Darc – May-June 2019

Winner of the iF Award, the German

Design Award and the Red Dot Award,

Faro Barcelona’s Inviting task light is an

individually controlled light that can be

used in a professional environment but

foremost in a domestic office setting.

Different tasks require different kinds of

illumination and also require different work

zones, whether the kitchen table, sofa or

the bed. You shouldn’t have to sacrifice

light quality. As such, Faro started looking

at how to accommodate different user

needs and especially how to get people to

actually interact with, and change the light

to suit their own needs.

The designers behind Inviting, Johan

Bohman and Isak Folenius, speak exclusively

to darc about the product’s concept: “We

wanted to create a family of lights that

could provide high-quality task lighting for

both a conventional workplace and a home

office. We also wanted to give the user the

possibility of choosing between different

light depending on their current mood and

needs. For the user to interact with the

lamp in such a way we tried to make the

interaction playful and ‘inviting’; but at

the same time, it was important for us to

achieve a consistent interaction within the

family.

“We first stated working on the concept

in 2016 before refining the design in 2017

when we compiled a family to be shown

in Milan. Faro Barcelona took over the

production work and made it ready for

market and it was fully introduced towards

the end of 2018.

“The design process was a very hands-on

approach. We played around with different

kinds of LEDs, testing and exploring light

and interaction through mock-ups made

out of cardboard, paper, wood and already

existing mechanical parts.

“When we found a way in which to achieve

this, we started playing a lot with the

proportions of the main interaction point –

the circular knob. A lot of creative process

focused on detailing the artefact so it would

fit peoples’ homes, both aesthetically and

functionally. The main material used is cast

and machined aluminium with a powder

coated surface treatment in white, black,

metallic grey and yellow and for the joints

we used plastic.”

For Bohman and Folenius the biggest

challenge with this project came down

to timings as it had to be ready for Faro’s

upcoming catalogue at the end of 2018; this

meant going from a working prototype to

final product in six months. “As well as this,

trying to fit all the electronics inside the

head, without increasing the size and then

still getting a smooth sliding and rotating

feeling of the knob was a big hurdle,” they

tell darc. “Let’s put it this way, there was

a bunch of cables in there for the first

prototype!”

Asked to describe Inviting in three

words, the designers respond: “Playful,

Scandinavian and Human-Centric.”

faro.es

bohmanfolenius.com

Inviting by Bohman & Folenius

Faro Barcelona

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