On March 21st 2019 Castor Design and East Room’s New Auction held an exhibition called “Simple Truths” collecting recent work by Castor Design’s Science and Humanities Division. The pieces in the show are all motivated by scientific concepts. The opening was preceded by a dinner and followed by a live set by “Mothership,” a Led […]
“Middle Grey” is the name given to the 18% black shade that appears to the eye to be halfway between black and white. The Middle Grey Pendant is made from laser-cut extruded aluminum tube, and uses an Acrylite® Satinice diffuser to enhance the light from its LED source. The pendant lights are linkable between their […]
A “gravity battery” is a type of machine that creates and stores energy through raising a mass and allowing it to fall. This type of machine explores the Laws of Thermodynamics, the first of which describes how energy is not created or destroyed, but is transferred from one form into another form. Here, gravitational potential […]
Castor Design’s Brian Richer has updated his Captive series for 2018. In addition to the pieces displayed in the previous captive collection, some new pieces were shown at an exhibition at Mjolk this May. These include a captive Donald Judd chair, a captive planter and a captive vase. A captive cube in alabaster and a […]
The aim of the Induction Wall Light is to use a scientific concept to approach lighting in a unique way. It powers a burnt-out fluorescent bulb through an electromagnetic field. A fluorescent bulb is normally lit with a wired connection at each of its pins, sending power through the filaments at either end and causing […]
An electric Cloud Chamber that shows the trails of electrons and other subatomic particles through a vapour cooled down to -40°C. A cloud chamber is a particle detector used for visualizing the passage of ionizing radiation. A charged particle interacts with the vapour by knocking electrons off gas molecules during collisions, resulting in a trail […]
Castor is debuting its Middle Grey series at ICFF New York 2018. In photography, painting, and printing, Middle Grey is the name given to the shade of grey that appears to the human eye to be halfway between black and white. It’s used to determine how light will affect a given film stock (i.e. whether […]
Recycled Tube Light in the Vans Headquarters in Costa Mesa, California.
Wall-mounted versions of the Oil Lamp in the Fogo Island Inn in Newfoundland, Canada.
Castor Design’s Creative Director Brian Richer gave a talk at the Prototypa installation at IIDEX Toronto, presented by Form Us With Love and Shaw Contract. The conversation, moderated by Lia Forslund, focused on prototyping in the design process and iterating ideas.
The Plated Tank Light in select WeWork locations across the United States.
Products: Recycled Tube Light Droog Light Design FaR Architects
M74207281 is the largest known prime number. Represented in scientific notation, the number is 2^74207281-1. Written out, the number is “two to the power of seventy-four million, two hundred seven thousand, two hundred eighty-one, minus one.” Found in January 2016 by the Great Internet Mersenne Prime Search, it is 22.3 million digits long. The Two […]
In 1874, Torontonians Matthew Evans & Henry Woodward patented their design for the incandescent light bulb before selling the patent to Thomas Edison, who went on to produce and popularize their design. As part of a series of exhibitions commissioned by Cadillac for Canada 150, our Black Mirror installation at Union Station in Toronto is […]
Fresnel Lights in the meeting room at The Honest Company, a sustainable consumer goods company. Products: Fresnel Pendant Light Design: Rapt Studios
Each of the rooms in the Brooklyn Bridge 1 Hotel have our Deadstock Catherine Lamps on their bedside tables. Custom double-headed lights were also commissioned for rooms with multiple beds. Products: Deadstock Catherine Lamp Design: INC Architecture Photography: 1 Hotels
Made from marble and beechwood, the mortar and pestle can be used in different combinations to grind spices, herbs and teas. The wood bowl is for softer milling, while the marble dish is for hard crushing. The wood bowl pivots for ease of use. Available from Umbra Shift.
