“spiral” Lamp By Ingo Maurer And Design M

Beautiful “Spiral” model lamp typical of the 1960s attributed to the designer Ingo Maurer for Design M, chrome metal base and white opaline glass globe.

Biography

Born in 1932 in Germany, on the island of Reichenau on Lake Constance, Ingo Maurer trained as a graphic designer between 1954 and 1958. He moved to the United States, and for 3 years, worked as an independent designer for Kaiser Aluminum and IBM. In 1966, he returned to Germany and opened Design M in Munich, a company specializing in lighting. The same year, he designed his first light fixture, Bulb, a giant bulb in chrome-plated metal and blown glass, for installation in the Herman Miller showroom. In 1973, Design M became Ingo Maurer Lighting GmbH, which remains today, and employs around sixty people. In 2005, his production possibilities increased and he opened a new production and shipping facility on the outskirts of Munich. What was initially just a simple manufacturing room would later become the brand's only European showroom, after the one in New York. Maurer's passion for the bare light bulb and its inventor, Thomas Edison, would remain throughout his career. His work is largely influenced by Pop Art, which is why some of his designs, such as Bulb Bulb (1980) are decidedly kitsch. In addition to this lighting line, Maurer is responsible for projects such as artistic installations, or even interior lighting designs. His work is included in collections around the world, and is exhibited in numerous museum exhibitions, such as Provoking Magic at the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum in New York, in 2007. Maurer has received several awards and titles, such as that of Chevalier des Arts et des Lettres by the French Ministry of Culture (1986), the Georg Jensen Prize in Copenhagen (2002), and the title of Royal Designer of Industry from the Royal Society of Arts, in London (2005).