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What is the name of the art form where a translucent material (could be cylindrical) is carved on the inside and lit from within so the image is rendered in brightness determined by how thick the remaining material is?

jimw
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    Do you have an image of an example? – Catija Dec 07 '16 at 11:41
  • You can read on some guidelines and suggestions for these types of questions here on Meta – Matt Dec 07 '16 at 14:36
  • Like this? http://img-cdn.jg.jugem.jp/706/2363597/20120521_531643.jpg –  Dec 07 '16 at 14:59
  • @CreationEdge You think he is describing glass carving? – Matt Dec 07 '16 at 15:07
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    Sounds sort of like those fancy Halloween pumpkin carvings that don't carve all the way through the pumpkin flesh. – Catija Dec 07 '16 at 21:22
  • Actually @CreationEdge the first thing I though of was those himalayan salt lamps but I don't know if they're ever carved very intricately. – Catija Dec 07 '16 at 21:30
  • Sorry, no images except the mental one of an instance I saw at the Madison hackerspace a year ago. That one might have been 3D printed. – jimw Dec 07 '16 at 23:37
  • The carved and/or edge lit owl image is not what I mean. The pumpkin reference from @Catija is the right stuff. I guess I should send a note to the hackerspace - thanks for that inspiration! – jimw Dec 07 '16 at 23:44

1 Answers1

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With thanks to Chris Meyer from Sector67:

It's lithophane.

Sorry I wasn't clever enough to check with the source in the first place, but thanks for asking the question that triggered that!

Stephie
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jimw
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  • I'm glad you found this -- I have a lithophane sitting on my shelf at home, but couldn't remember what it's called, and googling was getting me nowhere. Well done. – Erica Dec 08 '16 at 12:22
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    Thanks. I was also pretty surprised that googling such a narrow, specific topic with the best words I could throw at it didn't turn up an answer. Glad to throw a little light on (behind?) this one. – jimw Dec 08 '16 at 13:41
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    FYI, you can mark your own answer as the correct one by clicking the checkmark :) – user812786 Dec 08 '16 at 16:39