Horizon Black objects are precision engineered, collectible artworks that absorb almost all light within the visible spectrum, placing them amongst the darkest things in the known Universe. 

Thanks to an amazing community of 1000’s of backers, we’ve been able to share three major iterations of superblack objects, each more impressive than the last.

We’re now ready to launch a series of even darker objects, with new display cases & new sizes too! They’re significantly blacker than all superblack paints and absorb >99.9% of light in the visible spectrum. 

Crucially, they feature improved shallow angle performance making them appear darker when viewed from any angle. The chart below shows just how much darker our new objects are (in terms of relative blackness) when compared with previous versions and pigments you might find at home.

We’ve also been working to make our superblack objects more accessible. To that end, we’ve developed new production processes which have enabled us to reduce the cost of our larger pieces by up to 50%.

If you’d like to experience one of the darkest objects in the universe for yourself, we’ve created a range of superblack rewards to satisfy your curiosity and thank you for supporting our work. 

•  Amaze your friends with one the darkest objects in the known universe. 
•  Satisfy your curiosity & experience the magic of near 100% light absorption. 
•  Support the continued development of new & exciting materials for artists & creators.
•  Join a community of 1500+ backers who’ve already experienced our superblack objects.

Our superblack objects feature nanoscale arrays which are grown on specially etched aluminium substrates using a chemical deposition process. The shape and arrangement of molecules within these arrays allow them to trap the vast majority of incoming photons and then radiate that energy out in the form of heat.

Our display cases feature transparent, removable lids which are secured by four magnets. On removing the lid for the first time, you’ll find the black area recessed into the back of the case and covered by a shiny protective membrane. You’ll need to remove this membrane by attaching a small piece of tape to it, pulling it gently away from the surface and revealing the magic beneath. 

The Horizon Void (without display case) is a 200x200mm cuttable, adhesive backed square of superblack aluminium. If you like to get creative then this is a reward designed specifically for you. 

Last year, a watchmaker used one to create a series of ultra-dark watch dials, a private collector created display cases for fine mineral specimens and professional photographers used them as stunningly black macro backdrops. The range of applications are limited only by your imagination & we’d love to hear what you’d like to do with them!

Far from being a colour, black is actually the complete absence of colour. Quite simply, it is the void created by the absence of perceptible light. 

This is one of the reasons that so much of the night sky appears to be black. Either light hasn’t reached us from an object (like a star) in that space, there was never anything shining there to begin with, or the light was red-shifted out of the visible spectrum because an object in that space was moving away from us. 

As far as we know, there is only one type of place in the entire Universe that is truly dark and that is inside black holes. Black holes are regions of space where matter has collapsed completely in on itself and an incomprehensible amount of mass is concentrated in an incredibly small area. The gravitational pull of these regions is so great that nothing can escape – not even light. Some black holes contain masses on the order of thousands to billions of times the mass of our sun & one such black hole exists at the centre of our very own galaxy.

“It is said that fact is sometimes stranger than fiction, and nowhere is this more true than in the case of black holes. Black holes are stranger than anything dreamt up by science fiction writers.” – Stephen W. Hawking.

The equation above was discovered by Steven Hawking & Sir Roger Penrose, who, expanding on Einstein’s theory of general relativity, defined the theoretical structure of black holes, it describes our current understanding of black holes and the different elements they comprise of. It proves that at the very centre of these phenomena, there are points (called singularities) in which all physical laws cease to operate. These singularities are surrounded by spherical boundaries called “event horizons”, beyond which nothing, not even light, can escape. 

Whilst we can’t and shouldn’t create a gravitational black hole here on Earth, we’ve never been closer to simulating the experience of staring into one than we are with Horizon Black.

Beginning with the Singularity series (V1, V2 and V3) and now culminating with Horizon Black, we took up two major challenges: 

1) To create the blackest black objects in the world. 

2) To make them affordable to own.

Thanks to the Kickstarter community, we’ve come an incredibly long way towards reaching these goals. Our Horizon Black prototypes are the darkest objects we’ve ever created and our larger pieces are up to 50% cheaper than previous generations. 

By backing this project you’ll be enabling us to get the lab time we need to create & deliver your rewards, to continue development of our 3D objects and to test out and expand the range of use cases for the technology.

Ultimately, we’d like to see a world that is visually richer than the one we experience now. Where the black we experience in our daily lives, including the artwork we see and the objects we touch, is really, genuinely black.

Retaining the amazing light absorbing capabilities of your Horizon Black objects depends upon keeping a nanoscale, forest-like surface intact. This surface is reasonably fragile so we advise against touching it or attempting to remove it from the display case. Following these simple guidelines will keep your objects looking great:

DO NOT touch or wipe the black area.

DO NOT clean the black area with water or any other liquid. 

DO NOT blow on the black area to remove dust. 

DO NOT clean the display case with wipes that contain alcohol. 

The best way to remove dust from your Horizon Black object is to waft something dry near the surface or spray it with canned dry air from a distance of 20cm. 

We recommend that you store your Horizon Black object out of direct sunlight and with the lid on when not in use, this will help prevent dust collecting on the surface & keep your piece looking disturbingly black for years to come. 

Risks & Challenges

This is the fourth project our growing team has launched on Kickstarter and to date we’ve delivered all rewards on time to thousands of backers. We expect to deliver on time once again and you can anticipate regular progress updates, transparent communication and helpful support through to delivery & beyond. We’ve already created 100 prototype rewards & we’ve sent many of these to former backers to get their feedback & input prior to launch. The feedback we received has been great and the final pieces we ship will be made by the same team, in the same lab, in the same way.