The Norm lamp: a mental exercise in material efficiency
What if sustainable design could live together with industrial production? Moritz Walter is exploring this relationship through the use of standard components.
As sustainable design continues to move from an ideology to a necessity, Berlin-based industrial designer Moritz Walter has created a pendant lamp as an example of material honesty and minimalism. The Norm lamp, completed in 2023 as part of his master’s degree at the Weißensee Academy of Art Berlin, represents a resourceful investigation into standardised materials and simplifying production processes.
Moritz Walter was also recently spotlighted as one of the Rising Talents at Maison&Objet 2025, an award which focused on German designers in this edition. About his work, he tells the fair, “I’m particularly interested in sustainable construction and material honesty, both important values in my process. I try to focus on products that feel accessible and intuitive. This becomes especially important in living and working environments, where products are part of daily routines and closely interact with people’s habits. In such contexts, I think products should be approachable, unobtrusive and offer a certain calmness. These considerations shape both the technical and formal direction of a project, often resulting in a reduced and clear aesthetic.”
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Walter’s approach to design is rooted in clarity and accessibility, values that can clearly be seen in Norm. His portfolio reveals a designer fascinated by the intersections between materials, technology, and functionality, leading him to explore various product categories, from furniture to heating systems, though lighting design seems to have a special place in his heart. This speciality was also probably influenced by his work experience before opening his own studio, working as a designer at the lighting design company Grau.
What characterises Norm is its materiality, as the product is an exploration of how a single aluminium profile could serve as the foundation for an entire lighting system. A long extruded profile is cut into the different components of the lamp, mainly into the 94 cm horizontal structural bar and 14 small inserts for the LED lighting, which are then inserted and welded into the bar. By using just one standard aluminium extrusion for all basic components, Norm achieves a simplified production system with minimal material waste.
The choice of aluminium as a material is also significant. Aluminium profiles are incredibly common in construction and manufacturing, valued for their strength and lightness, durability, and recyclability. By choosing to work within this standard system rather than against it, Walter has managed to create a practical approach to sustainability, working with existing infrastructure rather than creating totally new frameworks.
Walter’s work derives from a rich German background, which has long valued industrial rationality and material honesty. From the Bauhaus movement’s emphasis on function and industrial production, to contemporary sustainable design practices, German designers have consistently explored how design can serve broader purposes, without compromising aesthetics.
The Norm lamp is different because it finds innovation not in extravagance or technological complexity, but simply in the intelligent use of existing resources. We hope that Moritz Walter‘s approach to this product can inspire future designers to rethink their relationship to industriality and sustainability, asking questions about the balance between standard parts, production complexity, and beauty.
