On the Glowing of Bulbs

An incandescent light bulb is one of those rare examples of object that has an intrinsic gravity about it, far in excess of that which is expected of such an ordinary thing. More significant than its form, or function, or any other definable attribute belonging to it, this gravity has the ability to grab hold of my mind, and trap it deeply within the confines the globe's transparent hull. The effect remains whether the bulb is new or spent; and I must admit that throughout my life, many of the bulbs that should have been destined for the trash, managed to linger for far too long on the edge of a shelf, or the back of a draw.

But what is it about these mass-produced pieces of glass and metal that affects me the way they do? Is it their tightly-coiled cores, so energetic as to be fatal to the touch, and yet so completely vulnerable to even the slightest movement of air? Or is it merely due to the fact that it belongs to a endangered breed? A close cousin of the vacuum-tube that never evolved far from its 19th century prototype, and that somehow was allowed to live-on, past its prime. The inevitable replacement by modern LEDs and florescents is already in full swing, but for all their efficiency these new devices seem to lack the wonderful warmth and soul of the hundred-year-old globe. Perhaps I am just getting old and resistant to change, but somehow I cannot shake the feeling that everywhere a florescent now shines, a bulb once glowed.

It was thoughts such as these that stirred within me when I first watched the film, "The Bothersome Man" (2006), directed by Jens Lien (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0808185). Andreas, the film's protagonist, arrives on a bus and immediately finds himself immersed in a strangely perfect, yet utterly sterile city. He effortlessly rises up the social ladder, and after landing the perfect job (including a friendly and caring boss), buying a flashy sports-car, moving-in with one of his pretty co-workers, and renovating their brand-new house, Andreas soon has his dream life. However it does not take long before he begins to realise that his perfect life is completely devoid of emotion or feeling of any kind. Nothing stands-out from the dull blue-gray tones of the concrete city; food has no taste, sex is empty an emotionless, and nothing, not even a severed finger can seem to deliver any feeling at all.



In one memorable scene, Andreas discovers a crack in the wall of a forgotten basement, near the outskirts of the city. Through this crack he can hear the warm sound of a cello, and can smell the sweet aroma of fresh baking. Almost as though the humanity and soul of some other reality were leaking through it. And to my delight, the ceiling of this basement was covered, from corner to corner, with dimly-glowing light-bulbs. Each one gently bathing the room in a warm yellow light, in complete contrast to the cold blue of the city. The light-bulbs also had a very suggestive, organic shape; in a way making them appear more like a cluster of fish eggs, laid in the basement's womb-like shell. The more I thought about it, the more I liked the comparison between a light-bulb and an egg. Each containing a tiny and fragile element, of such potential value so as to merit the devotion of the rest of the structure to its protection.



Ever since watching "The Bothersome Man", I have wanted to build my very own version of that light-covered ceiling. A type of chandelier that embraces every one of the subtle connotations and emotions that I have described above. And instead of being an unnecessary display of opulence, I want my chandelier to mesmerize the viewer, with its organically glowing orbs, and the fragile tactility its of paper-thin glass. I also intend it to be a subtle homage to the light-bulb; a shameless display of choosing emotion over efficiency, and feeling over perfection.

Below is a computer simulation of my initial idea for this chandelier: A heavy, dense, and rigid frame, juxtaposed against an airy, fragile array of free-hanging bulbs, clustered together so as to mimic the shape of a nest of eggs. I want the user to be able to adjust the brightness and variability of the glowing light-bulbs to suit any mood or application: from dim and atmospheric, to bright and constant (when reading, for example). The three controls (brightness, rate, and spread) provide real-time adjustment and feedback, and should provide a completely intuitive interface, removing the need for instructions or labels. Please play around with the simulation and let me know how effective you find them to be. Perhaps start with all 3 set to 50% and experiment from there.



Java Applet simulating my design for a multi-bulb chandelier.