You know those moments when something so simple makes you stop and stare? That’s exactly what Bo Zhang is doing with his latest collection, and honestly, it’s kind of mind-blowing. Lightware is a series of transparent glass trays that don’t just sit there looking pretty (though they do that too). They actually play with light and shadow to create this ever-changing visual experience that transforms depending on where you stand, how the light hits them, and what surface they’re resting on.
If you caught wind of Zhang’s previous work, the Ripples collection, you already know he’s got a thing for messing with our perception. But where Ripples played with color-shifting optical illusions through hexagonal folded forms, Lightware takes a completely different approach. This time, it’s all about harnessing the science of polarizing film and glass to create what I can only describe as shadow choreography.
Designer: Bo Zhang
The genius here is in the subtlety. Zhang, who founded his studio Desz Office in New York back in 2019, has always been about creating pieces that interact with people on both visual and emotional levels. With Lightware, he’s tapping into something we usually take for granted: the way light moves through transparent objects. By layering polarizing film within the glass structure, these trays generate dynamic geometric patterns that shift and dance as you move around them or as the light source changes throughout the day.
Picture this: you set one of these trays on your coffee table in the morning. The sunlight streaming through your window casts one pattern. By afternoon, with the light coming from a different angle, it’s transformed into something completely new. Move it to another surface, and the shadows beneath it create yet another composition. It’s like having functional art that never gets boring because it literally never looks the same twice.
What’s really cool is that Zhang isn’t just making pretty objects for the sake of it. His design philosophy revolves around the idea that good artwork should have a soul, not be a cold entity. These trays are practical (you can actually use them to hold your keys, jewelry, or whatever), but they’re also conversation starters, meditation pieces, and honestly just really satisfying things to look at.
The recognition is rolling in too. Lightware recently won the NYCxDesign Awards 2025 Honoree in the accessories category, adding to Zhang’s growing list of accolades that includes being named one of UNESCO’s “100 Future Artists” and getting featured in Design Miami’s DMBX project. The design world has definitely been paying attention to what he’s doing, with features in publications like Vogue, Interior Design magazine, and Design Milk.
What I love about this collection is how it bridges the gap between tech-savvy innovation and accessible design. You don’t need to understand the science of polarization to appreciate these trays (though if you’re curious, polarizing film works by filtering light waves in specific directions, creating those mesmerizing patterns). You just need to be someone who appreciates when everyday objects transcend their basic function and become something more.
Since we live now with a lot of digital stimulation, there’s something refreshing about analog magic. Lightware offers this quiet, contemplative kind of wonder. It reminds us that transformation doesn’t always have to be loud or flashy. Sometimes the most captivating changes happen slowly, subtly, right in front of us, as naturally as light moving across a room.
Zhang’s work with Lightware proves that innovation in design isn’t always about reinventing the wheel. Sometimes it’s about looking at something as fundamental as a tray and asking, “What if this could do more?” The answer, in this case, is a collection that turns functional objects into portals of perpetual surprise, where shadows become art and transparency reveals hidden complexity.
The post When Trays Become Magic: Bo Zhang’s Shadow-Dancing Lightware first appeared on Yanko Design.