Ellie Walton

Axel Schmid

The Ingo Maurer studio is one of the most renowned lighting brands in the world with a reputation as creators of luminous art, transforming functional light into extraordinary design statements. Six years after the passing of its visionary founder, the company continues to honour his legacy while forging a bold future of its own. In this exclusive interview, darc’s Ellie Walton sits down with Axel Schmid, Head of Design, to discuss his own journey into light, Ingo Maurer, and explore the brand’s unique philosophy.

Axel Schmid’s journey with Ingo Maurer started 30 years ago when he was a student in Stuttgart, Germany. His teacher, Richard Sapper had taken a sabbatical and invited Ingo Maurer to step in and teach. After completing his studies in 1997, Schmid looked for work in the design industry, first applying at the Konstantin Grcic office in Munich where he was unfortunately turned down; however Grcic encouraged Schmid to drop by whenever he was in town. On one such visit, while en-route to a ski trip, Schmid went to see Grcic, and on a whim decided to also visit his old teacher Ingo Maurer at his studio, hoping for advice on how to get a job in design. It was in that moment Maurer offered Schmid a job – and from there his journey in design began. After his ski trip of course!

Initially Schmid viewed lighting design as temporary venture, planning to stay for six months to a year before moving onto other design fields. As a young designer, he had aspirations to explore as much of design as possible - from staircases to planes and more, however, several factors kept Schmid working at Ingo Maurer for two decades.

“First and foremost, it’s the people,” says Schmid. “No matter what job you do, who you work with makes such a difference. The collaborative and passionate environment in the studio fosters a sense of belonging.”

Secondly, his inquisitive and curious hunger has never been left starved at Ingo Maurer, as he credits the variety of work the company takes on as a continuous challenge. While the work is concentrated on lighting, the materials that can be experimented with and the range of designs that can be produced is remarkable.

“In an average day I can go from drawing, model making, clients presentations, to supplier negotiations, and production discussions and it extends beyond traditional design such as interacting with architects and other designers, as well as other manufacturers - making each day different. So, suddenly I had this really colourful day job and there wasn’t a moment I thought - now I’m ready for the next thing, because I never felt like I was repeating myself and getting tired,” says Schmid.

As Maurer grew older, questions about the company’s future began to arise. When Schmid joined in 1998, Maurer was already 66-years-old, an age where people commonly retire in Europe. However, Maurer never intended to step away, continuing his work and unwavering passion for lighting design. As the company evolved, he remained deeply invested and eager to see where it would go. The unique combination of a design studio with its own production – a rarity in the industry – offered a creativity and structural stability that many other workplaces lacked.

Since Ingo Maurer the company was established in 1966 it has grown into one of the most respected and worshipped lighting design companies in the industry and when darc magazine was offered the chance to visit the studio in Munich earlier this year, it was an opportunity we couldn’t say no to. Upon arriving in Munich, it became clear Ingo Maurer’s presence extended far beyond the showroom walls, as everywhere one passed an Ingo Maurer novelty could be spotted - from illuminating airport shops or glowing from apartment windows. More than just a cult following in the design community, Ingo Maurer is clearly a proud part of Munich’s history. Yet, according to his colleagues the man behind the studio’s name was never quite satisfied and was defined by his relentless pursuit of innovation and uniquely open-ended approach to design, always striving to push boundaries and reimagine what was possible – this approach has inevitably trickled down to the rest of the team and become the studio standard when it comes to design.

“He, [Ingo Maurer] was sometimes driven by insecurity, he always wanted to be better than what he had done before and he wanted to achieve more than what some might think he was capable of,” says Schmid. “So, to achieve this he created a space where anything was possible. Maurer didn’t want to create an idea, and we all follow his direction, he wanted everyone’s unique input and take on a completely different journey from that same starting point because people’s unique thoughts, experiences and upbringings will take on different directions and cover a wider field of possibilities.”

One of the latest novelties from the Ingo Maurer studio is the Nalum, a pendant luminaire debuting at Milan Design Week, alongside the Shhh! and Dish Rack wall light. During our visit earlier in the year, darc was given exclusive coverage of Nalum, which features a transparent linear glass tube that serves as a vessel for a second ‘floating’ vertical glass piece, shaped with fluid, undulating contours. Handblown in Italy, the Nalum appears to be entirely sculpted from water and light. Emphasising its maritime connection, tiny surfer figurines ride the waves and rips in the glass, adding a whimsical touch to the piece.

