Handcrafted ‘Lily Lamp’ by Duncan Meerding
Duncan Meerding is a furniture and lighting designer based in Hobart, Tasmania. His practice draws directly from the Tasmanian wilderness — organic curving lines, highly tactile surfaces, and a deep attention to form and texture that comes from working closely with local materials. He uses sustainable, locally sourced Tasmanian timber in combination with traditional hand-making techniques and small-scale modern manufacturing, building each piece with longevity in mind rather than trend.
What makes Meerding's work genuinely singular is the perspective behind it. He is legally blind, with less than 5% of his sight remaining. His design process centres on light emanating from the peripheries of objects — the way light disperses and creates shadow around a form, rather than from a central source. That relationship between light and the edge of vision shapes every piece he produces, and it gives his work a quality that no sighted designer arrives at from the same direction. His designs reflect an alternative sensory world — one built around peripheral light, touch, and the highly tactile nature of the materials he chooses.
About 'Lily Lamp'
The Lily Lamp starts from the ground up. A turned Tasmanian Eucalyptus base rises into a hand-carved stem of the same timber warm, textured, and unmistakably local. The shade sits above in southern ice porcelain, translucent enough to let light breathe through it rather than simply projecting downward. The whole form draws from organic shapes the lily it references, the natural geometry of the plant world that Meerding returns to consistently across his practice.
The highly tactile nature of the design invites touch as much as sight. The eucalyptus grain, the weight of the turned base, the cool surface of the porcelain shade every material choice rewards physical contact, not just visual appreciation. In a room, the Lily Lamp does not perform. It simply exists with a presence that changes the quality of light around it.
The Lily Lamp is on display at The Royale in Hobart CBD — The Island Collective's most premium property, where it sits alongside major works by Pat Brassington, Brigita Ozolins, and Blair Waterfield as part of a curated collection that treats art and design as core to the guest experience rather than decoration.
Experience 'Lily Lamp' During Your Stay
Book The Royale to stay with the Lily Lamp — a 125 sqm dual-level Hobart CBD apartment with two king bedrooms, a 100-inch Samsung home cinema, secure undercover parking, and one of the most considered art and design collections in any accommodation in Tasmania.
Want to explore the full Island Collective collection before deciding? The District in Hobart CBD displays original works including 'Totem Four' by Louise De Weger. The Tempo and The Helm in Sandy Bay carry original Tasmanian paintings by Mindy Doré and Stacey Rees. Browse every artwork across the collection on The Artists page, or contact the team with any questions before you book.