Patrick Zulauf finds inspiration in the small things: reading, writing, making music, spending time with his family. “Broaden your horizons,” he says. “Ask around, clear away distractions, question all assumptions. Learn to let go and things come back in a new way.” With that Zen-like philosophy, it’s no surprise that the Swiss lighting designer eschews composition, opting instead for simplicity. This stripped-back approach allows him to “develop products without generating unattainable luxury goods,” he says.
Zulauf’s aesthetic has been honed through years of creating. The son of a father who restored airplanes and a mother who worked on ships as a skipper, he spent his childhood in his dad’s workshop and became fascinated by lighting. He later worked as a design engineer and metal caster in a small village, and as a draftsman at the design studio of Hans Zaugg in Solothurn in northwest Switzerland. “I was creating furniture, luminaires, watches, and pieces for any kind of innovative product development process,” he explains.
He spent the early 2000s studying interior architecture in product design, assisting in the industrial design department at Lausanne University of Art and Design, and working as an exhibition designer. In the following years, he partnered with the likes of Frank Gehry, Herzog & De Meuron, Hella Jongerius, and Naoto Fukasawa, to name a few.
He’s enthusiastic about his recent collaboration with Ligne Roset, a company he says “invites consumers to revel in a contemporary, design-forward lifestyle.” The Brass and Chrome Bell collection nod to classic designs, while the Calot family is intended to act as a punctuation between other pieces of furniture. “Its material and lighting quality create a sense of luxury with an affordable price,” he says.
Since founding his own studio in 2013, Zulauf has sharpened his focus, using familiar materials such as glass, wood, stone, and metal, “in which scantiness and a special kind of aesthetics can be found” to support his minimalist vision.
The Mix & Match pendant system from GO4LIGHT offers a wide range of color and finish combinations.
The Twoside floor lamp, also from GO4LIGHT, is unique for its rotatable reflector, which is white on one side and red on the other.
