Michael Anastassiades
I wanted to design a light that was dual purpose ... It is an up lighter, illuminating the space with ambient lighting, and its rotation also offers a dim companion for reading. There's a notion of balance, with a cone resting delicately on its point on a rotating rod.
Michael Anastassiades founded his studio in London in 1994 followed by his eponymous brand in 2007. His work looks to explore contemporary notions of culture and aesthetics through lighting, furniture, objects and spatial design. Through his practice he aims to provoke dialogue, participation and interaction. His designs are most notable for their honest use of materials, familiarity of form and clarity of function. They are at once disciplined and obsessive with a playfulness that inspires a vitality one might not expect.
Michael has worked with some of the world's leading architects, including David Chipperfield and John Pawson, as well as interior designers such as Studio Ilse. His lights can be seen in hotels, restaurants, and stores worldwide, including the Grand Hotel Stockholm, Soho House New York, and the Sergio Rossi boutiques worldwide.
Michael is particularly renowned for his lighting products, including innovative floor lamps and pendants. He often chooses reflective materials—such as mirrored glass and polished bronze—that appear to dematerialise his objects, and to float independently, interacting with the space surrounding them.
Besides being commissioned and collected by private patrons and clients all over the world, Michael has worked with many acclaimed designers and manufacturers, including Hussein Chalayan, Swarovski Crystal Palace, Lobmeyer, Svenskt Tenn, and FLOS.
Euroluce favorites by Michael Anastassiades: IC Lights, Copycat, String Lights, Overlap lamp, My Circuit.
Flos
Michael Anastassiades Q&A
When designing a light, I always start from the glow.
When did you realise you wanted to be a designer?
While growing up in Cyprus, ever since I started talking, I would always hold a pencil, and whenever someone older would offer to entertain me, I would pass it onto them together with a blank sheet of paper and say: “draw here”. I guess this was a simple way for me to tell whether I would want to spend time with them. If I was impressed with what they drew, I would try to imitate their moves with the hope that I could reproduce the same image. I soon learned not to rely on them but on my own imagination, and creativity became a personal exploration on how I saw things. But I don’t remember if there was an exact moment when I realised that I wanted to be a designer.
What is artificial light for you?
There is a reason why there is the day and why there is the night – and we should never try to replace one with the other. When designing a light, I think it’s important to acknowledge that it can never be an isolated object but one that interacts with its environment. I believe that it is only after embracing all conditions that you can start designing. Light exists in so many beautiful dimensions in nature. I would consider myself lucky if I could capture just one of those moments.
What is the next object you’d like to design?
A light.
Do you think of yourself as an artist or a designer?
A creative.
Flos
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Michael Anastassiades Products
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