Photos By Gail

French designer Mathieu Lehanneur has long blurred the line between art, science, and nature — and his sculptural pendant lamp Guernica is no exception. Inspired by the organic beauty of a flower, Lehanneur began by 3D-scanning an iris blossom, digitally manipulating its form, and then realizing the piece in ceramic. The result is a luminous object that appears to bloom midair, its soft, petal-like curves both delicate and defiant.

Despite its floral grace, Guernica carries a name charged with emotional weight, evoking Picasso’s masterpiece of anguish and resilience. This tension between beauty and unease seems intentional — a metaphor for our turbulent era. Lehanneur describes the lamp as “blooming and booming,” an object that embodies both fragility and strength.

Monochromatic on the outside, yet warm and enveloping within, Guernica casts a light that feels almost sentient — as if alive to the space it inhabits. More than illumination, it’s a meditation on creation, destruction, and renewal — proof that even in chaos, art continues to find ways to bloom.

Photographed at the Salon Art + Design 2025.