The design was created by Sebastian Hepting, a member of the Ingo Maurer team, who was inspired by the movement of waves and the interplay of light. The name Nalum combines the Hawaiian word for wave Nalu – which also signifies reflection and contemplation - with Lum, evoking illusion of light.

Hepting’s vision stemmed from a fascination with creating a transparent glass luminaire free of visible technical elements. This was achieved by seamlessly integrating the light source, which is subtly achieved by holding it in place by magnets within the outer-glass tube, providing both uplight and downlight. Additionally, the suspension enhances the dynamism, using a single filigree cable running through the luminaire, to direct light precisely. The inner floating glass is also flexible, allowing the user to constantly re-stage the wave shape and the resulting lines of light.

Determining when a project is truly finished remains one of the biggest challenges at Ingo Maurer. Unlike traditional production development, the studio avoids rigid design freezes, preferring to remain open to new possibilities until the very end.

Schmid says: “Often you may find an idea and initially you are very enthusiastic. I’ll stand there in front of the lamp, and my colleague Julian Auch [Designer]  will come over and give a fantastic input, and then another colleague comes over to tinker with the idea and before you know it you are leaving the day thinking ‘wow this is great’ - but then the next day you find yourself completely unsatisfied and starting all over again.”

Suppliers can often introduce unexpected constraints, such as material availability, prompting the team to reconsider and refine their designs rather than completely deviating from the original concept. While this fluid approach could seem inefficient to other lighting brands, it embodies the essence of what Schmid calls the “Ingo Maurer-way”, where innovation is driven by curiosity, adaptability, and an openness to the unexpected.

The initial design process begins from a source, what that source may be ranges but typically starts with the material, whereas lights such as Dish Rack came from an untypical source, in this case an image of a turn-of-the-century kitchen. However, what’s key is that the source of inspiration tends to be something unexpected or unusual. While many would assume that material choices are predetermined, as we’re learning, the company’s approach is far more organic.

Schmid says: “I encourage and count on my colleagues to have an interesting life and experiences, and from that they should stumble upon interesting things. That’s how unusual materials and ideas enter our company because someone started riding motorbikes and was inspired by an engine leak, or took a vacation and found a unique perspective on their environment. So, this is why I emphasise to my team to have an adventurous life, so they can live, they can enjoy and be inspired to create.”

When materials aren’t sourced externally, the team takes a laboratory-approach, rigorously evaluating each option for its compatibility with electricity, transparency, heat resistance, and overall aesthetic. Given the company’s small-scale production, they often rely on simpler materials, making use of handcrafted techniques that would be impractical for mass manufacturing. Thus, the hands-on approach allows them to create pieces that feel distinct and personal, embracing imperfections that set them apart from industrial designs.

One example of this philosophy in action is the use of eggshells in the Reality Lamp, which was kindly gifted to the visiting journalists at the Ingo Maurer event. The idea emerged from a longstanding fascination with eggshell as a material and its shape, as well as its interaction with light and its potential as a housing structure for the embryo. While collaborating with a pigment expert, the team discovered the unique qualities of eggshell as a surface treatment, its delicate texture and subtle translucency made it a fantastic material to use in various projects, including a five-metre-long egg-shaped installation with an eggshell finish for a private client in the Caribbean.

The Reality Lamp takes this concept further by using an actual eggshell, challenging conventional product design. The designer behind the piece, Theo Möller, was drawn to the idea of creating a lamp both fragile and seemingly impractical. Despite the risk of breakage during production, packaging, and even customer handling, the team embarked on the challenge and named the piece Reality to reflect its daring nature and the fact that in reality this lamp is simply an eggshell.

Similar to the way the studio approaches inspiration and material, the team embraces technology into their philosophy too. Rather than simply incorporating new technological advancements for the sake of modernity, the team actively seeks out innovations that redefine lighting functions. For instance, when LED technology advanced to produce high-quality, warm white light, the team questioned the traditional approach to designing lights around light bulbs. Instead, they explored ways to create fixtures that leveraged the directional nature of LEDs, leading to entirely new forms of lighting and experiences.

