Cats, dogs and lamps: Noma Bar reinterprets Foscarini lighting through illustration

Foscarini enlisted Israeli illustrator Noma Bar to give a playful interpretation to their extensive lighting collection, with his signature stylised approach to illustration

Noma Bar Foscarini illustrations of a dog and a woman's face
Two illustrations by Noma Bar for Foscarini. Left, ‘Lumiere’ table lamp by Rodolfo Dordoni becomes a dog's nose. Right, a pair of ‘Twiggy’ floor lamps by Marc Sadler become eyes
(Image credit: Noma Bar, courtesy Foscarini)
By Rosa Bertoli
published

Over the past several months, Italian lighting brand Foscarini has enlisted global artists and illustrators to interpret its most known designs, inviting them to play with the company's icons to offer a new point of view on its lighting offering. 

The latest in this series is a collaboration with Israeli illustrator Noma Bar. Among Bar's most known projects is Chineasy, a playful take on learning Chinese characters, created in collaboration with ShaoLan Hseuh and winner of Life-Enhancer of the Year at the Wallpaper* Design Awards 2015. His clients include Time Out London, BBC, Random House, The Observer and The Economist among others. 

Noma Bar Foscarini: playing with lighting design

Noma Bar illustration in pink and blue for foscarini

‘Havana’ floor and ceiling lamp by Jozeph Forakis as a cat's eyes, and Ludovica + Roberto Palomba's ‘Gregg’ pendant as its nose

(Image credit: Noma Bar, courtesy Foscarini)

'I know how to appreciate timeless silhouettes, and luckily I had Foscarini's great iconic silhouettes to work with,' comments Bar talking about the collaboration. Bar worked on a theme of 'Your Home', which inspired the artist to look for domestic situations (but also scenes outside of the home) to integrate the lighting designs.

In his usual playful fashion, Bar transformed Foscarini lights into the back of women's heads, a cat's eyes, a dog's nose and the roofs of small houses, among other motifs. Each lighting design (from Marc Sadler's ‘Twiggy’ floor lamp to Ludovica + Roberto Palomba's ‘Gregg’ pendant) maintains its familiar silhouette while becoming part of something else, acquiring a clear function within Bar's illustration.

Noma Bar illustration in pink and blue for foscarini

‘Magneto’ floor and table lamps by Giulio Iacchetti 

(Image credit: Noma Bar, courtesy Foscarini)

'The dog “Lumiere” is probably my favourite,' comments Bar. 'I think that it surprises you (as well as myself), to find out how [the] “Lumiere” light body can become a nose, the base of the lamp transforms to a dog's mouth and the light that comes out is the dog's fur.'

Carlo Urbinati, Foscarini president and founder adds: 'Foscarini is a company that thrives on ideas, curiosity, the desire to experiment and experience. This new digital project will grant space for original contents that, through visual impressions where our light is the protagonist, will enable us to discover the power of ideas.'

foscarini.com
@noma_bar

Noma Bar illustration in pink and blue for foscarini

A quartet of Spokes by Garcia & Cumini

(Image credit: Noma Bar, courtesy Foscarini)

Noma Bar illustration in pink and blue for foscarini

Aplomb suspension by Lucidi Pevere

(Image credit: Noma Bar, courtesy Foscarini)
Rosa Bertoli

Rosa Bertoli was born in Udine, Italy, and now lives in London. Since 2014, she has been the Design Editor of Wallpaper*, where she oversees design content for the print and online editions, as well as special editorial projects. Through her role at Wallpaper*, she has written extensively about all areas of design. Rosa has been speaker and moderator for various design talks and conferences including London Craft Week, Maison & Objet, The Italian Cultural Institute (London), Clippings, Zaha Hadid Design, Kartell and Frieze Art Fair. Rosa has been on judging panels for the Chart Architecture Award, the Dutch Design Awards and the DesignGuild Marks. She has written for numerous English and Italian language publications, and worked as a content and communication consultant for fashion and design brands.

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