Dezeen Magazine

Overlapping "petals" surround Mario Alessiani's Bloemi lamp

Padded panels based on tulip petals form a shade for this lamp created by Italian designer Mario Alessiani for furniture brand Formabilio.

Bloemi lamps by Mario Alessiani for Formabilio

Designed by Mario Alessiani for Italian company Formabilio, the Bloemi lamp is named after the Dutch word "bloem" meaning "flower".

Bloemi lamps by Mario Alessiani for Formabilio

"Iconographically inspired by tulips, the slight roundness of the petals is reproduced through the padding of the panels of the lampshade, slightly overlapped with each another," said Alessiani.

Bloemi lamps by Mario Alessiani for Formabilio

The rounded panels that make up the shade are formed around sections of MDF, which are padded in polyurethane foam then covered in a cotton and acrylic-blend recycled fabric.

"The materials were chosen to donate a natural aspect to the object," Alessiani told Dezeen.

Bloemi lamps by Mario Alessiani for Formabilio

Six petals are fixed to a hexagonal wooden structure, which also holds the bulb in the centre.

Arranged in a ring like a flower head, the sections overlap so they each rest behind the one before and hide the wooden frame from view.

Bloemi lamps by Mario Alessiani for Formabilio

The lamps hang from the ceiling on a thin wire and the electrical cord meanders up to the ceiling rose.

The pieces are handmade in Italy, as are all of Formabilio's products.