Loten Art Lighting
“I’ve always been drawn to the challenge of combining function with design. Often the task of designing something that is functional, requires compromising the design. This is my inspiration. To create a lamp that is as functional and artistic as possible.”
As a wildlife biology major, Stuart was a semester away from his degree. Needing to take an elective, he chose an art class, the first exposure to art he had ever had. A week later, after a heated telephone conversation with his father 2000 miles away, he changed his major to art, and the rest is history.
Stuart’s career has been a road of self discovery, in which most diciplines that are involved in his lighting creations were self taught.
Welding and silk painting were not part of the curriculum in the BFA degree he received from the University of Massachusetts and the MFA degree he received form the University of Kansas. The technique of silk painting involves stretching silk on a frame. Using his hand mixed dyes, the silk is painted with brushes and steamed to set the dyes. The bases are mostly steel that is welded and finished with a clear coat to prevent oxidation and rust.