Lights are the most demanding of fittings. Although an important element in any architecture as well as objects of interior design itself, lights are also subjected to great demands on their physical appearance and atmospheric lighting effect. To this end, Belux places just as much importance on the formal appearance of its lights as on the lighting quality and the atmospheric effect and knows how best to use light as a basic element of interior design.
The Swiss company was set up in 1970 by Thomas Egloff. His desire for continuing development of innovative lighting solutions and new types of lighting concepts resulted in close collaboration with internationally famous designers and architects. From the very outset, Belux was prepared to take the risks associated with experimental innovations. The collaboration with the Swiss designer Hannes Wettstein, who has long been a leading light in interior design, has been trail-blazing to the present day. A major breakthrough came in 1982 with the joint development of Metro, the first low-voltage cable-track lighting system in the world. These tensioned cables with small luminaires were soon to be found in countless private houses, restaurants and hotels and attracted many imitators. In the same year Belux took over the licence to produce extravagant furniture and objects of the well-regarded Italian designer group Memphis, including designs from Ettore Sottsass and Michele de Lucchi. The international design competition for lamps organised by Belux in 1984 was another innovation in product development. The jury whose prominent members included Achille Castiglioni as well as Trix and Robert Haussmann adjudicated more than 400 designs from young designers.
As a result, the TUBO lamps from Jo Niemeyer and LIFTO from Benjamin Thut were put into mass production. In 1982 Belux's "Privates Licht", a travelling exhibition of lamp designs from Michele de Lucchi, Danny Lane, Matteo Thun and Ron Arad, among others, attracted worldwide recognition. In 1996, Belux brought the variable lamp UPDOWN onto the market, a genial design from Reto Schöpfer, and this established the energy-saving fluorescent lamp in the private residential market. METER BY METER, with its light which can be tailored to individual requirements, also set new standards.
Belux is currently creating a stir in the light market with designers such as Frank Gehry, Herzog & De Meuron, Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec as well as Hella Jongerius. As ever, Belux stands for conceptually mature, technically sophisticated and durable quality products and keeps in the public eye by introducing new materials and technologies. For over thirty years, Thomas Egloff has built the company into an internationally recognised manufacturer of high-quality designer lamps. In 2001 he found the ideal partner for the future in Vitra. This not only ensured the continued existence of the successful company culture but this internationally well-known furniture manufacture also opened up access to new markets, production methods and not least to a network of some of the most important designers of our time.
