Circuit Pendant Light | Blackjack Lighting

Circuit is a circle and nothing more. A band of powder-coated steel, 4.4 inches deep, closes into a perfect ring, and the light comes from a continuous acrylic diffuser set along its underside. Seen from across a room it reads as a crisp line drawn in mid-air; from below it becomes a halo, an unbroken glowing hoop with no visible lamps or joints.

The form depends on keeping everything else out of the way. The driver is housed in the canopy, and the ring floats on three or four fine steel support cables, adjustable up to 76.4 inches, so the eye sees only the outline. Three diameters, 24, 32 and 43 inches, let the same idea work over a breakfast table, a long dining table or a double-height space. Matte Black draws the ring as a bold graphic stroke; White lets it dissolve into a pale ceiling until only the glow remains.

Design notes

• A continuous halo: the acrylic diffuser runs the full circumference, giving soft, even downlight with no hot spots.
• Pure geometry: one shallow 4.4 in (11.2 cm) band, with no arms, frames or visible hardware.
• Steel and acrylic: a powder-coated steel shade with an acrylic diffuser, driver hidden in the canopy.
• Three scales, four color temperatures: 24, 32 or 43 in diameters, each in 2700K, 3000K, 3500K or 4000K.
• Two finishes: Matte Black for contrast and definition, White for a light, architectural calm.

Specifications

Downloads

• Circuit 24 in specification sheet (PDF)
• Circuit 32 in specification sheet (PDF)
• Circuit 43 in specification sheet (PDF)
• Circuit 24 in installation instructions (PDF)
• Circuit 32 in installation instructions (PDF)
• Circuit 43 in installation instructions (PDF)
• Circuit 24 in LM-79 photometric report (PDF)
• Circuit 32 in LM-79 photometric report (PDF)
• Circuit IES files (ZIP)

Stephen Blackman and Blackjack Lighting

Blackjack Lighting is the studio of industrial designer Stephen Blackman, its President and Chief Design Officer. Trained in industrial design at Syracuse University, Blackman began his lighting career in 1984 at Sonneman Design Group, then founded Blackman Design Associates in 1988, designing decorative and architectural lighting for manufacturers including Kichler. He launched Blackjack in 2013 in suburban Chicago, now based in Buffalo Grove, Illinois, to build fixtures conceived for LED from the first sketch.

His argument is that the LED should change the shape of a light, not just its efficiency. Rather than hiding a new source inside old bulb-and-shade forms, Blackjack designs around the small, flat, cool-running LED: thin discs, slim rods, glowing rings and lenses that let the light itself become the object. In his own words, "Decorative lighting by its nature is not primarily about optimizing lamp efficiency, it is primarily about decoration!" Circuit is the glowing ring in its plainest form: a single circle of steel whose whole underside is light.

Questions

What is the design idea behind Circuit?

To let the circle, the most familiar geometric form, do all the work. A shallow steel band carries a continuous acrylic diffuser, so the fixture is simply a ring of light with nothing else to look at.

Who is behind Blackjack Lighting?

Industrial designer Stephen Blackman, President and Chief Design Officer, who has designed lighting since 1984 and founded Blackjack in 2013 to make LED-native fixtures.

Which size and finish should I choose?

The 24 in ring suits a round or small table, the 32 in a standard dining table and the 43 in larger rooms and tall ceilings. Matte Black reads as a strong outline against light walls; White lets the ring melt into a white ceiling.

What is the light like, and how is it controlled?

Soft, even light through the acrylic diffuser at 90 CRI, from 2179 lumens on the 24 in to 5736 lumens on the 43 in. The driver in the canopy dims on TRIAC, ELV and 0-10V controls.

What warranty does it carry?

Three years on the integrated LED source and LED power supply, and one year on materials and workmanship, for the original buyer in the US and Canada.