The commission
Each shade is hollow-turned on the lathe from a single maple blank down to a wall thickness of roughly an eighth of an inch — thin enough that the bulb's warm light passes through the wood itself and picks out the grain pattern, rather than relying on cut openings for light to escape. Hard maple's tight, even grain was chosen specifically because it turns cleanly at that thinness without tear-out, which a coarser-grained species would risk.
Brass fittings are left unlacquered on purpose, so they develop a natural patina alongside the restaurant’s other hardware over time.