Rasmus Larsson

Famous works: The Ballroom collection, the Pollish pendant, and New Wave
Educational background: Designer at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts, 1999

Danish reader might recognise designer Rasmus Larsson from the series Herre i eget hus and Flyt eller forny. Larsson has always had creative leaning. When he was younger, his father would let him test his ideas in the workshop where he welded and did woodwork. Later on, Larsson would go on to work at a chair factory in Germany before heading over to England where he succeeded in getting into the Camperwell Art & Design School in London.

In the late 90s, he started Design By Us with his mother-in-law and her brother. These days, Larsson co-owns the business with Lisette Bernhoft who doubles as a sales rep. The company comprises an innovative design team that collaborate in the creation of each collection. Design By Us has been named one of the 10 most successful design firms in the world and has been mentioned in magazines like Elle Decor and Wallpaper.

Rasmus Larsson endeavours to combine aesthetics and technology, all the while challenging traditional design: “Right from the start, our philosophy has been to be playful—that there should be a little humour. We’ve never shied away from colours. Of course, we’ve gone through periods with more black, white, and grey because those were the trends at the time, but we’ve never strayed from our DNA, which is: colours.”

His lovely Ballroom collection is a perfect illustration of their DNA, which is mainly about the fact that they aren’t scared to use colours. The coloured glass is blown using a wooden mould. Afterwards, the opening is cleaned up and painted either gold or silver. The distinct gold/silver edge recurs in the design of the New Wave Optic collection that he designed in 2017. The idea was to combine three styles of glass lamps to create a pendant. The result was a highly decorative lamp in a design reminiscent of an eye.

He’s known for his innovative lamps and furniture with a humorous touch, often seen in connection with interior design tasks for shops and showrooms—particularly Stella Nova, Mads Nørgaard, Miss Sixty, and Bjørn Borg.

He’s married to interior designer Andrea Larsson who Danish viewers might know from Fra skrot til slot and Vores genbrugshjem. Their home is a testament to the couple’s creativity and ability to combine fine nuances and beautiful shapes and merge old and new—and there are, of course, plenty of stylish Design By Us lamps.