Eduard Hermans works as a ceramist, sculptor, painter, and set designer. He was trained at the Gerrit Rietveld Academie in Amsterdam, and his work reveals a preoccupation with geometric shapes and a delight in creating complex sculptural forms.

Herman's Hanukkah lamp, fashioned from a series of joined rectangular ceramic elements, appears at first glance to be an outspreading fanlike sculpture. However, a closer examination reveals a much more complicated form. The artist carefully manipulated each of the elongated rectangular candleholders so that they gradually "step-out" toward the middle of the front and the back, giving the lamp necessary stability.

Although there is no surface patterning, an important component of the lamp is its fine glaze. Hermans chose a muted turquoise blue, and both the color and texture bring a velvety richness and delicacy to this fine piece.