Ingo Maurer

Buy Ingo Maurer’s designer lamps and prepare to be amazed

Lights from Ingo Maurer break down the boundaries between function and art. They are characterised by a unique elegance – sometimes with a romantic twist, sometimes playful, sometimes futuristic. It’s not just connoisseurs that know the classics Bulb, Zettel’z and Lucellino. And anyone learning about this poet of light and his works for the first time is sure to be amazed. After all, there are wonderfully imaginative and original lamps to be discovered. Throughout his life, Ingo Maurer played with everyday objects such as hearts, hands, cans and glass bottles and turned them into something extraordinary. Order lamps from his design company online at AmbienteDirect!

Ingo Maurer: order lights from this poet of light online

Lights and light installations designed by Ingo Maurer have a style whose message is understood worldwide. Its onomatopoeic names, such as Campari Light, Lucellino, Birdie, Knittering, Tu-Be 1 and Bang Boom Zettel’z take care of the rest. Light is pure adventure and there is always something new to discover! Simply order your favourite Ingo Maurer lamps from us!

From Bulb to Zettel’z – Ingo’s classics

Ingo Maurer designed lights for every living space. Are you looking for a pendant lamp above the dining table? A standing lamp for the office? An extravagant eye-catcher for the living room? No matter which area of your home you need a light for – Ingo Maurer products are truly spectacular. For example, you can discover inflatable lamps, lamps made of Campari bottles, 70s-style lights or futuristic lights in our product range. Buy your favourites from one of this product designer’s many collections. Classics that every fan of the company will know include the following: 

• Zettel’z:
  Ingo Maurer had slips of thin Japanese paper printed with little words of wisdom and sayings. This 1997 work is therefore not just a lamp, but also a design object. Its inspirational design creates an interesting play of light and shadow. A colourful new edition of the Zettel’z lamp was introduced in 2018: Laughing Buddha is decorated with parts of a laughing Buddha statue. In contrast, there is also a special edition featuring an alphabet illustrated by the Italian designer Bruno Munari. 
• Bulb:
  This homage to the incandescent light bulb revolutionised the lamp and lighting sector. In the Bulb light, which was created in 1966, Ingo Maurer put the focus on the incandescent light bulb as a light source. He did without the traditional lamp base and shade. Instead, an oversized, hand-blown glass bulb encloses the lamp. This table lamp became a resounding success that made it into the Museum of Modern Art in New York, where it is part of the permanent design collection.
• Lucellino:
  The winged bulb is a real delight for all design lovers thanks to its sense of romance. At the same time, it is bold and playful. It almost seems as if it wants to tear free from the cable and fly out into the world. Whether as a wall or table lamp – you can buy the Lucellino at AmbienteDirect.

Get to know this light artist and his work

He was a poet of light who knew how to make lights into subtle lighting objects: Ingo Maurer was a trained graphic designer and came to product design mainly out of necessity. As the breadwinner of his family, the Munich-based Ingo Maurer designed his first lamp: the Bulb. That was in 1966 and marked the beginning of his success story. This was followed by even more lamps. On a trip to Japan, Ingo Maurer was inspired by the fine rice paper and bamboo fans and created distinctive lamps from them. He then used this newly discovered material for other projects, such as the Knitterling and Maru ceiling and pendant lamps. But the lamp designer also designed more elegant creations: for example the Ringelpiez Suspension models with futuristic-looking LED rings that can be used either as uplights or downlights.

Homage to the light bulb

As a big fan of the classic carbon filament incandescent light bulb, Ingo Maurer used it at the heart of many of his designs. Whether the Bulb or later the Lucellino table lamp, his lights often seem to pay homage to the classic form. To mark the 100th birthday of its inventor Thomas Alva Edison, Ingo Maurer created the fascinating “Wo bist du, Edison?” pendant light, which displays the hologram of a virtual light bulb on its screen.

