Komorebi lamp reproduces sunlight in any room
- Text: Pedro Ferrer
The Japanese have a specific word – komorebi – to designate the rays of sunlight that manage to filter through the leaves of the trees and reach the ground. As the branches sway, the play of chiaroscuro changes slightly over the surface, creating a relaxing aesthetic effect.
Leslie Nooteboom
There is no doubt that the sun itself is an essential element for human well-being. However, we leave less and less space for it in cities, where tall buildings and constant urbanization make it difficult for it to enter our homes as much as we would like.
Aware of this problem, designer and engineer Leslie Nooteboom has devised a projector to make up for the lack of natural light in homes with few windows or where the view through the glass is reduced to another brick wall.
Its lighting system, called Komorebi, is actually a dynamic projector that reproduces computer-generated images. Like artificial sunlight filtered through imaginary windows or curtains, these move around the room, imitating the changing orientation of the sun throughout the day.
So, instead of providing a constant standard light, this curious lamp projects different visual elements, which can even be programmed to vary in appearance little by little, thus emulating real nature. In addition, the user can incorporate his or her own digital light and shadow files in order to customize the experience as much as possible.
Instead of playing with classic concepts in lighting, such as light intensity or color, Nooteboom has preferred to experiment with movement and more subtle sensations. Faced with the lack of interior magic in some apartments, the “technological nature” distilled by Komorebi can lend a hand much more effectively than repetitive artificial lighting.
Designed as a graduation project at the Royal College of Art in London, the prototype is awaiting a manufacturer who will be encouraged to mass produce it. Of course, seeing the results obtained, it would be a shame to miss the opportunity to have such a decorative interior sun.
Discover the Komorebi lamp in its entirety in this video.