Ryan Horrell is a young lighting designer and entrepreneur making a name for himself and his brand Formation Lights. Originally from Gore and now based in Cambridge, the 24-year-old design graduate has built an impressive body of work inspired by the textures and landscapes of New Zealand.

We spoke to Ryan about his business, his designs and what we can expect to see from him at the Auckland Home Show.

I started while studying a bachelor design in my third year at the University of Otago in Dunedin. I spent about a month developing the first Tussock light shade and had to display it at the end of year exhibition. The feedback was really encouraging. One of the lecturers helped me develop the idea further and said: “Are you interested in bringing this design to market?” I said: “Yes” and it’s just grown naturally from there.

So, tell us about your design process and where your inspiration comes from?

I start off with a quick sketch inspired by a form that I’ve found in nature — on my travels or walking around in the bush or beach. I might see a form or a curve, or texture, or shape that appeals to me and from there I build a prototype of a fitting that could support a light and cast different shadows.

Discovering the light play from your prototype shade must be sometimes surprising, or even magical?

Yes, that’s very true. With the Tussock light shade for example, there’s a lot of thought that’s gone into that shadow. The distance that you put the fins apart determines how big a shadow is, and then the angle that you have it on it determines the curve of light that it’s going to display on the wall. The idea for that shade is to mimic the shadows that the tussock bushes in central Otago would be casting. There’s quite a lot of meaning behind all these different elements of that design, even though it is one of the more simplistic designs out of my collection. But it’s the one I’ve put the most time into trying to get it right.

So, the design is really clever – the way it can be delivered flat packed and easily assembled by your customer?

Yeah, so we’ve got a few different sizes, small, medium, large, and extra-large versions of the standard light shades. They’re sent as flat packs, so they’re economic to send and environmentally friendly — the goal being that they can be sent worldwide as well. They’re made from Bamboo Plywood at the moment, but I’m also experimenting with different material types that are also sustainable. And I’ve been prototyping with a recycled plastic sheet lately and it’d be really cool to see what I can do with that.

 

So, once you’ve created a design, then you’ve got to deliver a perfect product to the client. Tell us about the quality of your production, the care, the packaging and the distribution.

Yeah, the manufacturing workflow is quite something. The way I achieve highly accurate and reliable outcomes every time is I use a three-axis CNC machine, which is very accurate and can cut exactly what I tell it to. And that means that when I go to put my parts together, all the joints are very accurate, so it all just slots together nicely. Whereas if I tried to cut that out by hand, you wouldn’t be able to get a reliable outcome with every single part that I have to cut out.

Instructions can be a nightmare for some. So, how do you make sure that people make it just right?

I’ve put a lot of thought into how the user will assemble the light shade. I have an Instagram presence and the website has a bunch of assembly videos you can watch and follow along. Or the instructions are very intuitive and they explain step by step how to assemble it. It’s very self-explanatory and has been tested by a range of people varying in ages.

So, we’ll be seeing you at the Auckland Home Show. Well, how many designs of light will you have at show?

I’ll have six hanging from a custom tree that I’ve designed and then I’ll have two new LED light bars there called the Raglan Collection. And these bars have different forms which are derived from the rocky coastal environment of Raglan Hills and the mountains and that area around there.

So, at 24 you’ve got a really great body of work already and an exciting career ahead of you?

Yes, it’s great — some people spend their whole life trying to find something that they really enjoy and that they’re really passionate about. I’m just really fortunate that I’ve found what I enjoy and what I want to do for the rest of my life. Lighting’s been a really good creative outlet for me — I can express my creativity and put all my energy into the design process.

See Ryan Horrell and Formation Lights at the 2025 Auckland Home Show – Hall 8 in the marketplace M11