The studio’s collaborative atmosphere is another defining aspect of its success and has become a sought-after work environment for aspiring designers. With around 40 team members, the company maintains a close working environment. The design department, in particular, operates with a personal and informal approach, allowing fast decision making and fluid creative changes. This unique dynamic became evident when external collaborators observed the team’s process, highlighting how different Ingo Maurer’s work style is from more corporate design studios. When Italian lighting brand Foscarini acquired Ingo Maurer in 2022, the differences between the two big lighting brands were apparent and while the teams have found the dynamic “a strange but refreshing flick between the two”, it appears to be working.

The acquisition followed the death of Ingo Maurer, who passed ownership on to his two daughters. They decided to sell following external guidance and while multiple buyers emerged, it was Foscarini that ultimately became the right choice. There was a deep appreciation there for Maurer’s legacy and desire to preserve the team’s dynamic, one which makes the studio so special.

Rather than seeking to implement sweeping changes, Foscarini took an observational and supportive approach with its focus on understanding how the company had operated over the 50 years and how it functions on a smaller scale. This external perspective provided the Ingo Maurer team with a chance to reflect on their own processes, something they had not actively done before. The collaboration allowed them to identify what was worth preserving and where improvements could be made, ensuring that the company remained a force that challenges rigid tradition.

At the time of writing, Schmid was gearing up for Milan Design Week with his team focusing on a strong presence at the fair with the multiple new novelties making their debut. As for projects, Schmid teased us with some exciting developments in the works, though details remain under wraps, carefully tucked away in a folder - most likely labelled ‘Top Secret’. Meanwhile the company focuses its energy on ensuring the latest innovations are as close to market ready.

“We have to be ready for Milan,” he says. “If someone sees a novelty they’re interested in, and they find out it may be a month or six-weeks until its ready we will most likely lose their interest.”

As the Ingo Maurer team gears up for Milan Design Week, balancing the pressure of debuting new novelties with the ever-evolving creative process, one thing remains constant - light itself. Beyond the logistics of production and presentation, Schmid reflects on the fundamental question that has shaped his career:

“What is light?” he asks. “You can manipulate it with the shell you put around it, but at the same time, it also shapes us. It’s not just brightness or heat – it’s’s time, it’s speed, it’s something that always moves and always changes.”

The question ‘what is light?’ was reinforced during the press trip workshop – where Schmid, along with lighting designer Ulrike Brandi, explored the intricate interplay between the subjective and objective aspects of light, emphasising its profound influence on perception and emotion. They highlighted how light extends beyond mere functionality, shaping spatial experiences and human interactions in significant ways. The workshop provided a hands-on opportunity to experiment with light and shadow, sketching all that we could see from mere candlelight, reinforcing the idea that lighting design is both art and science, deeply connected to human perception and emotion.

While Schmid may have originally thought the world of lighting was nothing more than a stepping stone in his career, the deep rooted fascination for light, which has evolved within him, ties in with his reason for such a long career at Ingo Maurer. The ever-evolving nature of light continues to keep work fresh and engaging with its endlessness. He tells darc: “We cannot let the sun through the door, we can only comprehend and imagine the sun as a sphere.” Reinforcing the idea that light is an expansive, boundless realm that is always offering new discoveries.

To close, Schmid offers his advice for any aspiring creatives and young product designers out there with ambitions to work the Ingo Maurer way: “Work with models from the very beginning,” he instructs. “Focus on solving the technical aspects first - LEDs, wires, batteries - rather than the shape of the lamp, at least in the beginning. Experiment, make samples, and observe daylight and shadows. That’s one key aspect to pay attention to.

“The other is understanding whether you’re interested in production. Designing a lamp isn’t as simple as sculpting a single material into shape. It requires working with multiple components, tinkering, and collaborating with workshops or suppliers. You need to enjoy the process of constructing and assembling different elements to achieve a final result. That’s always part of it - it’s not just about shaping a single piece and calling it done.”

www.ingo-maurer.com

by Ellie Walton