Cords Snowball 20 in Pendant Light | Blackjack Lighting

Snowball is the simplest possible idea for a pendant, carried out with care: a perfect 20-inch sphere of glossy white acrylic hung on a slender stem and cable. There is no visible hardware on the globe beyond a small cap where it meets the stem, so the shape reads as a pure white ball floating in the room. It belongs to Blackjack's Cords family, which builds pendants from a shared kit of canopy, socket, stem and cable, and it brings that kit's precision to the most familiar of shapes.

The glossy finish is what separates it from a frosted school-house globe. Unlit, the surface catches reflections like a ceramic glaze; lit, the acrylic diffuses the bulb into an even, moon-like glow with no hot spot. The 20 in size is the largest, a full 20-inch moon that can carry a big table, a double-height stair or a lobby. Hardware and cable come in Matte Black or White: black draws a fine graphic line from ceiling to globe, while white lets the sphere appear to hover with almost nothing holding it up.

Design notes

• Even, moon-like light: the glossy white acrylic sphere spreads a standard bulb into a soft, uniform glow.
• Pure geometry: a 20 in (50.8 cm) globe on a 12 in stem, with a small cap the only interruption to the sphere.
• Bulb of your choice: a medium E26 socket for a Type A bulb up to 60 W incandescent or 12 W LED.
• Adjustable drop: overall height from 26 in (66 cm) to 112 in (284 cm), with field-cuttable cable and optional extra stems.
• Two hardware finishes: Matte Black for a crisp line against pale ceilings, or White so the globe seems to float.

Specifications

Downloads

• Snowball 20 in specification sheet (PDF)
• Snowball installation instructions (PDF)

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!" Snowball shows the same respect for the light itself in its simplest form: a single glossy sphere whose whole surface becomes the glow.

Questions

What is the idea behind Snowball?

A pure sphere with nothing extra. The glossy white acrylic globe hides the bulb completely and turns it into an even glow, while the slim stem and cable keep the hardware almost invisible.

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 in the Chicago suburbs.

Where does the 20 in size work best?

It is the statement size: one globe can hold a large dining table, a stairwell or a high-ceilinged living room, and several make a striking lobby or restaurant installation.

Matte Black or White hardware?

Matte Black frames the globe with a crisp dark line and suits industrial and high-contrast rooms. White keeps everything light, so the globe seems to float, especially against a white ceiling.

What warranty does it carry?

One year on materials and workmanship, for the original buyer in the US and Canada. The bulb is not included.