Biography of Ingo Maurer

"The quality of light is more important to me than the form and so I concentrated on that," says Ingo Maurer , commenting on his work as one of the most important lighting designers of the 20th century.Designer of the 20th century. His lighting designs are preceded by the iconic luminaire "Bulb", which was created in 1966 by a twist of fate and which has accompanied Ingo Maurer throughout its life: "The light bulb has always been my leitmotif, right from the start." Maurer's designs are diverse and are sometimes created in symbiotic cooperation with other designers, such as in 2012 with Moritz Waldemeyer for the LED luminaire with the telling name "My New Flame".

Ingo Maurer was born on May 12, 1932, the son of a fisherman and inventor on the German island of Reichenau on Lake Constance. Together with four siblings, he grew up here, free and close to nature, before Mauerer trained as a typographer in nearby Constance. From 1954 to 1958, Mauerer studied graphic design in Munich. Two years later, he took the opportunity to gain professional experience as a graphic designer in the United States - in New York and San Francisco - until 1963. Back in Germany, Maurer founded "Design M" in 1966, a company for industrial design, under which his own lighting designs were developed, manufactured and marketed until they were ready for production. "Bulb", an oversized light bulb, was one of his first designs in 1966 and was immediately included in the permanent design collection of Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York in 1969.

Love at first sight

The story behind the creation of "Bulb" table- and floor lamp is as simple as it is ingenious. Maurer explains that he was in Venice on business and returned to his simple hostel with a bottle of red wine after a wonderful meal. There, a 'naked' light bulb illuminated his room. "It was like a coup de foudre ('love at first sight')!" recalls Maurer. Still cheeky, he drew a lamp and the next day looked for a manufacturer on Murano, who produced an initial design for the glass within a day and a half. Back in Munich, a pressed metal base was added to the glass. "The Bulb was born!"

Tears of the fisherman

But it doesn't always happen as quickly from the initial idea to the finished object as it does with "Bulb". "With some ideas I'm 'pregnant' for a long time." For example, the "Lacrime del Pescatore". The charismatic light object, which consists of three nylon nets, hundreds of crystals and a spotlight, is probably his most protracted design. "I carried this idea around with me for decades before I realized it," says Maurer. Certainly also because the story behind this light object is linked to Maurer's childhood. So "Lacrime del Pescatore" - the "Tears of the Fisherman" is a tribute to the fishing village on Lake Constance where Ingo Maurer grew up.

New name and fan lights

Around the same time that "Design M" ceased trading and "Ingo Maurer Lighting GmbH" started up in Munich, in 1973, Maurer's "Uchiwa" fan lights came into fashion. The fans for the lights are made by Shigeki-San, a great master of fan production, in a traditional fan factory using traditional production methods in Japan.

Groundbreaking lighting system

The "YaYaHo" low-voltage lighting system followed in 1984. It consists of two horizontal metal wires and freely movable lighting elements with halogen lamps that can be individually arranged and aligned. This idea also took several years to mature until it was ready for series production. It was created during Maurer's New Year's Eve stay in Haiti. On New Year's morning, the lighting designer is said to have spotted an oversized light bulb in a small square that was soldered directly to the cable. Maurer took the idea back to his New York studio. For an initial visualization, Maurer and his team began to stretch cords. The pioneering "YaYaHo" lighting system became a model for many imitators.

One from the Heart

In 1989, Ingo Maurer designs the table lamp "One From The Heart" as a wedding gift for friends. The light object was so well received that it was eventually developed to series maturity and is still an integral part of the Ingo Maurer collection today. Other prominent designs by Ingo Maurer include: the stork legs "Bibibibi" (1982) made of red plastic, the pair of wings "Lucellino" (1992), the pendant lights "Porca Miseria!" (1994) and "Zettel'z 5" (1997) as well as Alizz T. Cooper (2008). Since the early 1980s, Maurer has cooperated with a group of developers who support him in the realization of his ideas.

Light should float!

In the year before the turn of the millennium, Maurer opened his first Showroom in New York, followed by a second, larger Showroom in Munich in 2009, which was also used for exhibitions. In addition to his own showrooms, Ingo Maurer's trade fair stands, which can be described more as installations, at the 'Euroluce' in Milan, Italy or the 'Light and Building' in Frankfurt, Germany, are legendary. In addition to the strong formal language of his lighting objects, Maurer works with their special (light) effect on people. Most people have lights in their own homes lights that are mounted directly on the ceiling or just below it. Not for Ingo Maurer. His conviction: Light should float!

International light installations

In 1990, Ingo Maurer began to develop light installations for public and private clients in addition to lights . In this context, his vaulted light objects in the Westfriedhof subway station in Munich from 1998 deserve special mention. One year later, Maurer designed a light installation for the fashion designer Issey Miyake for his fashion show in Paris and developed a light object for the Showroom in London. Light installations and light objects for the interior of the Atomium in Brussels were on Maurer's design agenda in 2006. For Bodegas Vega Sicilia in the Ribera del Duero wine region in Spain, Maurer developed a tree made of Corten steel in 2013 that is around eight meters high and six meters wide. "The Tree", as Maurer calls it, towers over the vines like a protector and can be seen from afar. Ingo Maurer also works internationally in the hotel sector: "Flying Discs" for the hotel lobby and hotel bar of the Unique Hotel in Sao Paulo / Brazil in 2016, the so-called "Golden Ribbon" for the lobby of the Seamarq Hotel in Gangneung, South Korea in 2015 and "Pendulum", an almost two-meter-long, highly polished pendulum for the luxury hotel "The London Edition" in London, England.

Subway lighting and color concepts

His subway lighting concept met with such enthusiasm and popularity in Munich that Maurer developed another lighting and color concept for the Münchner Freiheit subway station from 2008 to 2009. This was followed by lighting solutions for the following stations: Moosfeld (1999), Marienplatz (2015), Sendlinger Tor (2022), all in Munich, as well as seven stations on the Karlsruhe light rail in 2021. His other projects in Munich: Light installation within the store design for Sporthaus Schuster (2018) and lighting concept for the Munich Residenztheater with Silver Cloud light installation in the winter garden and red LED signs (2019). The list of custom-made products and unique pieces for private clients and public buildings - both nationally and internationally - is long. It starts with lighting solutions for the Radisson Collection Hotel in Tsinandali, Georgia and does not end with the "Flying to Peace Pendulum" for the Frankfurt Trade Fair, Germany (both in 2018).

International exhibitions

Ingo Maurer's designs and objects have been shown in many exhibitions, including solo exhibitions: "Ingo Maurer: Working with Light" at the Villa Stuck, Munich (1992), "Licht licht" at the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam (1993), "Ephemeral visionary "Ingo Maurer.Light" at the Museum für Angewandte Kunst in Frankfurt, the travelling exhibition "Ingo Maurer: Light - Reaching the Moon" organized by the Vitra Design Museum in Europe and Japan (2002). The Neue Sammlung - Museum für Gestaltung opened a mono exhibition with more than 80 objects by the lighting designer on 15.11.2019. Ingo Maurer was no longer able to open the exhibition himself. He passed away before the exhibition opened on October 21, 2019 in Munich.

"Curiosity and the joy of new things are not dependent on age" is Ingo Maurer's credo, which is also evident in his designs. This is probably why his design objects are so unique and absolutely timeless.

TAGWERC offers you the entire Ingo Mauer collection. Online, at TAGWERC Design STORE, you can experience a curated selection of Ingo Maurer design objects. For all Ingo Maurer objects from the Ingo Maurer collection not listed here, we will be happy to make you an individual offer.