TRANSFORMING OF THE SUMBA PATTERN INTO LIGHT, SHADOW, AND SHADE FOR CONTEMPORARY LAMP DESIGN

Abstract

East Sumba is known for its rich historical heritage, diverse traditions, and unique local arts, making it a potential hotspot for tourism. The tourism industry in East Sumba is considered a vital contributor to the country's foreign exchange earnings. Additionally, it is expected to boost the local economy and create employment opportunities. East Sumba's woven fabric patterns are unique and represent the area's cultural symbol. They have a special meaning and are considered national intangible cultural heritage of Indonesia.

The objective of this study is to develop East Sumba's woven fabric pattern into contemporary product design. The research has three primary goals: (1) to investigate the niches of East Sumba's woven fabric patterns, (2) to experiment with light, shadow, and shade through the patterns for contemporary lamp design, and (3) to create a contemporary lamp design based on East Sumba's woven fabric patterns.

The research approach is practice-based and qualitative. It begins with a literature review of East Sumba's woven fabric patterns and then analyzes their structure using ethno-mathematics. The second step involves using folding techniques to convert two-dimensional shapes into three-dimensional ones. The resulting design is evaluated using questionnaires from academics, designers, and cultural communities.

The research concludes that the folding technique provides more value to the research process. The traditional transformation method, known as IMO(E), is applied to process the design. The research outcome is a contemporary design product that is not just an ordinary product but a cultural product (CDP) full of cultural values.

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