Lumitourni Lamp. Sculptural (and Dangerous) Wood Turning by Samuel Bernier

I like to push the manufacturing process to the extreme. My friend Gabriel Beaulieu makes african djembe as a part time job so he is a real pro with the wood lathe. We were thinking of new ways to use this great tool and came up with this complexe shape :

Step 1: The Idea

Everything seems a lot more simple on paper, so we didn't worry much about our chances of success. àThe idea was to glue a lot of scrap wood together, turn it in the shape of sn apple heart. Then cut it in four parts. Flipping each part 180 degrees so a cavity is formed in the middle. Finally turn the part again to give it a nice and round shape... here is how it went :

Step 2: Gluing

we didn't think of bringing wood clamps, se we had to create our own using treaded rods. It was a very messy job.

Step 3: Instal the Bloc

Once the bloc of scrap wood dried, we installed it onto the wood lathe. It was already becoming scary.

Step 4: First Turn

The first half hour was a nightmare. It was hard core turning to remove the edges. We still ended up with a neat hourglass shape. Cutting it in four wan't easy. We broke one blade in the process.

Step 5: Turn 2

We then glued back the four parts together to create the hallow core. The real job began. We had to be very careful not to stick the blade into the holes. Very bad injuries could happen. The model did break at a moment, but we glued it back successfully.

Step 6: The Shape

After hours of work and sanding, we got the egg shape. But we still had a few hours of sanding to remove the inner edges.

Step 7: Oil and Wires

We used an oil finish and normal equipment. We used a rollerskate bearing to give a little twist to the object. The wooden lampshade turns around the light bulb, creating a stroboscopic light. I see this object more as a woodworker experimentation than as an actual light fixture.