IN GOOD LIGHT
Magnus Wästberg believes holistic lighting improves our well being
FMagnus Wästberg, good lighting design goes beyond the mere appearance of the lamp. It takes into account the interplay of light and shadow, as well as the users’ needs—wästberg describes lighting fixtures as modern-day fires that humans should be able to control to create comfortable lighting spheres for specific activities rather than succumb to default ceiling solutions. He started his eponymous Swedish company in 2008 to address this. Much time is invested in each and every piece in the collection, created in collaboration with the best designers of today, the likes of celebrated British architect John Pawson, Oki Sato of Nendo from Japan and French designer
Inga Sempé. Each lamp poetically addresses the relationship between people and light, and is attuned to how aspects such as technology are intertwined with our everyday habits. His ethos is to put human needs in the centre of his work rather than just make beautiful or technically advanced lighting fixtures. Here, he tells us about his career and thoughts on making good lights.
Was your father’s lighting company a huge influence?
Yes, I grew up in the lighting industry but I wouldn’t say it was lighting that intrigued me as a kid. Rather, it was the product-development process and manufacturing activity that interested me. I remember going with my father on our vacations through Europe visiting various production sites and attending meetings with designers, while my mother and sister would go shopping or sightseeing. One year, you would see him and his colleagues drawing and discussing; and the next year, they would have a ready product or prototype.
Did you always want to work in the lighting industry?
I decided at an early age not to work in the family business. It was sold, and then my father started another company. I studied business administration and went on to become a management consultant but very quickly, I understood that this was not the world for me as my biggest interests were architecture, furniture and lighting; so I joined my father with the ambition of starting my own company at some point. Then, 10 years ago, I had what I thought were relevant ideas and started Wästberg.
How do you choose your collaborators?
All my collaborators are people I’ve worked with personally for a long time or whose work I’ve known for a long time. A product normally starts with an idea, a problem we want to solve or improve on, or some kind of potential we want to fulfil. Then I start to think about the people I want to work with on the project—not just the designers, but also lighting engineers, product specialists—in order to create the best possible product that you can from a holistic point of view, not just aesthetic or functional.
After 11 years, the Wästberg portfolio is still quite modest; you’ve mentioned how each product takes a long time to develop.
There is a very clear idea about why we are doing something and for whom we are doing it. Unfortunately, many companies just create versions of something that already exists or is the flavour of the month. Yes, it’s about growth and profit, but also about making the best product and influence in peoples’ lives from a lighting point of view, and that takes time. I’m a romantic in that area.
How do your products stay up to date with advanced technology?
A lamp is becoming like a computer; you can upgrade it and that puts even more complexity into the development of a lamp because if you want a product to have a life cycle of 10 years, the technology that goes into it will probably change three times and that is quite tricky. You can view it as a problem or a great opportunity. The latest refinement we did was the W102 Chipperfield lamp. This year, we are launching new models and materials, but we have also upgraded the lighting solution to be twice as powerful as it was before, although it looks more or less the same from the outside. If you put enough effort into the design of a product, then it makes more sense to keep refining it instead of replacing it. If your design is very good, it will last a long time.
“A PRODUCT NORMALLY STARTS WITH AN IDEA, A PROBLEM WE WANT TO SOLVE OR IMPROVE ON”