Modern lighting techniques and artistic light installations

Ingo Maurer’s love of the tried-and-tested incandescent light bulb did not prevent him from looking into more modern light sources and lighting technologies and using them for his lights. He created the minimalist standing lamp Ilios back in 1983, when low-voltage technology was still in its infancy. One year later, this was followed by the YaYaHo low-voltage lighting system, which enjoyed surprising success worldwide and gave the company Ingo Maurer GmbH a major boost. He also adapted and developed LED technology early on. Ingo Maurer was experimenting with this new technology as early as 1999 and, in addition to functional lights, he designed the most unusual lighting objects such as luminous rugs and even wallpaper. Over time, Ingo Maurer’s work took an increasingly artistic turn, and his lights seemed to start taking on a life of their own. We stock a variety of Ingo Maurer lights, for example enchanting models featuring mirrors, holograms or little wings! The designer has also become known for his Touch-Tronic transformer, which dims lights or switches them on and off when touched.

Lighting design for public and private spaces

In addition to the home, Ingo Maurer has also conquered public spaces with his light installations. The company has illuminated underground stations, theatres, public places and shops. Here is just an example of the many other projects worth mentioning: 

• 1998: Westfriedhof underground station in Munich 
• 1999: Lighting and design concept for the shop and showroom of Japanese fashion designer Issey Miyake 
• 2000: Light planning and design of the skylights in the Hamburger Hof shopping arcade 
• 2004: Unicef Crystal Snowflake in New York
• 2005: Kruisherenhotel in Maastricht
• 2006: Light planning in the Brussels Atomium
• 2010: Light planning and custom-made products in a private house in New York
• 2013: “Broken Egg” in the Brazilian art park Inhotim 
• 2013: Pendulum for the London Edition Hotel
• 2018: Installation for the Luminale in Frankfurt
• 2019: Installation at Torre Velasca in Milan as part of the “Urban Up” project
• 2019: Interior design in Tsinandali Estate Hotel, Georgia

Artistic identity

Ingo Maurer stands for extravagant lighting and, throughout his life, reinvented modern lighting design again and again. The pieces are produced within his own company, Ingo Maurer GmbH, which now has over 60 employees. Perhaps this is one of the keys to its success. Compromise was never an option in his lamps, which are available to buy online at AmbienteDirect. Instead, he designed and produced exactly what he had in mind. His artistic identity can therefore be seen, felt and enjoyed in each of his pieces. Ingo Maurer was creative, innovative and had a clear vision: to advance lighting technology and create design highlights in the process. In the 1980s it was low-voltage lights, in the 1990s it was LED technology, and for some time now it has been OLED technology. We are curious to see how his company will continue this vision in the future.

A great creative legacy

On 21 October 2019, Ingo Maurer passed away surrounded by his family. He was 87 years old. For over 50 years he designed lights that will not only light up a room, but also the faces of those in it. He leaves behind a great legacy to the international design world. We will remember him as a poet of light, a free spirit and a passionate designer.

Where can you admire his products?

Lamps designed by Ingo Maurer are truly fascinating. They shine in so many different ways – including with their artistic personality, which is sure to fill your rooms. If you would like to see them in person, it is best to visit the showroom in Munich. Spread over 700 square metres, the artistic portfolio of Ingo Maurer is there for you to see: lights, exclusive unique pieces and prototypes.

His lamps have also made it into the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York. There have been several exhibitions there over the years, where visitors could view his designs and ideas. The classic Bulb even made it into the permanent exhibition.

But what if you don’t want to travel to Munich or New York just to see Ingo Maurer lights, but just want to decorate your home with them? Then AmbienteDirect is the place for you. Find and buy your favourites from the large selection in our online shop! Take a look around, be inspired, choose a model that you like and order it. It really is that quick, straightforward and convenient to buy your new designer piece!

Tip: if you’re interested in a particular model, but can’t find it in the range, get in touch with us! Our customer service team will be happy to help!