“Perfection is achieved not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.” –Antoine de Saint-Exupery
If the above quote is true—and it certainly has a ring of veracity to it—then industrial designer Peter Bristol may have achieved flawlessness with the THIN Chandelier he designed for Juniper Lighting. What is perhaps most astonishing about his understated masterpiece is not only its simplicity, but also its ability to be articulated to form a variety of biomorphic shapes and geometric configurations.
The marriage of complexity with minimalism is no easy task, but it’s a hallmark of great design.
"Peter Bristol’s designs are deceptively simple,” said Juniper Lighting founder and president Shant Madjarian. “Stripped of all unnecessary lines and mass, his work is easy on the eye, but often challenging to bring to life. The fixture appears to suspend and illuminate magically, as if with no wiring and no weight.”
As the second collaboration between Bristol and Juniper, the THIN Chandelier draws both inspiration and function from the previously released THIN Task Lamp, but builds on the concept to form a contemporary interpretation of the traditional chandelier. Available in raw and black oxidized brass, the long LED arrays produce a total of 6,500 lumens. Each of the 12 ultra-thin, modular arms contains two hinges, which can be folded down to form a tight 13-inch diameter pendant, expanded to a 12-foot diameter chandelier, or swiveled to create an arachnid-like shape that adds a uniquely playful touch to an otherwise serious fixture.
“The THIN Chandelier is made of an array of hinged lamp arms,” Bristol explained. “Together, the arms create an infinitely flexible chandelier architecture. It can be posed to take on many characters and its configuration can evolve with the style of its environment.”
The belief that good design is essential and holds the power to change people’s lives is a founding principle of the Brooklyn-based Juniper. Founded in 2011, the design studio and fabrication house is passionate about offering thoughtfully realized solutions in lighting, furniture, and accessories. And the THIN Chandelier is a perfect illustration of the company’s mission and ideals.
“Developing and manufacturing the THIN Chandelier has been one of the most exciting experiences for Juniper to date,” Madjarian said. “We make this happen with carefully constructed precision-machined brass, a proprietary spring system, and miniature connectors. The result is a chandelier that can be user manipulated on the fly to form almost any arrangement from one- to 10-feet wide. That’s innovation, and we feel pretty good about it.””
