KOLARZ’s products are designed and manufactured in Europe using the finest quality materials, including top quality Austrian crystals, such as Swarovski SPECTRA crystals, hand-blown Murano glass, 24 carat gold plates and chrome or silver plating.
The company has a reputation for distinctive designs, skilled craftsmanship and technological expertise and this is evident in the company’s latest lighting design – the Delphi up-lighter. The Delphi was created by KOLARZ’s team of designers, who collaborate creatively on most of KOLARZ’s designs. The design team’s style is influenced by the rich Viennese and European cultural heritage that surrounds them. The design team look for inspiration in the shapes and forms found in nature from the surrounding Vienna woods and nearby Alps.
Additionally, the company likes to pay homage to the use of colours and designs of some of the world’s greatest artists. The Delphi’s design is a combination of both, with hand-painted versions reflecting the use of bold brush strokes, intricate detailing and dramatic colours of beloved Austrian Artist, Gustav Klimt, and the Art Nouveau shapes and classical buildings of Vienna.
Olympic inspiration
The Delphi up-lighter was inspired by the Olympic flame; the golden bowl glows like a bowl of fire and the base is strong and straight like the arm of the torch of the flame. The light flows from above and reflects off the ceiling and walls. When designing the Delphi, the KOLARZ design team wanted to create something simple and sophisticated; a contemporary, timeless piece of furniture that could be a feature in any interior. With almost minimalist clear lines and a floating bowl of gold plate, or chrome – complemented by the gold plate, or chrome, edging running down the side, completing the base of the lamp – the 24 carat gold plate and chrome were the perfect choice of materials to choose. They add glamour and style to the design and, with the clear version of the Delphi, they add an understated elegance.
From the design team’s initial design, the shape itself has not changed much, but the team have enhanced the range by decorating the glass, either with hand-painted enamel designs, which are a feature of many KOLARZ lights, or with hand-painted ornaments or rich detailed plaster relief in gold and silver, inspired by Viennese Art Nouveau.
The glass panel, trimmed in 24 carat gold plate, or chrome, shows reflections of light emitting down from the floating bowl at the top of the uplighter. The clear glass version is stunningly sophisticated and subtle, while the painted versions are a conversation piece and each hand-painted Delphi up-lighter is a work of art in its own right.
The Delphi’s halogen bulbs offer a more powerful light than the LED, but, of course, LED is the more cost-effective and environmentally-friendly choice. As LED bulb technology advances and better bulbs are created, more and more people will choose LED over halogen – which will have to be compulsory in the EU, as halogen bulbs will be phased out across the EU over the next few years. Both the LED and the halogen versions of KOLARZ’s Delphi up-lighter are dimmable, which means that the light can be used to a different effect depending on the ambiance required in the room.
A design piece
KOLARZ’s hope was that the Delphi’s timeless and graceful design would work well for all types of interiors, whether commercial or residential, and this has certainly been the case. It is consistently one of the company’s best-selling products. The company believes that the great success of the Delphi up-lighter is that it works as a design piece in both commercial and private residences. It has been used in private homes, restaurants, shops, hotels and other public buildings and works well with all sorts of interior design styles.