Ceramic Fish Combine with Chandeliers in Artistic Arrangement

There’s a certain allure—if not a spellbinding quality—about furnishings that embrace animal motifs. Within this category, designs have emerged such as bars crafted like hippos, lamps that take the shape of crocodiles, chairs inspired by a peacock’s feathers, and in the case of Scabetti, chandeliers shaped like fish.

In 2007, the design studio based in the U.K. introduced its Shoal collection at the London Design Festival. Since its inception, the series has expanded to feature an array of textures, shapes, and atmospheres, yet its core visuals have remained consistent: lighting fixtures surrounded by clusters of sculpted fish. Scabetti’s initial Shoal lights, for example, include hundreds and at times thousands of fish made from fine bone china, their delicate, translucent ceramic forms capturing the light as if they were gliding through water.

In the twenty years following its introduction, Shoal has garnered global recognition, leading Dominic and Frances Bromley, the creators of Scabetti, to craft specially commissioned pieces within the collection. One light fixture designed for a residence in Verbier, Switzerland, weaves over a dining table, with the fish bending alongside each other into a sinuous arrangement. Shoal no8 is similarly ambitious, yet it boasts an even grander scale. Suspended in the Fisketorvet Mall in Copenhagen, this circular artwork is hung in the air, with the fish so densely packed that distinguishing them becomes nearly impossible. The outline evokes memories of true schools of fish, particularly those that move in vast groups, such as sardines, mackerels, and anchovies.

Scabetti has also created Shoal lights with a golden finish. Appropriately named Goldfish, these limited edition pieces emit a softer glow compared to their ceramic counterparts, while the fish themselves radiate a lavish shine. There are even Shoal variations made from glass, where each fish is kiln-formed over the original fish sculpture for the traditional bone china Shoal. Because of their material properties, these glass creations can be rendered in various colors, including red.

In addition to these aquatic pieces, Scabetti has designed chandeliers featuring small human figures, their heads gently inclined toward the light as if rising to a higher state of being. Cibola Shallot draws from the myriad layers of an onion, while Drawn to the Light emulates mobiles from the 1950s.

“Regardless of scale, our aim is to create beautifully thought-out, sometimes whimsical, but always sought-after objects, produced with pride and quality as locally as possible,” the Bromleys state.

For more insights into the Shoal collection, check the Scabetti website.

Since 2007, the U.K.-based design studio Scabetti has crafted Shoal chandeliers, featuring schools of ceramic fish.

Since their introduction nearly twenty years ago, Shoal fixtures are now also offered in glass and gold finishes, each providing unique sensory experiences.

Scabetti: Website | Instagram

*My Modern Met granted permission to showcase photos by Scabetti.*

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