Calabarte’s unique gourd lamps create a mesmerizing atmosphere wherever they’re placed

Calabarte's handcrafted gourd lamps are unique pieces of art

Poland-based artist Przemek Krawczyński, the founder and sole worker of the Calabarte brand, has made an art out of transforming gourds into incredibly detailed lamps.

Inspired from fractal art, his unique and delicate pieces are fully handcrafted and cast beautiful patterns of light on surrounding walls. The emitted light can create a mesmerizing atmosphere in your bedroom, as well as a calm and peaceful vibe in your home office or living room.

Calabarte studied building engineering at a technical university and worked for over three years in an architectural studio. He started designing and creating gourd lamps in 2009 and their popularity has been growing ever since.

One year later he decided that making lamps was his passion and quit his studies and job. He went to Senegal for a month, from where he brought back some of the African gourds that have become the raw material for his lamps.

Unique design

Each lamp is carefully handcrafted and has a unique design. Using different sized cutting tools, Calabarte hand-perforates holes and lines into the gourd’s dried skin. Different patterns are designed by carving deeper or shallower into layers of wood, allowing light to pass. Not a single hole is coincidental in the design and perforation, which altogether takes between 2 and 4 months of mental and manual work.

When unlit, the lamps appear as unique sculptural pieces, in organic browns, whites and reds. When illuminated, the magic begins. The light breathes new life into the sculptures, seeping through intricately carved wood and passing through thousands of holes. Flowing shadows fill the space and cast the patterns on the surrounding surfaces, creating a mesmerizing atmosphere in the room.