Light and Interactivity - NYU ITP
fake window ?
I got the wood originally from Ikea’s free pile of wood/junk shelf near the exit of the Brooklyn store, its suppose to have a metal railing attached to the sides that latches onto the rest of the system I figured it would be a cool side project since i have the same system in the apartment . but never got around to it and im sorry about the canvas but i origianlly used it to help keep the wood propped up since i didnt have a base big enough when i was drilling the holes for the bulbs. During this process i slowly increased in sizing of drill bit becuase i noticed if i jumped up in size to large ( the wood would chip seeming as a woodchuck chucking the wood )
the bulbs themselves have a driver attached to the same end of the pins making it long enough to clear the thickness of the wood so the leds pop out on the oppisite side .
local shop that sells mr16 sockets - https://maps.app.goo.gl/ANUjuNMsNm5Qyq36A
Ceiling light
James Turell
I will come back to this idea in the future ,
Inspiration -
Hue System
Setting up the Philips Hue system at home made me realize how poor the lighting in my space actually is. Controlling the lights as a user, before developing anything, was impactful. I could see my apartment changing in real time sometimes feeling more relaxed, and in other cases even making the space feel larger just through adjustments in color and light intensity.
I decided to use a joystick because when I think about selecting color, a color wheel feels like the natural interface. A joystick allows for more free movement across that space instead of stepping through values.
The controller includes a main on/off button, while a rotary encoder (with a built-in button) cycles through individual bulbs, allowing me to dim or brighten them one at a time or all at once. The LED bar provides feedback so I know the system is responding and helps indicate which bulb is selected. However, it’s still difficult to remember which LED corresponds to which room in physical space. Icons or another labeling system would help. Also, in a dark room, the LEDs are too bright I need to increase the resistor value to reduce their intensity.
The only fixture in my apartment that supports an E26 bulb is in the bathroom. While that works, I still have the habit of using the wall switch, and every time it’s toggled, the Hue bulb loses power and disconnects. When it turns back on, it doesn’t automatically sync with the system. It also makes the setup harder for others to use if they don’t have access to the app.
Most of the fixtures in my apartment are cheap, integrated LED units, which limits what I can actually control. Long term, I would like to replace them with fixtures that are compatible with Hue bulbs or something similar.
I also tried repairing a broken lamp shade wire by soldering it the same way I would with Arduino components. It held briefly long enough to take a photo but it wasn’t structurally reliable and came apart. I found a floor lamp with a cut wire that I’m considering repairing. I’m not a fan of step-on switches, but this fixture would require some form of inline switch, so I may need to reconsider or redesign that interaction.
02/24/2026
12v DC Light Fixture/s
Material : Plaster Cloth
dried plaster embedded in a fabric like mesh. The material is very flaky and wetting it activates the plaster causing it to bond together creating a hard shell but the material became interesting because of its porous surface and when overlayed it allows light to bleed through at different intensities.
Lamp Hardware
A GY6.35 socket with standard lamp hardware. The GY6.35 socket is much smaller than most general lamp hardware, but the screw hole used for mounting the socket and the lamp structure is the same size. This was a lucky discovery that allowed the hardware to be integrated without modifying the standard lamp components. The material initially read very flat, so I modeled a simple “t” shape with overhangs to define the edges and give the shade more volume.
Two of these 3D printed components are attached to the harp. One attaches where the finial normally goes, and the other is anchored next to the GY6.35 socket on the other support leg. These pieces allow for the shade to be held in place while allowing the smaller socket to work with standard lamp hardware.
Casting the Base
I found it best to cast the cement with the lamp structure embedded directly into the mold. I placed a wooden dowel as a place holder that would eventually allow the space for the wires to pass through the base vertically . After a few minutes from pouring the cement it becomes firm enough to hold its shape, and the dowel can be removed before the material fully cures if it does not get removed before fully drying it will bond together to the concrete . Because I only had a vertical dowel, I later carved a channel through the cement to finish the route for the wires.