The 6-foot (TL-6) model of the Recycled Tube Light in multiple Irving Farm Coffee Roasters locations in New York City. Products: Recycled Tube Light
Big Switch is a table light that makes what is often a hidden element into its defining feature. Its crescent-shaped button with a ridged surface clicks down to activate. The switch and base are cast in red, yellow, blue, or black polyurethane like you would find in a skateboard wheel. Technical Information (PDF) Find your […]
The Captive (or ‘unfinished’) figures of Michelangelo are the primary inspiration for the series by Brian Richer. Richer, the Creative Director at Castor Design is also a trained stone carver. He has worked on many architecturally significant buildings in North America, and has explored captives for years. The Captive sculptures are simple Platonic forms, hand-carved […]
The “Liberace x Flavin” installation is a music and light performance for Azure Magazine’s 2016 AZ Awards. Hundreds of fluorescent tubes between six and ten feet tall are set up around a grand piano, lit wirelessly through induction in the same vein as a Tesla coil. The light sculpture is sound-sensitive; its mass of fluorescent […]
“Nature Abhors a Vacuum” Despite our growing familiarity with particle accelerators like CERN’s Large Hadron Collider, for most of us the idea of a particle accelerator is still abstract. Castor Design have produced their take on the particle accelerator in an effort to make the science behind the concept more approachable. The Castor Design particle […]
The online retail service’s Montreal offices. Products: Recycled Tube Light Design: Linebox Studio Photography: Cindy Boyce
The Pierced Light is an exploration in glass-blowing and organic glass forms. The table light features a hand-blown glass body and a steel rod with an internal LED lamp. The molten glass is rolled and inflated, and then pierced on an angle as it solidifies. Once hardened, the glass body is sand-blasted for use as […]
Ottawa restaurant and bar serving Asian small plates. Products: Invisible Chandelier, Plated Tank Light. Design: Linebox Studio Photography: Union Eleven, Metropolis Studio
The Vertical Tube Light in Uber’s new San Francisco’s offices. Products: Vertical Tube Light Design: Studio O + A Photography: Jasper Sanidad
Detroit offices of advertising firm Lowe Campbell Ewald. Products: Recycled Tube Light Design: Neumann/Smith Architecture Photography: Justin Maconochie
J Crew’s Williamsburg storefront. Products: Recycled Tube Light Design: Lalire March Architects Photography: Liz Clayman
Grocery delivery company Instacart’s San Francisco offices. Products: Conic Section Pendant Light Design: Design Blitz Photography: Jasper Sanidad
The Cowboy Coffee Kettle is based on traditional open range fire brewing. Bring water to a boil, add ground coffee and let it steep. Pour slowly and enjoy. Present your enamel kettle on its beechwood trivet. Available in black and speckled white from Umbra Shift. Watch creative director Brian Richer and Toronto coffee roaster Sam […]
Rotisserie Chicken restaurant in downtown Toronto. Products: Tank Light Design: Jenny Francis Design Photography: Dave Gillespie
The Fresnel Pendant in the Beats By Dre offices in Culver City, California. Products: Fresnel Pendant Light Design: Bestor Architecture Photography: Jasper Sanidad
Castor Design were part of the Hudson Bay Company‘s installation for the Spring 2016 display at The Room, a fashion window display operating in Toronto since 1937. Six coloured gels were applied to over 115 florescent bulbs, which were used to create the sculptures, lit through induction.
