The light bulb has long been a symbol for the idea. So it makes all the sense in the world that Jeong-Sun Park would choose the emblematic light bulb to encapsulate his interest in the butterfly effect. For those of you in need of a refresher course, the butterfly effect is shorthand for a certain strata of chaos theory-that which deals with sensitive dependence on initial conditions. In other words, small changes now may produce large variations down the road. [via Yanko Design]

A Knobby Light. Designed by Jeong-Sun Park.

By reincarnating the light bulb as a door knob, Jeong-Sun Park may be trying to change our domestic behavior. Perhaps we may come to associate opening doors with illuminating the way-it’s all very deep and symbolic. On a simpler level, Park’s Knob Light is simply killing two birds with one stone: it allows us to see our way as we make our way. That the shape of the Knob Light allows for a comfortable grip may also say something about coming to grips with ideas.

Ultimately, the effect of the Knob Light is to make us question the role of design. If design is simply art that fulfills a function, then what is the nature of a design that fulfills two functions? Does the superfluous function relegate it back to the realm of art? It’s the concept behind Knob Light that makes it such a clever product: it allows us see the light as we cross the threshold. If this post has seemed like a Confucian confusion, blame it on Jeong-Sun Park, who materialized the metaphorical in his Knob Light.