The Story Behind MORA: A Collaboration Between MESEME Studio & Atelier Korbo
MORA is an exploration of contrast.
What began as a private commission soon evolved into a shared design language between our founder & lighting designer-maker Riya Panchal of MESEME Studio and furniture designer-maker Dex Vallon of Atelier Korbo, bringing together two independent practices to explore how furniture and lighting could inform one another.
Combining architectural solid hardwood forms with sculpted paper diffusers, MORA sits between functional lighting and sculptural object, balancing permanence with lightness.
A Meeting of Two Practices
Our collaboration began at Blackhorse Workshop in London, where our studios were just a few doors apart. Although we worked in different disciplines, we shared a similar appreciation for craftsmanship, honest materials and making by hand.
The collaboration began not with a finished idea, but with a recognition that the project needed expertise beyond a single discipline. When Dex approached Riya he had already developed the hardwood base for a private commission and was trying to resolve the lighting. Rather than treating it as something to be added afterwards, it became the starting point for a true collaboration.
Influenced by traditional woodworking techniques and his French-Caribbean heritage, Dex’s work explores the warmth, permanence and expressive qualities of solid hardwood. MESEME Studio brought specialist expertise in lighting design, electrical integration, paper craftsmanship and manufacture, allowing light to become an integral part of the object from the outset.
Although the floor lamp’s hardwood base already existed, the lighting, undulating paper forms and the entire table light evolved through an iterative process of prototyping. Every decision from the scale of the paper forms to the integration of the lighting and the smallest material details was carefully tested and refined before reaching its final form. Rather than treating lighting as something added to a finished object, MORA brought together our two specialist practices from the outset. Through conversation, prototyping and making, timber, paper and light evolved together into a shared design language.
“What excited me most was the contrast between our design languages. Bringing my sculpted paper forms together with Dex’s architectural hardwood structures challenged us to find a shared language through conversation, making and trust in each other’s expertise, allowing the collection to feel true to both of our practices.”
“As a furniture maker, lighting wasn’t something I’d explored in depth before. Working with Riya encouraged me to think beyond form and construction, exploring how light could become part of the object itself. That exchange of knowledge became one of the most rewarding aspects of the collaboration.”
EXPLORE THE COLLECTION
The MORA collection comprises two handcrafted, made-to-order pieces, each shaped by our shared design process.
The MORA Floor Lamp combines a monolithic, handcrafted hardwood base with a softly illuminated paper structure, exploring the balance between solidity and lightness, permanence and movement.
Crafted using traditional joinery and carefully selected timber, the architectural base is shaped through a deliberate, material-led process that emphasises proportion, clean lines, and the natural character of the wood. Formed through tension and fold, the paper structure transforms under illumination, introducing warmth, softness, and atmosphere. Together, these contrasting materials and making processes create a sculptural lighting object that feels grounded in material and softened by light.
Collaboratively created by lighting designer-maker Riya Panchal of MESEME Studio and designer-maker Dex Vallon of Atelier Korbo.
Prices from £2000 + VAT
Made to Order: 4-6 Weeks
Download Tear Sheet
The MORA Table Light combines a monolithic hardwood form with sculpted illuminated paper elements, exploring the balance between architectural presence and soft, organic form.
Crafted using traditional joinery and carefully selected timber, the architectural body is shaped through a deliberate, material-led process that emphasises proportion, clean lines, and the natural character of the wood. Positioned on both sides, the paper structures are formed through tension and fold, creating a rhythmic, wave-like profile that transforms under illumination to reveal texture, depth, and a softly diffused glow.
Together, these materials and making processes create a sculptural lighting fixture that feels grounded in material and animated by light.
Collaboratively created by lighting designer-maker Riya Panchal of MESEME Studio and designer-maker Dex Vallon of Atelier Korbo.
Prices from £1000 + VAT
Made to Order: 4-6 Weeks
Download Tear Sheet
