Edison 2.0: energy-saving light bulb wins coveted design award

A beautifully sculpted, low-energy light bulb, created by Samuel Wilkinson for design brand Hulger, has been announced the overall winner at the Brit Insurance Design Awards March 15.

"It's strange that the bulb, an object so synonymous with ideas, is almost entirely absent of imagination," states the website of the Plumen 001 light bulb (named after 'plume' - a bird's decorative feather "designed to attract attention to its prowess and beauty"), which beat out 900 other products.

Energy-efficient bulbs have often been criticized for their neglect of style, but "Plumen 001 is a bulb you'll want on show," the designer says. Using 80 percent less energy and lasting eight times longer than conventional light bulbs, it is still "a bulb that doesn't need a shade and so goes a long way to make up for the loss of the Edison original."

Here is the full list of this year's Brit Insurance Design Awards winners:

Brit Insurance Architecture Award 2011
Open Air Library, Magdeburg. By KARO Architekten and Architektur+Netzwerk, Germany

Brit Insurance Fashion Award 2011
Uniqlo +J Autumn/Winter '10. By Jil Sander for Uniqlo. Japan

Brit Insurance Furniture Award 2011
Branca. By Industrial Facility, Sam Hecht, Kim Collin and Ippei Matsumoto. Italy

Brit Insurance Graphics Award 2011
Homemade is Best. By Forsman & Bodenfors for Ikea. Sweden

Brit Insurance Interactive Award 2011
Flipboard. By Mike McCue and Evan Doll. USA

Brit Insurance Product Award 2011
Plumen 001. By Hulger and Samuel Wilkinson. UK

Brit Insurance Transport Award 2011
Barclays Cycle Hire. By Transport for London. UK

The Plumen 001 is currently on show along with the other shortlisted designs at the Brit Insurance Designs of the Year exhibition at London's Design Museum until August 7.

http://www.designmuseum.org

http://plumen.com