The designer with her Link pendants.
Photo: TIMOTHEE SPITZER
Creative Mind: Andreea Avram Rusu
The Romanian-born architect and designer’s lighting designs have become a staple on the design-fair circuit
Botanica Chandelier. Photo: PETER KUBILUS
The best ideas take time—just ask Andreea Avram Rusu, who has spent the past decade shepherding her floral-inspired lighting creations from concept to fruition. “Botanica started with a single abstracted leaf in glass and grew into a surreal composition of multiple plants and flowers,” says the Romanian-born architect and designer, who founded Avram Rusu Studio in Brooklyn in 2004. Resembling giant banana blossoms rendered in milky pastel hues, the sensual pieces have become highlights on the design-fair circuit, thanks to Wexler Gallery, which mounted an exhibition of them last summer at its New York location.
Confetti Glass Chandelier. Photo: PETER KUBILUS
Other bold designs by Rusu include striking Sputnik fixtures embellished with colorful glass disks as well as Continuum, a series of bent-metal chandeliers and sconces that channel frenetic graffiti art. This year, look for new additions to existing collections, plus some exciting debuts. “I’m pushing the forms further,” she says, “and exploring porcelain for both lighting and accessories.”
Botanica Bloom anf Botanica Chandelier. Photo: Courtesy of the artist
Andreea Avram Rusu’s Continuum chandelier. Photo: PETER KUBILUS
A version of this article first appeared in print in our 2023 Spring Issue under the headline “Creative Minds.” Subscribe to the magazine.
Cover: The designer with her Link pendants.
Photo: TIMOTHEE SPITZER
