Reflections on light- Joan Gaspar – part two

What is designing?
Designing actually means thinking and structuring. Because ultimately, everything you see around you, all the products that surround you in your life, were made this way, but they could have been made a different way. There is always someone behind the scenes deciding, choosing and thinking about what is best for this object. The designer has to keep in mind not only the features of this product but also what they want it to convey, what the brand wants to communicate with its collection.

Do you like limitations?

It’s not that I like them, but you can’t work without them. It would make no sense to design without them. In my profession, there are also technical, industrial, technological and size limitations. Materials and technology are our language. When you see an object, you may not wonder what it’s made of, but many of the feelings that the product conveys come from the technique that was used. What is interesting is that you can inspire emotions through technique.

What is happening with LEDs in the lighting sector?
LEDs are changing the way we design products. LEDs do not get hot, so you can build your own light socket and this gives you the freedom to design new shapes and dimensions that used to be impossible. Plus, they also allow you to put the switches close to the light source because it doesn’t burn, so you can make more ergonomic lamps.

Does every moment have the ideal kind of light?
Yes, with artificial light every moment should have light. When you read, you need a reading light; when you have dinner at the table, you should have a light that only lights up the table. At home, light should decorate, and you can discriminate between different lights to create different atmospheres, trying to avoid top-down lighting whenever possible. Regardless of whether you like a lamp more or less, one thing is the kind of light it provides and another thing is the physical product itself.

What is your creative process when you design a lamp?
That depends. I might reach the final idea in many different ways. Sometimes it occurs to me at the beginning of product development based on a material or mechanism that interests me. It might also occur to me depending on the kind of light I want to create; this gives you clues as to what the object will be like, what materials I can or cannot use. Light determines a lot — it limits you or opens up many doors in the creative process.