Glass is an ancient and storied material. As much as modern people aim to innovate, some products resist reinvention more than others. Glass, in particular, exists within a family tree of strategies that have actually altered surprisingly little bit over centuries. The furnaces might burn hotter and the tools may be fine-tuned, however the core discussion between heat, gravity, and human hand remains extremely undamaged.
Provided with Todd Merrill Studio, Draga & Aurel celebrate the hand-wrought nature of the product through Crisalide, a collection of sculptural lighting first exposed at Design Miami in 2015.
A story of creation itself, small bubbles remain suspended within the glass surfaces– quiet traces of the forces that brought each piece into being.< img src ="https://design-milk.com/images/2026/01/Crisalide-Lighting-Draga-Aurel-10-810x540.jpg"alt ="Transparent glass on white wall. "width="810"height="540 "/ >< img src =" https://design-milk.com/images/2026/01/Crisalide-Lighting-Draga-Aurel-9-810x1214.jpg "alt="Close up of glass openness."width ="810" height=" 1214"/ > Featuring a huge hanging pendant along with a set of sconces, Crisalide moves easily beyond function to run as sculptural artwork. Each piece is meticulously handcrafted in collaboration with a prominent glassblowing studio in Venice, where Murano’s centuries-old glassmaking customs continue to shape modern experimentation.
< img src="https://design-milk.com/images/2026/01/Crisalide-Lighting-Draga-Aurel-7-810x1214.jpg"alt= "A macro view of planes of hand-blown glass."width="810"height="1214 "/ > Within this context, light ends up being more than lighting. For Draga & Aurel, it serves as a transformative agent– animating color, exposing layers, and moving the understanding of the object itself. Overlapping chromatic strata of hand-blown glass kind iridescent, ovoid bodies that hover between density and clarity, recording a minute of change suspended in material type.
< img src ="https://design-milk.com/images/2026/01/Crisalide-Lighting-Draga-Aurel-5-810x1214.jpg"alt="Transparencies of blue glass on a white wall."width=" 810" height= "1214"/ > A fluid, precision-engineered LED line triggers the works from within, tracing a luminous gesture through the glass body. As viewers move within their existence, perception shifts: color deepens, openness changes, and surfaces come alive with subtle movement. The effect increases the item’s aura while using insight into its structure, revealing a poetic interaction of shadow, hue, and texture. Light ends up being the last partner– cutting through the material to bring clearness while stressing the meaningful, practically biomorphic character of the types.
The name Crisalide, indicating chrysalis, mean this minute of metamorphosis– the suspended passage in between prospective and symptom. In this sense, the lights embody a threshold state where light prepares to become form, and glass holds that transformation in equilibrium.
The collection also builds upon the studio’s ongoing interest in openness and the meaningful potential of color layered within material– ideas checked out through experimental procedures of chromatic layering that produce ever-shifting combinations and depth within the glass.
To read more about the Crisalide collection by Draga & Aurel, provided by Todd Merrill Studio, see toddmerrillstudio.com. Photography courtesy of Todd Merrill. Maturing in NYC has provided Aria a special perspective into art+design, continuously striving for
new projects to get immersed in. A passionate baker, crocheter, and pasta maker, handwork and personal touch is main to what she loves about the developed environment. Beyond the city, she enjoys treking, biking, and learning more about area.