I opted to break with family tradition and ended up taking a detour, to study industrial design at Aarhus School of Architecture in 1995. My craft skills made me a decent model builder, and two years before I graduated, I became a freelance model builder at design studio Designit. I fitted in well at Designit, which was made up of graduate designers in the same age bracket from the same school. There’s no doubt that those 10 years I subse- quently spent at Designit had a great impact on the designer I am today. What characterises good lighting design? In addition to providing effective light, it must also be suitable for use in widely differing settings. You don’t know the location and context in ad- vance. Therefore a light should be designed to fit countless different settings. This is achieved by ensuring the product is well-proportioned with no unnecessary details. When it’s pleasing to the eye, without any ele- ments that are too flashy or ostentatious, then the design will stand the test of time. What inspires you? What do you see as future influences on design? Good craftsmanship and simple solutions. The Bauhaus school and functionalism have always fascinated me. Their approach to design and ar- chitecture were revolutionary in their day, and their buildings and designs endure to this day. There is quite simply nothing better to me than when form and function converge – when the two things blend so seamlessly that you can’t distinguish where one starts and the other one ends. We constantly strive for this at VE2, no mat- ter what product we are designing. Our process is uncompromising when it comes to eliminating unnecessary details. Sustainability and a circular economy are two of the main challenges that are having an ever greater impact on our work as designers. At VE2 we have been designing with sustainability in mind for many years now without being fully aware of it. Our quest for simple, functional and durable design ties in well with the “power of the inner circle”, which is essentially the idea of pro- ducts remaining in their original form and in use for their original function for as long as possible. That is both sustainable and justifiable in terms of material consumption. 8
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