Tinkering around
Back in the day, architectural luminaires made of metal and crafted by hand marked the beginning of serien.lighting’s success story. Today, lighting specialist from Hessen fits out international projects.
by Anna Moldenhauer | 2/7/2020
Under Control
serien.lighting’s luminaires all have one thing in common – the fact that they are easily recognizable. From “POPPY” whose head opens up like a flower to “ZOOM”, a concertina mesh construction which closes to form a circle. The concertina mesh of a wallet was the source of inspiration for the “ZOOM” pendant luminaire, whose diameter can be infinitely adjusted. Practical and self-explanatory – two more characteristics of serien.lighting’s luminaires. Moreover, da Costa and Wolf never lose sight of the user in their creative process, the two always scrutinize all aspects of the handling of their luminaires, right down to the smallest detail. Only when they think their products are ready to go into production is their manufacture farmed out to selected specialist companies. The final assembly and final checks then take place in-house in Rodgau. For serien.lighting, quality control is of the utmost importance. “That is something that we would never entrust to anybody else,” da Costa explains.
Even when collaborating with outside designers such as Benjamin Hopf, Next Space or Yaacov Kaufman, reserving the finishing touch for serien.lighting remains important to both of them. “From the outset, our luminaires must look as if they are built to last,” da Costa says. Remaining constant when times change and the challenges grow is something that serien.lighting has succeeded in for more than 36 years now. Even though the switch in technology from halogen bulbs to LED lamps was not always easy. A large number of their timeless designs were developed around the illuminant, such that comprehensive redesign work has become necessary. “The redesign work and all the new models with LEDs need to achieve the same high degree of perfection that people have come to expect of serien.lighting,” da Costa explains.
Lighting expertise
Uncompromising right down to the smallest detail – an approach that is appreciated not only by end consumers but also and especially by the architects and planners with whom serien.lighting regularly collaborates. The projects for which the two product designers have already modified luminaires or come up with special, customized solutions range from restaurants and hotels to universities and banks, synagogues and museums. In this context, talking the customer’s language and seeing them as their partner is important to da Costa and Wolf. Between the development of the idea and the installation the aim is to promote exchange, thereby setting in motion a creative process which culminates in an individual solution, one that works in the long term. Such as the work lamp “SNAKE” whose slender shape and focused light were designed to ideally suit the requirements of the university library in Freiburg. Its combination of technical minimalism and high-quality means that the lamp will fit in harmoniously with a large number of different environments. By way of example, it has proven very suitable for the Goethe development in Offenbach, the city’s largest new building project, boasting 327 apartments. The project will involve numerous luminaires by serien.lighting – in situations from the stairwells to the bathrooms. “Not decorative objects but functional design which holds its own in everyday life,” Wolf explains. As a matter of course, these durable lighting solutions play a role in sustainability. “Despite all the market pressure, we always develop every product in full. So that it continues to impress, even in the long-term,” clarifies da Costa. For serien.lighting this means simple, well-crafted controls which for all the cutting-edge technology users find easy to operate. Jean-Marc da Costa and Manfred Wolf remain utterly fascinated by light and continue to enjoy tinkering around with new approaches as they light the way into a new decade – something which fits in very well with their slogan “living the light”.
Link to the original article on stylepark.com
Fotos: Joerg Puchmüller, Stylepark
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