For rent in Amsterdam. Monochromatic light. All colours disappear. Only yellow and black remain.
For rent in Amsterdam. Monochromatic light. All colours disappear. Only yellow and black remain.
Put four SOX lamps in a room, turn off everything else, and the space transforms. Clothing, skin, food, flowers, art on the walls: everything becomes yellow and black.
As long as no other light gets in, the effect is immediate and total. Artist Olafur Eliasson built entire installations around it, filled the Turbine Hall of Tate Modern with two hundred of these lamps. Earlier this year, Eliasson used the same lamps for Yellow at the Van Gogh Museum.
Four lamps are enough to fully transform a room.
Guests step into another world. Clothing colours vanish, faces become sculptures. Everyone looks the same. A conversation starter that carries the entire evening.
Use SOX as a spatial intervention. The colourless experience forces visitors to see differently: shapes, textures, shadows. Works standalone or as context for other work.
The real sodium light, not a filter. Disney used it for the special effects in Mary Poppins. Ideal for music videos and editorials.
SOX is a gas discharge lamp that emits light at exactly one wavelength: 589 nanometers. Pure yellow. No red, no blue, no green. Everything becomes shades of yellow and black.
The technology was developed by Philips in Eindhoven in 1931. A year later, the world's first sodium street lighting was installed between Beek and Geleen in South Limburg. Then everywhere: motorways, industrial zones, cities across Europe.
In 2019, Philips ceased production for good. Global stock dwindles every year.
Lay them on the floor or lean them against a wall. Black out the room, plug in, done.
€225 for the first day, each extra day €75. Weekly rate: €500. VAT included.
Collect and return at the same address in Amsterdam-Oost (near Carré). Fixtures weigh 9.5 kg each; a car is required. Deposit: €200.
How big a room can I light?
A room of 30–40 m² is fully transformed. Larger spaces work too, especially if you position the lamps strategically. In very large halls you can create zones.
How do I set them up?
Plug them in, done. Lay them on the floor or lean them against a wall. Black out the space as much as possible — the less other light, the stronger the effect. They reach full intensity after 10–15 minutes.
Can I use them outdoors?
Yes. The fixtures were designed as street lights and are waterproof (IP65). Protect the plug connections in rain.
Can I rent fewer than four?
The set is rented as a whole, no individual lamps.
Do you deliver?
Unfortunately not. Collection and return at our address in Amsterdam-Oost (near Carré).
Interested? Send a message.
Or email directly at darkpatternssox@gmail.com