Dezeen Magazine

Kawamura Ganjavian designs Kangaroo Light for the bottom of your bag

Spain and Switzerland-based studio Kawamura Ganjavian launched a Kickstarter campaign this week to fund a flexible glowing lamp (+ slideshow).

Kangaroolight by Kawamura Ganjavian

Kawamura Ganjavian, best known for its Ostrich Pillow, created the Kangaroo Light as part of a collaboration with the innovation quarter of Bangor University in the UK.

"The name of the design came from the idea that in the animal world, a kangaroo's pouch is almost like the equivalent of a built in handbag," Kawamura Ganjavian told Dezeen.

Kangaroolight by Kawamura Ganjavian

Currently at prototype stage, the light has twenty-four built in LEDs, designed to emit a soft yellow glow and illuminate the bottom of a bag or rucksack.

"The design came from observing people in their daily lives and trying to find a way to make their day-to-day routine more playful and practical," the studio said.

"We've all been in a situation where you're rummaging at the bottom of a bag, wasting time and you just can't find what you're looking for. We decided that a glowing lamp that was flexible enough to fold and adapt to your life was the answer."

Kangaroolight by Kawamura Ganjavian

The light can be programmed to turn on or off through touch and an accelerometer built into the device offers a variety of modes, including an ambient setting for reading and brighter torch function.

"The light can have many different uses, from allowing you to curve it round the spine of a book to providing the perfect mood lighting for a romantic dinner in," the studio said.

Kangaroolight by Kawamura Ganjavian

Hexagonally shaped, the lamp is covered in a soft rubberised material with grooves that enable it to fold in half and take up as little space as possible.

A splash-proof coating protects the exterior of the lamp and a lithium-ion battery offers two and a half hours of illumination.

Kangaroolight by Kawamura Ganjavian

When the battery runs down, the light can be plugged into a computer and recharged via USB from an output slot in the side of the hexagon.

The studio hope to raise £50,000 in 45 days through its Kickstarter campaign. If successful, the light will be sold via their website and through other retailers.

Kangaroolight by Kawamura Ganjavian

Kawamura Ganjavan's previous project, the Ostrich Pillow, was successfully funded in 2012 and was designed to allow tired city workers to take a power nap at their desk by placing a giant cushion over their head.

Other projects by Kawamura Ganjavan we've featured on Dezeen include screens made of velcro-covered sticks and a padded reading room in a bookshop.