Christian Troels
Industrial Designer, 1984
Christian Troels graduated from Kolding School of Design in 2012.
In the course of his studies he has had the opportunity of spending a semester at Umeå Institute of Design, Umeå University in Sweden. He particularly worked with means of transportation in the Transportation Design Programme.
Christian is a versatile designer, who masters both the conceptual and the technical aspects of designing. With his playful approach, he always strives to induce in his products those elements that make them differ from others. He works with product design of several categories, from bicycles in China to toy concepts.
After ending his studies Christian was employed at the LEGO Group Concept Lab in Billund, working to create new concepts for LEGO. Today Christian Troels has his own design studio in Copenhagen.
Christian has designed Mutatio for Le Klint. It is a series of lamps inspired by transformation and simple geometry. When closed, the lamps are discrete, but once opened they reveal a characteristic and exciting expression. The Mutatio table lamp won the award for best lamp design of the year in 2014.
In the 2020 edition of DR´s program series "Denmark's Next Classic", Christian Troels has marked himself as a charismatic, innovative and dynamic designer who dares to think outside the box.
Plivello
The Pendel series Plivello is the latest design by Christian, which became available in the fall of 2022. It is a modern lamp with references to the segmented chandeliers of the past. The name Plivello is a combination of the Italian word 'levello', meaning level, and the French word 'pli', meaning fold. Plivello is a lamp that works well in a modern context but also hints at something from the past.
The Design Process
With Plivello, Christian Troels set out to explore how to transfer a hint from the past into a simple, folded paper form.
"The magic of Le Klint is often about transforming flat paper into organic shapes. With Plivello, I wanted to do something different. I thought it could be exciting to add a more flamboyant style to the design. By dividing the lamp into levels, the light spreads beautifully, while also evoking thoughts of historical chandeliers."
When Christian Troels began experimenting with laser-cut technology for the internal structure, the project with Plivello truly gained momentum. The result was an open internal structure, giving the lamp a detailed and open appearance that invites exploration of its interior.
"It wasn’t until we played with arches and vaults using laser technology that the design came together in a more cohesive way. From a distance, the lamp seems simple, but the more you inspect the design, the more you take in. Because the production of Plivello is handmade locally in Odense, I had the opportunity to create a lamp where I could really focus on the details."
