Light au Lait

Numerous innovative products are on show in the “Trendspot Design” in Hall 1 of the Light + Building in Frankfurt. We checked out some of the highlights from all categories specially at the booths.

The Euroluce and the events accompanying it in Milan showed how light and luminaire makers are tackling the challenges of the electronic age: with a specific mixture in each case of tradition, technology, and private equity investors.

Small firms alongside large corporations, tiny components and immense spotlights for buildings: The manufacturers at Light+Building certainly extended our sense of dimensions. Which has resulted in records this year.

You needed an eagle’s eye to spot all the new developments at this year’s Light+Building. After the LED revolution, all the detailed and highly exciting adjustments and innovations are now coming into play. We’ve summarized the important ones for you.

In Vilnius a collector of antique books built his family home round the historical walls of a cannon foundry.

The end of the traditional light bulb clobbered the luminaire industry, which is slowly recovering. At the Euroluce in Milan the clear trend was an effort to harmonize design and technology again.

You were able to admire light in virtually any possible form and appearance at the Light+Building trade fair in Frankfurt. And in particular the LEDs offered in all conceivable variations caused a sensation this year. Yet, many designers still have difficulties with the Copernican Revolution in favor of these tiny lights.

Will the Munich underground soon become a popular attraction for architecture- and design enthusiasts? Local lighting designer Ingo Maurer has already illuminated and designed three underground stations in the Bavarian capital. More recently the "Münchner Freiheit" station re-opened.

In Munich, at an exhibition entitled "Architekturchen" Ingo Maurer is presenting surprising works by Italian design star Michele de Lucchi. They show how working with wood can trigger new thought processes and inspire new ideas.

The era of the energy-saving lamp has begun. But is it even ready for its new tasks? - Many have in recent months warned about the health risks, even environmental associations are sceptical whether the energy savings are great and as regards disposal of the lamp as waste. And with reference to its design, it is not just a matter of taste, but also of drastic consequences for everyday culture and design.