From earlier experiments I knew that cement becomes heavy very quickly. I also found sometimes bags of cement can have huge chunks of rocks in the mix of material so before pouring the cement i used a strainer to help me remove the larger chunks of rocks if any. Even with a relatively small mold, the weight is enough to stabilize the lamp. The structure of the lamp ended up being assembled from several materials with different colors and finishes. Visually, the only materials I wanted to emphasize were the plaster and the cement. Because of this, I tried to minimize the visibility of the internal structure
Form Finding and Casting Experiments
I was partly inspired by a video on social media where someone cast a coffee table using a 5-gallon bucket as a mold. That idea of using everyday containers as molds influenced how I approached this casting process.
Tide Pod Container - This was my first exploration using plaster as a lampshade material. Through the process, I realized that most lamps rely on a structural framework that is typically hidden but essential.
For future reference I could have poured the plaster while embedding structural reinforcement, such as a thin metal mesh for casts thicker than ½ inch (similar to rebar in concrete). Helping prevent the cast from breaking when removing it from the mold. I would also embed the structural lamp material into the plaster
Plaster is brittle after the first few days of curing, but it is also forgiving. The mold broke into several pieces during removal, but I was able to reassemble and “stitch” the fragments together by rehydrating the plaster and adding fresh plaster.
Another thing I could have done is 3D printed place holders to house the components and controller. A simple box , something that could even be found in recycling with the general dimensions of the positive and negative spaces needed to create the cavities would have made this feel a lot more intentional.
Water container - Working with cement helped me understand how quickly the material gains weight. This becomes important when considering whether a cast element is acting as a base, a lampshade, or if a structural component can be as supported over time.
The base casting likely weighs around 25 lbs. During the casting process, I attempted to create a hollow space using a bag filled with dirt. However, the bag was pushed upward by the cement instead of remaining fixed in place, which resulted in a thicker and heavier cast than intended.
02/10/2026
Week 03
LED Candle
3d printed - plaster dipped
Form Finding with Meshy AI
The goal of this assignment was to make an LED candle look as realistic as possible.
When studying actual candles, I noticed that the longer the candle holder, the more it stabilizes the flame. Taller holders tend to shield the flame from small air movements, causing the flame to dance less. This observation informed my design direction. I believed that when an LED flame flickers too freely without any external force, it becomes easy to tell that it is artificial. Because of this, I wanted to design a form that would visually contain and stabilize the light source in a way similar to a traditional tall candle holder.
To explore different forms, I used Meshy AI for generative form finding. Initially, when I prompted Meshy to create a candle holder, the generated models were almost always tapered at the top, assuming a real candle would sit inside. That geometry did not work well for housing the LED and electronics I needed to include. Because of this, I started experimenting with different prompt strategies, asking Meshy to generate objects that had similar proportions but were not explicitly candle holders. For example, I asked it to generate a pen holder, which immediately began producing forms that were closer to what I wanted. Eventually, when I asked it to generate a ceramic flower, Meshy began producing shapes that felt much more appropriate for the project.
At that point, I started saving several of the generated images and using them as references for subsequent prompts. Iterating this way allowed me to guide the AI generation process until I arrived at a form that worked for the candle.
Material and Light Diffusion
When printing the model, I noticed that the light from the NeoPixel passed through the plastic and revealed the internal infill pattern of the print. One of the goals of the class is to avoid using raw 3D prints as lampshades for this reason. To solve this, I dipped the printed object into plaster, which created a thin outer layer that diffuses the light and hides the internal print structure. To match the color of a real candle flame, I placed the NeoPixel and a real candle side by side for several hours, observing the warmth and color temperature of the flame. I then adjusted the LED color to match that reference as closely as possible.
Preparing the Model
The generated object can be exported in several different file formats and imported into most 3D modeling software. However, the meshes created by Meshy are typically very dense, often containing over 100,000 faces, which can make them heavy to work with inside modeling software. For my design, I only needed two simple internal geometries: a channel for the wires, a cavity to secure the NeoPixel. These were created using Boolean difference operations, subtracting simple shapes from the mesh to create the required internal space.
01/27/2026
Week 01
Interruptible LED fade
The big red button drove the design decision to use a more chaotic LED fade. I realized the light needed to be diffused, and since 3D printing isn’t allowed for a lampshade, the mask was the only thing I had around that felt cohesive with the rest of the object.
lighting moment
Is dual usage okay ? Watering Can + Lamp Shade