Asparagus Lamp
I am currently working on a table lamp made of asparagus paper. A design by Isaac Monte. We want the lamp to speak of this unique, local paper.
It tells the story of a world that is in a continuous process of change. Once you have solved one problem, another will arise.
In this example the asparagus farmer. The white gold, they call it. The fibers are like blond curls, full of cellulose. Too much for the pigs, they can't eat it, and composting isn't an option for the farmer. It's in his stomach. It sucks in his yard, because disposal costs money. Since the nurseries and their farm shops have an asparagus peeling machine, they have been providing an unprecedented service to consumers and the restaurant industry. But… they have created a new problem for themselves: peeling the mountain after the season.
On the other side is the artisan papermaker, who used to be able to get hold of the beautiful asparagus fiber by
peeling and eating it himself, but now that the peeling machine is here, we can get bags full of peels. Free. If we get there in time. That was the starting point for me to start experimenting.
Storage first, the peels are only available for 3 months a year and the quantity lets me make paper all year round. Energy-efficient storage: drying, fermenting. So do not freeze, nor do you store cool, the rotting process continues slowly but steadily.
I've been working on it for more than 10 years and have largely 'through' the fibers. They make beautiful translucent paper that requires a product in which light plays a role. That has become the Lamperge.
The lamp is made out of a square piece of asparagus paper folded into the salt and cellar, a playful idea, bringing us back to our youth. The papers are all individually made. You can see their ‘paper ends’. Some have other plantfibers for decoration, some not. The light is led light and shines a warm light through the paper.
One can also fold elaborate insects. As the paper has a look and a feel of parchment, the origami is attracting attention, as it doesn’t seem to be made out of paper
Origami can be made out of this paper. It is good for tessellations folding. A geometrical folding art coming from the islamic geometric art.
Dried flowers and the remains of vegetables are wrapped in asparagus cardboard. The folding screen is a prototype.
Papyrus Asparagus a variation on the papyrus we know from Egypt, where the papyrus is a large bamboo-like reed plant. The peels of the asparagus can also be laid as papyrus in layers at right angles to each other. Here, the logo of the paper makery De Hoop is placed in the middle of the layers.
Hanging lamp made of asparagus paper.
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