Second-year interior design students from the University of East London have created a series of lamps for a fictitious nail salon as part of this VDF school show.

The prototypes are a response to a brief that called on the students to reimagine the interior of a classic East London nail studio and capture its essence within a light.

According to the course's tutors, this served as an exercise to explore "lifestyle, personality, materiality and colour in interior design".

The finished products were captured in a pre-pandemic photoshoot (pictured above) and are on display here at the Virtual Design Festival in lieu of a physical degree show.

BA Interior Design, University of East London

University: University of East London
Course: BA (hons) Interior Design
Tutors: Keith Winter, Pol Gallagher, Nayden Hadzhiev, Maliha Haque, Claudia Palma, Sabina Andron and Sue Ginsburgh

Course statement: 

"Focusing on personality, materiality and making, the BA (hons) Interior Design programme at the University of East London, led by Keith Winter, allows students' identity to be expressed through playful process and detailed fabrication.

"Take me to the Nail Bar, Nail Bar was a design brief that tasked year two students to reimagine an East London nail salon, using the design and making of a full-sized lamp prototype to inform their proposals. The lamp could be anything from floor-standing to wall-mounted, desk-sitting or ceiling-hung.

"This challenged students to produce innovative lighting designs while also connecting shape and form to the possibilities offered by different materials. From resin and concrete casting to copper-pipe bending, metal welding, woodwork and the integration of electrical parts – the different processes involved lent themselves to an exploration of lifestyle, personality, materiality and colour in interior design.

"We set up a photoshoot in one of the university's photography studios to capture the results. The students embraced the project with vigour over the second term in 2020, just before Covid-19 altered the curriculum and halted physical interactions on campus. The creation of their much-loved lighting designs gave students momentum and motivation to leap into the design brief during online teaching sessions."

"We were hoping to showcase these luminary creations in our end of year degree show, but unfortunately circumstances have prevented the physical exhibition for now. Instead, we are hoping the public can enjoy a selection of images of these wonderful works and see the imagination and creativity that can be found in UEL’s interior design programme."

Wake up and smell the coffee by Asma Ibrahim
Materials: plywood strips, cable ties and electrical components

Timber House by Alex Wong
Materials: found sticks, paint, twine and electrical components

Hello, I'm ready by Batul Lopez
Materials: telephone, spray-paint, plastic flowers and electrical components

Iridessa by Demha Ahmed
Materials: copper, fabric, concrete, cable ties and electrical components

The Movement by Diana Vysniauskaite
Materials: plywood, spray-paint, hinges and electrical components

Curve by Enrica Tofi
Materials: white concrete, resin, pine, aluminium, copper and electrical components

The Third Sense by Melissa Mustafa
Materials: plaster, copper and electrical components

The Cup Lamp by Nahed Idris
Materials: copper, paint, rope, stone, clay and electrical components

Treading on eggshells by Sara Trevain
Materials: plaster, steel, paint and electrical components

Cubism by Wajeeha Hassan
Materials: white concrete, plywood and electrical components

Virtual Design Festival's student and schools initiative offers a simple and affordable platform for student and graduate groups to present their work during the coronavirus pandemic. Click here for more details.