The lighting objects 87 by Bocci are made of pure glass, mingled with air and drawn into thick threads of thin filaments. The elaborate production process was developed in 2016. Since 2017, the collection has been included in Bocci's portfolio and comprises diverse suspensions, enabling many possible arrangements with a simple suspension system or a visually interesting V suspension system. The design is signed by Omer Arbel.
87 is made by hand using a special process to which three glass blowers contribute by working together to make a unique work of art of every light body. Hot liquid glass is mingled with carbonic water to include air in the glass. By stretching and folding the glass many times, the interaction of glass and air creates hair thin filaments and the glass body obtains a nacreous appearance and a shimmering lighting effect. For this work step, two glass blowers work together and use their skills paired with gravity to stretch the glass. How much glass is used for the light body and how exactly it is shaped depends on the glass blower who decides on shape and size of the resulting object. The glass is stretched, folded and expanded seven times and up to nine, until it is not shapable anymore, and is then passed to a third glass artist who drapes it around a metallic tube, and gives it its final form.
A low-voltage light source at the end of the loop illuminates the glass and emphasizes its thin micro filament structure. The threads of glass are reminiscent of soft hair strands and seem not to be fixed but a formable, soft material that takes on a natural, organical shape through gravity and its own bounce.
The light fixtures are available with two versions of lamps. The xenon versions have the advantage of having a very good and natural colour rendering of Ra 100, while the LED versions appeal with a lower energy consumption and a long life-span.
The achieved light is not bright enough to illuminate a room as a primary light source. 87 is for this reason less a function light fixture than a decorative artistic object, the light of which emphasizes first of all its own beauty and interacts with the room in an atmospherical manner.
Each light body is a unique piece with unparalleled details and a fancy shape. Above all when in group, they form fascinating light landscapes in which no shape is exactly repeated. The result is diverse and natural, with a nonchalant and random emission. Next to the here offered models, on request, further suspensions with up to 36, depending on the model also 61 glass diffusers are available.
Above a certain number of diffusers, the cable lengths cannot be adjusted by the user, but are determined by Bocci. When ordering, the desired longest and shortest cable lengths must be mentioned. The standard cable lengths is of maximum 3 meters, special lengths up to 30 meters are possible.
Next to simple suspensions on vertical cables, a suspension system with a diffuser suspended on two V-shaped cables is possible. The result is an artful and filigreed whole composed of delicate glass diffusers and vertically stretched cables, ideal for an eyecatcher in high-class projects for the public and prestigious area.