News from Wästberg @ Stockholm Furniture Fair 2008

Man appeared.
Man felt comfortable and safe around light sources he could control.
Man felt comfortable and safe for 300,000 years.

Man began to over-illuminate rooms and halls.
General lighting was calibrated for the areas that needed the most light.
Far too many areas received far too much light.
Man felt dazzled and irradiated.
Man no longer felt comfortable or safe.

One of the people affected (a Swede) started reasoning to himself.
What would happen if you softened general lighting,
and used direct lighting where needed instead? A more functional,
more economic, more energy efficient, more flexible and more
aesthetic lighting solution would ensue.
But entirely new demands were made of the new direct lighting.

Man started to experiment.
Man got scent.
Wästberg appeared.

Claesson Koivisto Rune w08

A task lamp is a highly technical object. Rotation mechanism, arm reach, counter balance, degree of efficiency, safety… It must all be there. How to use it must be self-explanatory to anyone. Hiding all the mechanics and electronics left a no-nonsense design. This lamp almost designed itself. Arm, elbow, head. And light.

Design Claesson Koivisto Rune

Irvine w08

The theme of the task lamp is one of those design projects which always has to measure itself with great masterpieces from the past. Hundreds have been invented over the years. Some of them so brilliant that they are hard to beat. They are full of springs and knobs and complicated hinges. Sure, you can design another one of these but my feeling is that perhaps there is the space for a simplified mechanism. An object which is calm. It does move, but does not do everything. For me that‘s enough and maybe for some other people too.

Design James Irvine

Massaud w08

It‘s about Light.
It‘s about gravity and non gravity.
It‘s about reduction and competency.
It‘s about simplicity, lightness, effortlessness.
It‘s about synthesis.
It‘s about mood.

Design Jean-Marie Massaud

w08

Materials have hidden messages. These create a powerful link to our emotional psyches and shape our connection to daily life. Our light is a sturdy friend, unpretentious and always there for us. We have chosen honest materials that carry clear messages: iron for its feelings of stability, reliability, trust; wood with its warmth and life, and porcelain for its intimate glow, as well as its tactility. Then we have put these three together for a certain oddness. This is because there is an innate awkwardness in the directional light that we wanted to amplify – rather as with people this is a sympathetic quality not a sin.

Design Ilse Crawford

Images and content courtesy of Wästberg.