In a dark hall at the Spazio Krizia the exhibition ‘A Dozen Red Things and A Lot of Green’ displays Maurer’s latest creations.
On using LEDs.
Well, I must say I was the one – and I really want to emphasise this – I was the one who did, in ’98, the first product of LED for the home. And the people forget [that]. Everybody is in LED and LED is awful but it’s a matter of how you use it and what kind you are using.
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On traditional light sources vs. LED.
I think we shouldn’t just say this is the only way to go. I am for a very diverse world and different smells, colours, characters. I like to live…and we live in a rich world of different impressions. This is what I like.
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On the current state of contemporary lighting design.
I think that the way things go now is strictly functional, [leaving] emotion out. Light is something like has a spirit although it’s artificial. Light is very close to religion if you want to, not religion as in [Christianity, etc.], but really, [in] the adoration of our universe [and so] we must react to it in a better way. There are great things done but it’s not conscious enough yet…function…business…another product and not regarding mankind – the human being – enough.
On ‘LED Candle’
This light is a work of a friend of mine, Moritz Waldemeyer. We always wanted to work together and he had this idea of a flame. This is a prototype of course. And then you see, we will do chandeliers, big variations. It’s a new development in LEDs. It’s a mad thing to do and an enormous investment but you have to do new things to go into new dimensions.
![](https://cdn.habitusliving.com/wp-content/uploads/ingo_maurer_3.jpg)
On ‘LED Wallpaper’ (produced by Architects Paper)
This is wallpaper, which you can dim on and off…set on a program. We can do it with different colours. We can have it colourful or very minimal. I think it’s a very nice, elegant solution.
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On ‘Zak Zarak’
This is a completely new technique and it creates a new aesthetic. It is a magnet-based desk light. It doesn’t have springs or conventional [mechanisms]. [The magnet] holds [the light] together and you [can] put it in different positions. It’s not [static]. A guy who works with us – Lutz Pankow – had this idea. I thought it was brilliant and we decided to do it.
![](https://cdn.habitusliving.com/wp-content/uploads/ingo_maurer_7.jpg)
On the green wall installation.
This started last year. We had a job for an 8-metre-high dining room, which used to be a catholic chapel. We had the problem of sound so I thought of sponges. These are natural sponges, but cultivated. It’s really quite stable. We gave it this colour. We needed insects so we found this guy – Graham Owen – the master of insects. He’s magnificent. We had a very good collaboration. This is going to a very wonderful new modern house in Switzerland. Each one we create is different. I’m looking forward to the next one. It takes weeks [to make].
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On ‘J. B. Schmetterling’
There’s this song by Marlene Dietrich [with the lines] ”…when the moths and insects come too close and they burn, it’s not my fault…” This is what [the lamp] wanted to say. [It’s] one of a kind.
![](https://cdn.habitusliving.com/wp-content/uploads/ingo_maurer_9.jpg)
Ingo Maurer