Illuminating Traditions
LYFA
LYFA is a visionary home of iconic classics from some of Denmark’s most influential lighting designers. The enduring designs explore and enhance good lighting in all its shapes and facets.
The LYFA collection is founded on pure aesthetics and a purposeful design philosophy shaped by decades of dedicated craftsmanship and captivating lighting designs. The design classics are crafted to impeccable quality standards and offer light arrangements for every home, occasion and situation.
LYFA was founded in 1903 and initially named Kjøbenhavns Lampe- og Lysekronefabrik (Copenhagen Lamp and Chandelier Factory) with KLLF as the abbreviated version. At the beginning of the 1930s, the company changed its name to LYFA. Since 1903, one of the founding principles of LYFA has been to create lighting designs for all occasions and to be the light in the daily life (‘Lyspunkter i tilværelsen’). During the life span of LYFA, the entire corporation has revolved around the concept of designing the good light in all its facets and shapes. Today the purpose and fundamental concepts remain the same. LYFA crafts and explores lighting designs that build on decades of proud traditions within Danish design.
With great respect for the original designs, the new LYFA collection includes a versatile range of floor, table, wall and ceiling lamps. Dimensions and materials have been thoughtfully updated to compliment contemporary and sustainable living. Plastic shades have been replaced with opal glass, chrome plating is changed to polished stainless steel securing a timeless and long-lasting expression without compromising on quality or the original design language.
The Divan 2, 1962
In 1962, Simon P. Henningsen designed a new pendant for the Divan 2 restaurant in Tivoli Gardens, Copenhagen. The restaurant offered spectacular views over the garden lake, and at night, the pendant’s mirrored surfaces were designed to catch the light from the colorful exterior lighting and the lake. When it was time for the famous fireworks, the lights inside the restaurant would dim, and the lamps ascended towards the ceiling to allow guests an unobscured view of the show. The success of the DIVAN 2 went well beyond Copenhagen’s beloved amusement park as LYFA started offering the lamp for the general public. DIVAN 2 was bestowed with several Danish and international design awards. In 1963, it was even exhibited at the Louvre in Paris.
DIVAN 2 is a masterpiece of lighting design that’s a joy to behold even when switched off. The manufacturing of each pendant involves a meticulous multi-step process, in which each trapezoid is polished by hand.
The product family consists of pendants in four different sizes. Each size is available in either solid brass or a polished stainless steel version with multicoloured trapezoids (red, blue, purple, beige, and teal).
The Ninotchka, 1954
NINOTCHKA is a genuine and easily recognizable design icon, designed by Bent Karlby in 1954. When giving shape to this lamp, Bent Karlby had taken note of an eye-catching hat, worn by the Swedish Hollywood star Greta Garbo in her 1939 film, Ninotchka. The organic body with its asymmetric drapes ensures functional direct downlight and diffused ambient uplight.
The open-top design principle ensures diffused upward lighting while the downlight is even and direct, which makes for a functional as well as ambient lighting experience.
The organic body and asymmetric drapes are reinforced by the contrasting white inside, allowing for a varied play with light and shadow depending on the viewer’s position.
The Mosaik Collection, 1959
The Mosaik Side by Side
MOSAIK is a playful yet sophisticated lighting system consisting of pendants, table, floor, and wall lamps. The conical lampshades are connected with brass tubes in an ingenious concept that enables numerous design variations that serve a wide variety of lighting needs.
Designed by Bent Karlby in 1959, the MOSAIK collection is an ingenious lighting system based on a simple, geometrical design principle. At the heart of the system is the iconic conical lamp shade and brass tube that allow for several surprising lamp designs. At the time of its release, MOSAIK was a bold and playful piece of lighting design intended for the modern home. And even today, Karlby’s uplifting collection remains as original and contemporary as ever.
The Mosaik Pendant
Bent Karlby is widely regarded today as one of Denmark’s most productive and versatile lighting designers of the 20th century. He started his collaboration with LYFA in the 1940s, which was a partnership that would last nearly four decades. Bent Karlby is known for his soft light, organic shapes and hallmark peepholes. During his career, Karlby moved more towards pure geometric shapes such as the cone, cylinder and arc along with playful colours as seen with the MOSAIK series.
The Verona, 1978
The Verona Brass
VERONA is a prime example of functionalist design philosophy, in which form follows function. The need for glare-free lighting is achieved by bending and shaping the light around the ring shades. Sven Middelboe managed to design the shades so there are no visible suspensions between the shades - making them almost flowing in air. The pendant provides soft and functional illumination that’s easy on the eyes, while elegantly keeping the light source obscured from view. All the while, the lamp itself lights up, becoming a timeless design piece in the room.
When introduced in 1978, Sven Middelboe’s VERONA series understandably grew into the most popular design of his career. VERONA is the type of design that stands out for its eye-catching simplicity. A graceful and timeless pendant constructed from eight circular shades. The simplistic ingenuity paired with its clean lines have made VERONA a genuine classic that is every bit as appealing today as it was four decades ago.
The Verona White
The Peanut, 1946
The PEANUT lamp is a mid-century classic, full of character, designed by Bent Karlby in 1946. The attractive, curvy-shaped shade is crafted from mouth-blown opalized glass, complemented by a brass top and bottom. PEANUT provides a soft and comfortable lighting experience, wherever you choose to hang it.
The PEANUT was introduced in 1946, at a time when fluorescent lighting was gaining widespread popularity across society. But like many of his fellow contemporaries, Karlby shared a strong distaste for this harsh and cold lighting. With its organic shapes and elegant brass detailing – complete with Karlby’s hallmark peepholes – PEANUT became his solution for soft and pleasant room lighting that was equally appealing to look at.