Lapso: how a living lamp was made

This project is also a story about craft. Early trials relied on the precision of a seamstress who helped us understand how Celium™ in its translucent version behaves under needle and hand. Building in León, Guanajuato, we benefited from a region where fine workmanship is part of the industrial culture. Natural Urbano (https://naturalurbano.com/home.html) contributed a design language that listens to material behavior, offering feedback that looped into Polybion’s choices on tanning, finishing, and thickness. Trust and iteration moved the project forward.

Intent and constraints

We set out to build a functional light with sculptural intent. The brief was clear: work with Celium™, in its translucent version, its purest form, preserve translucency, and ensure the piece would withstand sewing, mounting, and illumination. From day one the project lived inside a collaboration between Polybion and Natural Urbano. The material would not be treated as a veneer over a conventional solution. It would be the solution.

The material sets the rules

“Don’t force Celium™ to mimic legacy materials. Let it speak.”

Working with a next-gen material changes the sequence of decisions. Instead of forcing uniformity, we embraced that signature as a design asset.

Five cultivated sheets per lamp proved to be the right balance for strength, diffusion, and seam planning. The visual language could not be imported from legacy materials. It had to emerge from Celium™ itself.

Iteration timeline: design and material in dialogue

Iteration 1: The “birdcage.”
The initial configuration employed a stainless-steel rod frame with stapled panels. Early assemblies revealed stress concentrations at panel edges and made routine relamping impractical. The lesson was clear: the structure must serve Celium™ in its translucent version, and serviceability needs to be designed from the outset.

Iterations 2 and 3: Pattern, edges, stitch geometry.
Natural Urbano refined panel geometry, seam placement, and edge treatments to redirect tension paths and control shadowing. In parallel, Polybion calibrated thickness and finishing to match stitch behavior. As these variables converged, fragility under mounting decreased, pointing to the need for a unified specification where structure and membrane act as one.

Iteration 4: The removable light-diffusing screen.
A precise mechanical architecture with a removable light-diffusing screen aligned structure with material behavior. Handling became safe, diffusion remained even, and maintenance was straightforward. More than a fix, it affirmed a principle for Lapso: longevity is part of design.

The calibration triad

With control over cultivation and finishing, we tuned three variables in concert: tanning formula, finishing formula, and material thickness. This allowed Celium™, in its translucent version to carry the structure while preserving what mattered most: translucency, even diffusion, and a quiet, tactile presence.

Across the development we tested four tanning formulas, three finishing formulas, and three thicknesses. The criteria were straightforward: resist sewing and mounting, keep translucency, and maintain performance under heat and light.

The selected specification meets these criteria. The membrane accepts stitch and mechanical fixation without tearing, diffuses light with clarity, and sustains repeated handling. The result is not a compromise between aesthetics and engineering; it is the point where both serve the lamp’s language of light.

Sewing, edges, and pattern engineering

We placed stitch lines where they could carry load without casting unwanted shadows. Seam allowances were set to distribute stress, and reinforcement stayed minimal to avoid visual noise. Edge treatments prevent tear initiation while keeping the profile crisp. Handling protocols were defined so Celium™ is always supported where it needs to be, during fabrication and assembly.

Structure and serviceability

The final architecture pairs a stainless-steel frame with precise mechanical fixation and the removable light-diffusing screen. Serviceability matters: access for relamping, cleaning, and future replacement extends the life of the piece and keeps it safe to handle. The result is a lamp that filters light with intention and endures everyday use.

Production notes

The development drew on over 30 cultivated sheets of Celium™, four tanning formulas, three finishing formulas, and three thicknesses, resulting in four complete prototypes across nearly a year. Each retail piece uses five Celium™ sheets. Lapso is available in two editions: Natural (undyed, Celium™’s own hue) and Humo (dyed darker). Biological variation remains the signature. 

What we learned

Precision and living variability can coexist. Progress came from treating growth as a partner, not a variable to eliminate. The most productive moves happened when we stopped translating Celium™ into the language of leather or synthetics and let it propose its own grammar: layers, gradients, tactility, presence. The methods from Lapso now inform future lighting and interior applications, where cultivated materials can carry both function and meaning.

Lapso was unveiled at The Biofab Fair by Biofabricate during London Design Festival, September 16–17, 2025. Ordering is available through Natural Urbano’s website. Each piece ships with a certificate of authenticity.

Credits
Design and fabrication: Natural Urbano
Material: Celium™ by Polybion™
Photography: Claudia Armida GALAR and Verónica Sojo

Press & Sales
Press: press@polybion.bio
Natural Urbano: contacto@naturalurbano.com
Polybion™: orders@polybion.bio
Order Lapso: Natural Urbano website