Polish artist Przemek Krawczyński, who works under the name Calabarte, transcends traditional table lamps with his charmingly handcrafted and fully functional designs. Each lamp is fashioned from a carefully hand-selected African calabash gourd. Once processed and cleaned, the artist begins the transformation.
Calabarte creates each of his lamps through a lengthy and time-consuming procedure of sketching, charting, engraving, carving, perforating, and painting. Once the gourd is transformed into the head of the lamp, the artist builds the lamp base and pedestal to complete the design. The result of all of this personal attention, time, and creative energy is a completely unique and highly whimsical piece of art, which takes the form of a lamp.
During the day, the lamp is a beautiful and enticing sculpture providing extra warmth and light to the room it inhabits. As it begins to turn dusk, however, the true magic and wonder of the lamp emerges. The internal luminescence of the lamp begins to seep through the layers of detailed and intricate carving.
Flowing shadows, which are imbued and penetrated with the rich warm colors of the gourds, radiate about the room. The walls become part of the art, as light and dark are cast upon them, creating dreamy and trance-like graphic designs. Each air current that blows across the lamp, each person that moves in the room, and each new perspective that is achieved through the passage of time will directly impact the way the patterns dance and mingle across the space. The lure of mystery and magic that these lamps produce, therefore, is effervescent and continuous.
Pictures and videos of Calabarte’s lamps are sprinkled across the internet. Viewers rave about the unique and exotic designs and really enjoy being able to interact with and influence the art. Since each of the designs is completely rendered by Calabarte, the supply is very low while the demand is extremely high.
