Blocks Lamps

Lighting Fixture for rio chen studio

Blocks Lamps explores cubes and boxes as symbols of movement, transition, and time. Inspired by urban architecture, the sculptural table lamps resemble a modular cityscape, drawing from libraries, towers, and townhouses. Wood grain imprinted shades transfer organic textures, capturing time’s passage. The interplay of light, shadow, and materiality blurs the line between lighting and architecture, reflecting how objects shift, accumulate, and shape the perception of space and memory.

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Blocks Lamps by Rio Jiunyu Chen

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Lighting Fixture by Rio Jiunyu Chen

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Rio Jiunyu Chen Blocks Lamps

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Rio Jiunyu Chen Lighting Fixture

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Unique Properties

Blocks features a series of sculptural table lamps that evoke the geometry of city blocks. Each lamp combines minimalist forms with textured surfaces, offering a modular aesthetic inspired by Chen’s experience of constant relocation—from Taiwan to Chicago and New York. The designs capture the tension between permanence and transience, symbolizing how objects and spaces accumulate meaning over time.

Tags

Architectural Design, Lighting, Lamps, Wood, Blocks

Production Technology

The sculptural table lamps take cues from architectural forms, spanning libraries, towers, townhouses, inverted pyramids, and arenas. These shapes transform familiar structures into modular, intimate objects, blurring the line between furniture and urban design. The wood grain textures from Chen’s printmaking technique are integrated into the lamp shades, transferring the organic patterns of wood onto a new material surface. This approach reinforces themes of time, material memory, and transformation within the lighting design.

Design Challenge

Inspired by Chen’s personal journey relocating between Taiwan, Chicago, and New York, the collection examines the act of packing, shifting, and reassessing belongings—both physically and emotionally. Blocks reflects an object-oriented perspective, questioning how we define value, space, and memory in our lives. The work suggests that cubes—whether seen as obstacles, pixels, cities, or cherished objects—shape our perception of place and belonging.

Project Duration

The project started at the end of 2024 and was exhibited in Stockholm Furniture Fair Greenhouse Exhibition 2025.

Operation Flow

When assembled together, the lamps resemble a city block, creating a dynamic interplay of light and shadow that evokes the rhythms of built environments.

Research

Blocks is a design-driven research project exploring architecture, material memory, and movement in object design. Inspired by relocation, it examines how urban landscapes and modularity shape emotional connections to objects. Drawing from libraries, towers, and townhouses, the lamps resemble cityscapes with wood grain-imprinted shades that capture time’s passage. The project reimagines lighting as both personal and architectural, bridging design, space, and memory.

Inspiration

The sculptural table lamps take cues from libraries, towers, townhouses, inverted pyramids, and arenas, transforming familiar structures into modular lighting pieces. When assembled together, the lamps resemble a city block, creating a dynamic interplay of light and shadow that evokes the rhythms of urban environments. The wood grain textures from Chen’s printmaking technique are integrated into the lamp shades, transferring natural patterns onto a new medium and reinforcing the theme of time.

Image Credits

Image 01 and 02: Studio 57 Image 03: Rio Jiunyu Chen

Project Overview

Blocks Lamps Lighting Fixture has been a Iron winner in the Lighting Products and Fixtures Design award category in the year 2024 organized by the prestigious A' Design Award & Competition. The Iron A' Design Award is awarded to good designs that meet the rigorous professional and industrial standards set by the A' Design Awards. This recognition is reserved for works that demonstrate a solid understanding of design principles and show creativity within their execution. Recipients of the Iron A' Design Award are acknowledged for their practical innovations and contributions to their respective fields, providing solutions that improve quality of life and foster positive change. These designs are a testament to the skill and dedication of their creators, showcasing their ability to address real-world challenges through thoughtful design.

Iron Recognition

Rio Jiunyu Chen was recognized with the coveted Iron A' Design Award in 2025, a testament to excellence of their work Blocks Lamps Lighting Fixture.

Rio Jiunyu Chen Newsroom

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