Tobias Link
Oliver Link
LIGHTING THAT FOLLOWS
PEOPLE’S NEEDS
The Lichtplanungsbüro (lighti ng design offi ce) Tobias Link was
founded in 1991 in Saarbrücken. Tobias Link and his partner
Oliver Link develop customised soluti ons—lighti ng systems,
objects and installati ons for internati onal clients and a broad
spectrum of applicati on.
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PLUG & LIGHT
TOBIAS LINK
How did you become the concept designer of
Plug & Light?
We have been cooperati ng with Insta for a long ti me.
We have created the luminaire instalight No limit
together, for example. A modular system with which
many diff erent lighti ng soluti ons can be easily imple-
mented. A successful project. So Insta asked if I
would like to address the topic of ‘light straight from
the socket’. —A fantasti c assignment!
How did you proceed?
We fi rst created use cases, working our way around
the house exploring: where are fl ush-mounted
sockets used? Where—in which positi ons where
switch and switch equipment are installed—does
it make sense to use lighti ng? We have investi gated
luminous fl ux: how high is the lumen output that
can be produced by an LED that is integrated into a
fl ush-mounted socket and how expedient is it
to produce directi onal or diff used light with it? And:
what do I wish to achieve in doing so? What possible
applicati ons are there?
We developed two opti ons that could be plugged
onto the light socket: a classic spotlight and a lumi-
naire with asymmetrical beam angle, the wall light.
How did you come up with the idea of
a three-ring plug-in soluti on, which is also
a Plug & Light trademark?
The constructi on of the light socket is inspired by a
design concept for a desk lamp that I implicitly
wanted to implement: the base, arm and head of
the luminaire should be available in various fi nishes
and colours using a simple design language.
Customers should be able to confi gure the luminaire
according to their wishes: glossy black base, matt
black arm, copper-coloured head or similar. The
assembly of the luminaire should be possible without
any tools. So I developed the plug-in idea with
the three concentric magneti c rings. The luminaire
has never been produced—but I have always looked
for possible applicati ons for this innovati ve plug-in
idea. This opportunity came with Plug & Light. It fi ts
perfectly and has now been modifi ed and perfected.
Where in the living room are the luminaires best
used?
Everywhere!—During the development phase we
illuminated an enti re hotel room as an example:
the asymmetrical wall light allows for a glare-free
illuminati on of the corridor, immediately creati ng
Light, wine and contemporary architecture:
Weingut Franz Keller in Oberbergen
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