth and aligned lines and curves becomes even more challenging.

Texture (under light) before and after peeling of the top layer of foam core.

This product has two sets, each explores different properties of foam core.

I wanted the lampshade to be able to be flattened and reconstructed to show the flexibility of foam core as well as to connect the 2D and 3D space.

Hex Lampshade

This lampshade mimics a party hat with a twist on texture. As shown in photo on the right, the texture of the foam core is able to show when the paper layers are peeled away.

Moon Lampshade

This lampshade mimics a moon shape. It can be either be hung or placed on flat surface.