Marset takes care of light. What began as a foundry in 1942 transformed into Marset Illuminación in 1965, and for the last half century, the Badalona, Spain based brand has used its metal casting-beginnings to manipulate all kinds of materials in creating unexpected, atmospheric lighting effects. With clean, understated fixtures, lighting from Marset blends seamlessly into its environment while imbuing the space with creativity and technical precision. Here’s how some of Marset’s most iconic pieces came to life.
Xavier Manosa talks about his collaboration with Mashallah Design Studio for the Pleat Box Collection
“Mashallah works with digital processes and we traditionally work with ceramics,” said Manosa of the design process. “We knew we wanted to make a lamp [together]. We started to investigate how to mix plastics with ceramics, but the project was chaotic, unclear and complicated. We had to mechanize the ceramic to be able to integrate the plastic.”
Designed to crease like cloth, Pleat Box is one of Marset’s most artisanal designs, but its origins come from the digital realm.
“One of the materials we were using was a silicone, and one day Hande from Mashallah was playing with it while we were all drawing the material, and suddenly she said, ‘Look, this is really nice.’ So the idea was really fast. We transferred the folds of the silicone and how they fall to the ceramic, then transferred the gesture of the piece to a computer. And that’s Pleat Box.”
Fabien Dumas on Tam Tam
Described as “geometrically arranged to invoke a feeling of organized chaos,” Dumas also says that “while the overall appearance may evoke chaos, the function remains quite obvious and simple. Within a minute you understand how it works and what it can do. Let me put it as a professor once explained: ‘Design is not about creating a fantastic guide-system for an airport. Design is about creating an airport that doesn’t require any guide-system.’”
Joan Gaspar talks about Ginger’s manufacturing process
The layers of resin-impregnated wood and paper “are pressed at 180°C using a steel mold to shape them. The really interesting part is that you can make two sides a different color, in the case of the Ginger white on the inside and wood on the outside. This detail allowed us to think about a lamp that would provide indirect lighting. In my opinion, this is the product’s main advantage: you can put it high or low, but the light is never bothersome! Plus, the most exciting part of the product, which is the wood, seems to become secondary, anecdotal, when actually it isn’t at all.”
Christopher Mathieu speaks on the original Discoco, as well as its 10-year-anniversary companion made from wood
“Keep in mind that one of the characteristics of the Discoco is its richness in terms of light. That’s because of the multiple reflections it creates. The lamp not only lights its surroundings, it also lights itself. In the original design the outside of the discs are illuminated by the light that filters through the discs and by the light that is reflected on the inner surface of the discs. However, wood does not allow the light to pass through the disc, so the light reflects on the top of the disc and descends down the wood, which reflects the light at the same time.”
To design with the historical Spanish brand is more than a trust between designer and manufacturer. The collaborative relationships found at Marset encourage a sense of inquisitiveness while centering discovery and innovation. The mission? To seek out new paths and explore the untapped ideas that can change how the world looks at—and takes care of—light.
