Axel Meise (born November 13, 1962) is a German entrepreneur and designer.[1][2] Meise is the founder and chief designer of Occhio, a lighting and design company based in Germany.[3]
Axel Meise | |
|---|---|
| Born | 13 November 1962 |
| Nationality | German |
| Occupation | Founder of Occhio |
Personal life edit
Meise was born in Düsseldorf, and started studying mechanical engineering at the Technical University in Munich in 1982. During these studies, Meise sold a light fixture which he had designed.[4][5] In 1987, Meise presented a low-voltage system of his own design at a trade fair.[1][5]
Meise is the father of two sons and lives in Starnberg with his wife Susann Meise (born 1964), who is part of Occhio's management.[5][6] He received several awards for his designs, including the Red Dot Design Award and the iF Product Design Award.[1][7][8][9][10]
Career edit
In 1990, Meise founded Axel Meise Licht GmbH. He acquired a light gallery in Munich's Haidhausen and began producing his own lamp designs.[4][11] A year later, Meise decided to sell the company.[4]
In 1998, Axel Meise and physicist Christoph Kügler developed the modular Occhio (Italian for "eye") product family.[4][5][12] The following year, Meise established Occhio GmbH in Munich[2] and introduced Puro, the company's first product line.[3][13] Subsequently, he founded Axelmeiselicht in 2000 as the distributor of Occhio products.[1]
In 2004 Occhio introduced the Sento lamp series, designed by Meise, which was more powerful and had a more versatile design compared to the Puro line.[3]
With the ban on incandescent light bulbs and halogen lamps in 2009, and Occhio's subsequent transition to LED technology,[14] Meise established his own electronics department.[2][3] In 2010, he introduced Più, a recessed and surface-mounted spotlight system based on the Sento series, incorporating the new LED technology.[14] In 2012, Meise developed the three-dimensional moving luminaire series, Io.[15]
In 2014, Meise presented a version of the Sento series with LED, which had infinitely variable light control. In 2017 the investment company EMH Partners became a partner of Meise, acquiring a 44 percent share in Occhio.[5]
Also in 2017, Meise developed the Mito series in both ceiling and pendant versions, with touch-free gesture control operation.[5][16] In 2020, Benno Zerlin was appointed as the new co-CEO of Occhio, focusing on operational tasks within the company while Meise concentrated on design and strategy.[6] Two years later, Meise designed Gioia, a series of desk luminaires with adjustable light focus.[17]
References edit
- ^ a b c d "Axel Meise". AW: Architektur & Wohnen (in German). 2020-01-21. Retrieved 2023-11-01.
- ^ a b c Austen, Harriet (2020-06-01). "Der Meister des Lichts" [Master of Light]. IHK-Magazin (in German). Retrieved 2023-11-01.
- ^ a b c d Schraml, Markus (2020-01-22). "Licht, Ganzheitlich Gedacht – 20 Jahre Occhio" [Light, Holistic Thought – 20 years of Occhio]. Formfaktor (in German). Retrieved 2023-11-01.
- ^ a b c d Griese, Inga (2017-11-09). "Occhio Design: Diese Leuchten stellen alle in den Schatten" [Occhio Design: These lights put everyone in the shade]. Die Welt (in German). Retrieved 2023-11-01.
- ^ a b c d e f Schmitt, Peter-Philipp (2019-12-15). "Lampen-Hersteller Occhio: Die neue Lightkultur" [Lamp manufacturer Occhio: The new light culture]. Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (in German). ISSN 0174-4909. Retrieved 2023-11-01.
- ^ a b Höpner, Axel (2020-08-05). "Designer-Leuchtenfirma Occhio will die 100-Millionen-Euro-Marke knacken" [Designer lighting company Occhio wants to break the 100 million euro mark]. Handelsblatt (in German). Retrieved 2023-11-01.
- ^ Koch, Brigitte; Scharrenbroch, Christine (2019-07-12). "Red Dot Designwettbewerb wird zum Gütesiegel für gutes Design" [Red Dot Design Competition becomes a seal of quality for good design]. Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (in German). ISSN 0174-4909. Retrieved 2023-11-01.
- ^ Buchholz, Christian (2016-02-11). "iF Design Award: Preise für Occhio, Artemide, Delta Light und Philips" [iF Design Award: Prizes for Occhio, Artemide, Delta Light and Philips]. Prediger Lichtberater (in German). Retrieved 2023-11-01.
- ^ Buchholz, Christian (2017-03-10). "iF Design Award 2017: Rekorde und fast 100 ausgezeichnete Leuchten" [iF Design Award 2017: Records and almost 100 award-winning luminaires]. Prediger Lichtberater (in German). Retrieved 2023-11-01.
- ^ "iF Gold Award für die Bogenleuchte Mito largo von Occhio" [iF Gold Award for the Mito largo arc lamp by Occhio]. HighLight (in German). Retrieved 2023-11-01.
- ^ "architare in Stuttgart: Occhio Leuchten: Warum gutes Licht so wichtig ist" [architare in Stuttgart: Occhio luminaires: Why good light is so important]. Stuttgarter Zeitung (in German). 2020-02-28.
- ^ Bros, Peter (2018-04-11). "Wie der Münchner Lampendesigner Axel Meise China erobern will" [How Munich lamp designer Axel Meise wants to conquer China]. Handelsblatt. Retrieved 2023-11-01.
- ^ Haas, Dagmar (2007-10-11). "Licht-Gestalter" [Light designer]. Rheinische Post (in German). No. 236.
- ^ a b Bauhoff, Hannah (2010-04-14). "Die Sehnsucht nach der Birne". Die Zeit (in German). ISSN 0044-2070. Retrieved 2023-11-01.
- ^ "Zwei Weltpremieren bei Occhio" [Two world premieres at Occhio]. On-light (in German). 2011-09-23. Retrieved 2023-11-07.
- ^ Goebel, Anne; Scharnigg, Max (2021-12-10). "Neue Lampen und Leuchten: So strahlt das Licht in Zukunft" [New lamps and luminaires: How light will shine in the future]. Süddeutsche Zeitung (in German). Retrieved 2023-11-01.
- ^ Schmitt, Peter-Philipp (2022-06-14). "Tedeschi autentici". Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (in German). No. 136. p. 7.