Bronze and Onyx Cloud Chandelier No. 1, USA

Composed of a series of tiered, interconnected bronze and onyx rings, Markus Haase’s Cloud Series Chandelier spans over an impressive 8 feet, creating a sweeping landscape of radiant, sculpted light. Combining a mastery of traditional sculpting techniques with a contemporary, material-driven approach to design, Haase is one of the only artists working today, crafting unique works in bronze. Rather than using the casting process as a mechanism for producing multiples, each of his bronze and onyx light sculptures is completely unique.
Haase hand-carves each circular form before using a self-developed technique of casting that destroys the original, rendering each form one-of-a-kind. Onyx is hand-carved and merged with the bronze, diffusing the internal LEDs. The work retains its luminescent quality even when unlit.

Haase refined his sculpting practice studying under Europe’s preeminent masters of stone carving, restoring centuries-old Gothic cathedrals across Northern Germany for over a decade. These experiences, combined with his fresh and impressive eye for design, allow Haase to create his dynamic, expressive works. Haase demonstrates his sculpting virtuosity through his designs that imbue wood and stone with a remarkable sense of fluidity and movement. Carved wood assumes qualities of drapery, while marble suggests energy and vigor. His dynamic sculptural lighting defines a new artistry for the twenty-first century. As Todd Merrill describes, “Markus Haase is not making a piece of furniture that looks like art… He is a sculptor making art that serves functional ends.”