Unveiling its second portable design, British lighting brand Original BTC proves a lamp built for practicality can still be a showcase for artisanal bone china
Courtesy of Original BTC, The Blossom Linear Portable Lamp by Original BTC features a delicate bone china shade that radiates a warm glow when lit
Words by Roddy Clarke
When it comes to portable lighting, practicalities can often mean design decisions have to be kept conservative. However, for British lighting brand Original BTC, they have never seen it this way, seamlessly balancing both function and form. It’s new Blossom Linear Portable Lamp, which was launched at Decorex earlier this month and is the brand’s second portable design, is a refined take on the genre. A delicate bone china shade, inspired by the organic forms of plum blossom, sits atop a brass or bronze base, casting a warm luminous glow. The lamp is the latest addition to the wider Blossom range. ‘What began as an exploration of floral softness and ceramic precision has grown into a family of pendants, wall lights and portable designs, each balancing decorative charm with sculptural simplicity,’ says Director Charlie Bowles.
Courtesy of Original BTC, The portable lamp proves that practicality shouldn’t mean a compromise on aesthetic
Each lamp is made at Original BTC’s factory in Stoke-on-Trent, where a team of expert artisans guide every stage of the intricate process, from casting the liquid clay slip to biscuit firing and glazing. Keeping that work local matters, not just to the brand, but for the industry too. Stoke-on-Trent has 400 years of ceramic heritage and once produced 70% of the world’s ceramics, employing tens of thousands of craftspeople. Today, after decades of closures, around 400 heritage craftspeople remain, and industrial pottery is listed as ‘critically endangered’ on the Heritage Crafts Red List of Endangered Crafts.
‘We use techniques that have been refined over generations,’ says Bowles, ‘and we feel a responsibility to help preserve that knowledge and keep it relevant. It is not simply about protecting a heritage craft, it is about demonstrating that traditional skills can continue to produce beautiful, contemporary designs. This commitment will remain central to the brand going forward.’ The Blossom range is testament to this conviction. It’s elongated shade, combining both straight and curved planes, reveals the complexity of the making behind it.
Courtesy of Original BTC, The bone china shade sits on top of a simple base which is available in brass and bronze finishes
A curiosity for pushing the boundaries of bone china has driven the company since Charlie’s father, Peter, founded it in 1990. ‘We have built up a wealth of knowledge and instinctive understanding of the material,’ Charlie continues. ‘We explore how thinly it can be cast, how it behaves in the kiln and how it diffuses light.’ Every idea is tested and refined through prototyping and close collaboration with the factory floor, and it’s that blend of accumulated expertise and creative exchange, he says, that allows the brand to create pieces that are both highly functional and beautifully resolved. ‘For us, form and function are never considered separately. Each informs the other from the very beginning of the design process.’
Courtesy of Original BTC, The British lighting brand is helping to preserve traditional ceramic techniques that are under threat
The lamp made its official debut at Decorex this month, to an enthusiastic reception. ‘Visitors were drawn to its sculptural form and the warmth and translucency of its bone china shade,’ he comments. ‘It is particularly rewarding to see people respond both to its decorative character and to the craftsmanship behind it.’
Having witnessed the creativity of Original BTC first-hand, it is a response that feels well earned. By letting the making take centre stage, Original BTC connects us directly to the minds and hands behind each lamp, reminding us that skills like these are woven into the cultural fabric of the country. Lose them, and something irreplaceable goes with them.
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