CYA 94 in Linear Pendant | Blackjack Lighting

CYA is a composition rather than a single lamp. A slender 94-inch JackTrack channel, just 1.38 inches wide, is suspended on fine aircraft cables. Along one half it carries a 47-inch LED module that glows as one continuous line; from the other half drop five small Novo Short pendants, hung level in a neat row. One line in the air, two kinds of light, read together as a single drawing.

The tension between the two halves is the point. The solid, continuous glow of the module sits beside the rhythm of the five pendants, each a 4.25-inch cylinder on its own cord, so the eye travels from a long bar of light to a set of points. In Matte Black the channel and pendants read as crisp graphic strokes against a pale ceiling; in White they dissolve, leaving the light itself to define the shape.

Design notes

• Two lights in one line: a 47 in (119.4 cm) LED module and five Novo Short pendants share the same channel, combining a continuous line of light with five focused points.
• Long, thin proportion: 94 in (238.8 cm) of channel at only 1.38 in (3.5 cm) wide and 1.75 in (4.45 cm) tall.
• Built on JackTrack: Blackjack's own track channel houses the module and carries the pendants, so the system looks engineered rather than assembled.
• Light quality: 3,625 lumens in total at 3000K and 90 CRI, with each pendant giving 387 lumens.
• Graphic or quiet: Matte Black draws the composition in strong lines; White keeps it light and lets the glow lead.

Specifications

Downloads

• CYA specification sheet (PDF)
• JackTrack 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!" CYA shows the system side of that idea: one slim channel of LED carrying both a bar of light and a row of tiny pendants.

Questions

What is the idea behind CYA?

To compose with light along a single line. Half the channel is a continuous LED module, half carries five small pendants, so one fixture gives both a line of light and a rhythm of points.

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 fixtures conceived for LED.

Matte Black or White?

Matte Black makes the channel, cords and pendants into a crisp black drawing, strongest against light walls and ceilings. White lets the hardware recede so the lit module and pendants stand out on their own.

How is the light controlled?

The driver sits in the canopy and works on 120-277V with universal dimming, so the whole composition dims together on TRIAC, ELV or 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.