Flagship location of the New York coffee franchise. Products: Recycled Tube Light Droog Light Design: Smallpond Photography: Francis Dzikowski
Nike’s New York flagship store. Lighting in the custom shoe design office. Products: Table Tube Light Vertical Tube Light Table Tube Light Design: Frederic Schwartz Architects Photos: Peter Aaron/Esto/Mark Whitfield
This product is in partnership with Harnisch lamps established in 1842. Collaborating with the oldest gas lamp manufacturers in Canada, Castor was able to use Harnisch’s knowledge and production methods while stripping the lamps of all ornamentation to a simple cylindrical shape finished in black chrome. Technical Information (PDF) Find your nearest stockist
Materials: Carrera Marble, Oak Hand-carved letters in marble. Pi is Exactly 3 Historically there have been numerous attempts to square a circle, including an attempt in 1894 to pass legislation in the United States that would definitively and erroneously signify Pi as exactly 3. Schrödinger’s Cat is Dead Schrödinger’s cat is a thought experiment, sometimes […]
Music streaming company Spotify’s New York offices. Products: Tank Light Design: FOX Architects Photography: Limor Garfinkle
Video production collective Common Good’s Toronto office. Products: Recycled Tube Light Design: MSDS Photography: Photo courtesy of MSDS
Architizer A+ Awards Decorative Lighting Winner We’re happy to announce that our Induction Tube Light won an award in the Decorative Lighting category of Architizer’s A+ Awards. With entries from over 100 countries, the award represents the best of design worldwide. Thanks to those who voted. You can find out more about the Induction Tube […]
Native Child and Family Services of Toronto’s place to reconnect with nature in an urban environment. Products: Vertical Tube Light Design: Levitt Goodman Architects Photography: Ben Rahn (A-Frame)
Renovation project on Pretoria Ave in Ottawa. Products: Recycled Tube Light Droog Light Design – Linebox Studio Photography – The General Studio
Castor Design have made a dining table and a pair of benches out of hard candy. Two inches thick, the treatment resembles a glass-top dining table. The set was made during the 2015 Toronto Design Offsite week for the Dinner by Design charity event hosted by GE Monogram and the Toronto Design Exchange, the proceeds […]
LoversLand reached out to Castor Design to create a bridal salon that stands apart from the ordinary boutique. The front of the space is pared down and sleek, with white walls and piping connecting shelves, lighting, and lace curtained change areas. At the back of the shop is a tented space called The Haven, a […]
Using a beaver-chewed log found outside of Sudbury, ON as a positive, the Castor Lodge Candle Holder is cast from solid aluminum. A black patina has been applied to the casting in order to accentuate the bark’s texture, as well as the tooth marks. The Candle Holder stands approximately 5″ high, and fits a standard […]
The first of two t-shirts is a Castor t-shirt in the style of black metal band logos. It was released along with the Black Metal Collection. The second features an explanation of the namesake Castor. Purchase online
None More Black 2014 Black Metal Collection Castor’s Black Metal Collection is inspired by the line from Spinal Tap “There’s something about this that’s so black, it’s like how much more black could this be? And the answer is none. None more black.” Nigel Tufnel was commenting on their new black record cover and clearly […]
A solid-topped desk with a drawer and a variety of different legs cast in aluminum. Leg options range from an ornate hand-carved spindle to a beaver-gnawed log. All legs are interchangeable. Download PDF Find your nearest stockist
Parts & Labour Burger is a Queen Street West restaurant designed and owned by Castor. Launched in 2014, it showcases Parts & Labour’s menu mainstay, and builds upon their reputation for having the best burger in town.
This product is made of cast bronze, its shape taken from an existing wood wedge. The product’s weight is substantial — it will hold a door back without needing to slide underneath. Technical Information (PDF) Find your nearest stockist
For their “Rise Up” annual fundraiser gala, Castor wrapped a 3,000 square foot room at the Design Exchange and the furniture inside in heat-shrink wrap designed to protect boats during the winter.
The mirrors have a black tint finish, giving off a clean reflection with a subtle darkened tone. The black powder-coated spun metal back gives the illusion of hovering off the wall and produces depth to an otherwise flat object. Technical Information (PDF) Find your nearest stockist
The Biker Stool is available at both chair and bar heights, in either a black or white powder-coated finish. The geometry of the stool’s seat is based on a motorcycle seat. It is leather-lined and joined to a tubular steel base by means of custom machined brass “bungs.” Technical Information (PDF) Find your nearest stockist
The TRI-Pod Table’s circular, powder-coated top rests on three oak legs. The legs are held together by means of a hand-hammered brass ring, eliminating the need for fasteners. The TRI-Pod table can be completely disassembled for shipping or storage. Technical Information (PDF) Find your nearest stockist
