Yulian Mikov & Dimitar Vranchev

NO\ON studio

Lamp maker

©DimitarVranchev

A new life for neon

Yulian and Dimitar combine experimentation and traditional techniques in their creations
They create collectible designs by capturing unique moments in the reactions between materials
Their signature style is showing the perfection of imperfections

Yulian Mikov and Dimitar Vranchev come from different creative spheres – the one from architecture, and the other from spatial design, respectively. On a February night in 2019 in the mountains, they were captivated by the magical light coming from the claw-sized moon. All they wanted was to capture the feeling of the imperfect perfection of the surface’s forms and the atmosphere they perceived. This is why NO\ON Studio was born and how the first collection was imagined. The creative duo decided to reinvent the usage of neon and bring to life new ideas to keep it in use nowadays.

Interview

How do you define your craft and your lamps?: Yulian: We make functional sculptures, contemporary art with a design. We keep on experimenting with new materials. In fact, we use experimentation and integration of old, extinct or even forgotten hand-crafting techniques. Dimitar: An amalgam of light and rust between the contemporary and the traditional, the precious and the unexpected, the sculptural and the functional.
What inspires you?: Dimitar: Every product has its story. The current collection is more cosmic, inspired by the planets in Greek mythology. Yulian: Our first collection was inspired by the forgotten lighting technique, something outdated and niche to which we gave new life, while looking for more organic forms.
What materials do you use?: Yulian: The design artifacts in the current collection are made of steel and neon. Dimitar: We use various techniques to obtain a patina. In our designs we also include the rusting process a lot. Patina and rust are always unique, they cannot be repeated as each time we capture different moments in the transition of materials.
What are the key principles in your work?: Dimitar: One of the main lines we follow is the symbiosis between minimalism, traditional shapes and the innate naturalness, to which space itself directs us. Yulian: Each collection has its themes. The next one will probably be driven by a completely different story.

Yulian Mikov & Dimitar Vranchev are rising stars: they began their career in 2019