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| Red dot lights |
| It takes imagination to think of a plain white bin or a cheap saucer as a contemporary designer item, until you meet light designer Mike van Neikerk. |
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With a background in economics, finance and accounting, Mike van Neikerk is an unusual suspect for the talent of turning such unusual objects into light features.
Mike's first light design was in 1996 when he created an installation called "Nurturing Life" which consisted of approximately 80 ostrich egg lights that slowly throbbed on and off to music. It cost him $25,000 to make. Mike received a great response from the exhibition and started selling individual lights through word of mouth. He then decided to make more lights and sell them commercially. Designing lights, furniture and homeware products is now his full time profession.
Mike says he was attracted to lighting because it is a fantastic medium to work with and its possibilities are enormous. With light he says you can create interest through movement, colour, brightness, reflections, shadows, silhouettes and by squeezing it through cracks. Although it is harder to produce than furniture because of factors such as electrical safety, heat emitted from the light and its effect on materials and wiring problems Mike says turning the light on when it's finished is incredibly rewarding.
Mike tries to balance sculpture and function but he designs with a main emphasis on creating something that is quirky and fun. The lights are to create a mood rather than for use as a reading light or the light a workstation.
What's really interesting about the materials Mike chooses is that many of his designs feature ready made objects like bins, jugs, pool tube, food bowls, cups and saucers or pieces of furniture. He loves to look at ready-made objects and turn them into sculptural lighting. Other materials include porcelain, clay, stone, ostrich eggs, shells, glass, timbers (like Tasmanian oak), copper, brass and stainless steel tubing, aluminum, recycled plastics (such as polypropylene) and modern roofing materials.
A combination of tools are used to create the lights including: band saws and cutting knives to cut plastics; drills to create holes in ostrich eggs and plastic fittings; different types of saws and glues to cut and laminate timbers; various other types of hand tools such as screwdrivers, clippers, pliers for electrical equipment and wiring; and plaster moulds and tube benders to cut and bend copper and brass.
The time Mike takes to complete a light varies, depending on complexity. Some can be put together in a week while others that involve complex processes and a number of production techniques could take a few months.
Most Red Dot Design lights currently run off 240V and therefore are plugged in at the wall. Mike is planning to design some 12V lighting which will enable him to hide much of the wiring. He is also looking at designing a cordless light that uses a rechargeable battery.
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Cost
Mike's light designs range from $100 to $850 but most cost between $150 to $250.
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More Info
Contact Mike van Neikerk at Red Dot Design.
3A Pemberton Street, Botany, NSW 2019
Ph: 02 9666 8279, Fax: 02 9327 1997 Mobile: 0418 617 225
E-mail: mvn1@bigpond.com
Mike will be exhibiting from the 7th-16th June 2000 at the Volvo Gallery, corner Barrack and York Streets, Sydney.
Ph: (02) 9249 3400
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