ARGAND Lamp by Quentin de Coster: Bridging the Pre-Tesla Era and 3D Printing
“The present is theirs; the future, for which I really worked, is mine”, the real father of the electric age, Nikola Tesla, once said. July 10th marks the birthday of this greatest geek that ever lived, and people around the world are celebrating today as Nikola Tesla Day. Today’s featured design – the ARGAND lamp by Quentin de Coster – is an invention that bridges the pre-Tesla era and the latest revolutionary technology, 3D Printing.
At the end of the 19th century, Nikola Tesla invented an electric system called alternating current, and it’s the same system used to power every home today. Before Tesla’s invention, people had to resort to only oil and candles to light up the world.
Inspired by the oil lamps of the 18th century, Belgian product designer Quentin de Coster designed the “ARGAND Lamp”. This contemporary table lamp revisits the mechanism of wick-lift by replacing it with a glass tube containing three LED strips. To hold the LED lights in place, Quentin used i.materialise’s 3D Printing service to produce a custom-built part, which also features strips that allow you to adjust the length of the LED tube to change the strength of the light.
Design sketch
The custom-built part 3D printed through i.materialise
The remainder of the lamp is built using a borosilicate glass cylinder and a pink-gold plated brass base. The way the ARGAND light tube moves in and out resembles the movement of fire coming out of a cylindrical burner. In fact, the ARGAND lamp was named after Swiss physicist Ami Argand who invented a burner with double airflow in 1783.
Welding the brass base
Raw brass, before pink gold plating is applied
Pink gold plated brass base
The way the ARGAND light tube moves in and out resembles the movement of fire coming out of a cylindrical burner.
Quentin is well known in the Belgian product design industry for his style that beautifully combines the essence of vintage objects and state-of-the-art technology, including 3D Printing. In 2012, he produced “BRANCH” through i.materialise, a 3D Printed handle for two people to share an umbrella. The object was designed to “reuse objects with new techniques.”
Quentin de Coster, designer of the ARGAND lamp
The knob on the side lets you adjust the intensity of light
ARGAND lamp exhibited at La Cambre, leading school of art and design in Brussels
ARGAND lamp exhibited at La Cambre, leading school of art and design in Brussels
We were happy to be part of the project!
ARGAND lamp exhibited at La Cambre, leading school of art and design in Brussels
From oil lamp to Tesla’s modern electricity supply system, then to today’s LED lights and 3D Printing, the ARGAND lamp links inventions over several generations. What would you want to invent with 3D Printing? Shout out your ideas in comments below!
