Solenne collection by Kauppi & Kauppi for Ifö Electric

The art of pressing porcelain takes time and great dedication to master, behind every new component lies hard work and great care!

We are more than happy and honored for this new design collaboration with Scandinavia’s only press porcelain producer Ifö Electric – who produces durable lighting, while maintaining and modernizing a unique manufacturing tradition in Sweden since 1934.

Solenne by Ifö Electric 2023 is a voluminous lighting collection designed by Kauppi & Kauppi, including a total of seven new lighting fixtures. All with generous matte opal glass shades and black or white glazed porcelain bases. Four of the fixtures follows the company´s traditional range for ceiling, wall, and facade with IP44 ratings suitable for both indoor and outdoor installations. The collection also includes three more novel types of lighting fixtures, taking the pressed porcelain to new indoor contexts. Solenne includes a grand pendant with a corresponding porcelain ceiling cup, a new table lamp with a wooden base, and Ifö Electric’s very first floor lamp. The lighting technology in the collection is adapted for both home and public interiors, and the fixtures are equipped with new LED modules prepared for Smart Lighting technology, as well as classic E27 fittings.

Solenne is the company´s biggest launch ever – in several aspects. Ifö Electric have never before pressed porcelain components in such large dimensions, and the new generous opal glass shades will be the largest in the lighting assortment to date. The largest lighting fixtures in the collection have a base diameter of 220 mm. To make it possible to press such large parts for Solenne, the company needed to restore and revive a stronger hydraulic press from the early 1950s. A press that was designed during the construction of the factory but ceased to be used sometime during the 1970s. After “being asleep” for almost four decades, the mighty machine with a press capacity of up to 75 tons has been put back to work. The renovation was a great challenge for the toolmakers, the engineers, and the production team, who have used their joint skills to preserve and modernize a unique manufacturing tradition.

“Our first collaboration with Ifö Electric resulted in the Ohm collection in 2019, inspired by the insulators and connection boxes produced in the factory in the early 1900s. With Solenne, we continue to work with the rounded silhouettes, but on a much larger scale. The design includes lighting fixtures for traditional placements, as well as fixture types new to the company´s range. We believe that the unique quality of pressed porcelain deserves to be showcased and present. The material is resistant and unaffected by weather, wind, water or strong sunlight – and incredibly beautiful! The large, glazed surfaces of the new pendant bring out the very best of the material and reflect both the light, as well as our fascination with the glazed pressed porcelain. The friendly soft curves of the opal glass shades are not only aesthetics, but about diffusing light in a good way. Solenne is a functional luminaire collection that spreads pleasant light without sharp contrasts or strong shadows, and a tribute to Ifö Electric´s unique production and tradition”.
‒ Kauppi & Kauppi.