WOODFOAM Lamp

collaboration with WOAMY
2024

material
woodfoam made by Woamy, beech veneer ring, beech solid wood structure, beewax

size
200 x 320 x 320 (mm)
250 x 210 x 210 (mm)
300 x 160 x 160 (mm)

The Woodfoam lamp project is inspired by a newly developed material made from wood for packaging foam. Utilizing the flawn material accidentally made during the production, I discovered more potential than industrial use. The first pieces of this study are the Woodfoam lamps.

Woamy is a trailblazing company revolutionizing packaging with foam wood, aiming to replace plastic foams. With strong investor support, Woamy focuses on scaling up production, showcasing a commitment to sustainable solutions in the packaging industry.

Working as an industrial designer at Woamy, my current role involves developing post-processing methods and finding solutions to efficiently shape the material for packaging in a productive, later automatable way. Despite the company’s success in this venture, as an independent designer my inspiration is to explore the material’s untapped artistic and design potential.

My aim is to explore new applications of woodfoam in the area of interior design. With an architectural background from Hungary and further studies in interior architecture at Aalto University, my focus lies in furniture design. Having lived in Finland for four years, I have observed that despite modernization and industrialization, the Finnish society has not lost its connection with nature. Sauna culture and outdoor activities can be mentioned here, but it is in interior design and the culture of objects that I find this connection the most captivating. I can see both the clean features of modernism and the humane aspects of the design due to the strong ties to nature, resulting in simple and functional yet beautiful and friendly objects. Woamy’s woodfoam owns this duality, its industrial production is as crucial as its natural properties. As I explore applications in interior design, I aim to emphasize this connection and incorporate it into the new design.

Woamy’s patented technology mimics the cellular structure of wood, which provides the bio-foam with directional strength. This gives good properties for protective packaging, but beyond the structural values, thanks to the technology this foam also has a unique, slightly irregular texture, keeping the connection with its natural origin. The airiness of the material gives a semi-transparent quality and its lightness allows a wide range of applications beyond packaging.

Woamy is still in an innovating phase, making plenty of experiments to develop, standardize and optimize the production for packaging design. I observed that the 'flawed,' labelled as third-category, experimental, or defective foam sheets, possess a unique beauty. Their texture, irregular due to manufacturing errors, limits their use for packaging.

The material is semi-transparent and light, I wanted to engage woofoam with light. In Finland, I learned the value and the beauty of different qualities of light, both natural – kinds that I have never experienced more south from here - and artificial - which is strongly related to and rich in Finnish interior design. The distinctive texture of this material can be enhanced as a lampshade. Light filtered through foam wood creates a warm and welcoming ambiance, rooted in its wood origin.