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For London Design Festival 2025, Tenderbooks invited designer Livia Lauber to present a new collection inspired by the book object. Livia Lauber designs products, furniture and spaces that craft familiar yet unconventional narratives.
Objects & Stories is the title of the show presented at Tenderbooks as part of the London Design Festival. Could you please tell us about the title?
The title Objects & Stories reflects how I see design. For me, objects aren’t just functional – they carry stories that people can connect with. The show brings together pieces from different moments in my work, both past and recent, each with its own narrative. PAPERLIGHTS, which I designed for this occasion, is a clear example – it embodies this idea of storytelling through objects. To extend that idea, Guillaume Chuard from Studio Ardworks created a clever poster that folds into a small book, allowing visitors to take a piece of the story home with them.
How does the thinking around production enter your design process?
I used to lead the Product Development team at Established & Sons for many years, so manufacturing has always been a strong influence on my design process. In short, I try to keep things simple and efficient, reducing the amount of materials and components I use.
With PAPERLIGHTS, I worked with existing light components, which are held in place by a metal structure I designed and produced. The material is very thin to evoke the quality of paper—one of the lights, for example, uses a 0.3 mm stainless steel sheet that is laser-cut, folded, and secured by the lamp holder. It’s a straightforward principle that gives both volume and strength to the body of the light.
PAPERLIGHTS at Tenderbooks ©Livia Lauber
Main image ©James Champion
How do you relate to the Swiss and the British design traditions? What is your use of design books?
I think I carry a bit of both traditions: from the British side, humour; from the Swiss side, precision and simplicity in execution.
I’ve always loved design books, especially monographs. I use them to study the working methods of designers I admire – like Enzo Mari or Charlotte Perriand – but also simply for motivation to keep going in my own practice. I also have art and photography books, as I like to look beyond design for inspiration.
What does a platform such as the London Design Festival bring you?
A lot of unpaid work! [laughs] But really, the London Design Festival is a great moment to showcase my work and connect with the design community and industry. I’m very happy to be part of this community – even though it’s a tough profession, there’s a lot of support between designers and we really cheer each other on, which is a great feeling.
The Festival is also an opportunity for collaboration, in this case with Tenderbooks. I would never have designed PAPERLIGHTS if Tamsin Clark hadn’t invited me to present my work in their shop. It was the context of both the Design Festival and Tenderbooks that inspired me to create the lights and book.
What did the support of the Swiss Cultural Fund UK allow you to do?
The support helped me fund a large part of the project and gave me the opportunity to create and produce new work for the show at Tenderbooks. It also allowed me to collaborate with Guillaume Chuard from Ardworks on an editorial project, which became a very meaningful step in my practice. Opportunities like this push you to reflect on your work and process, and they allow the practice to grow. The support of the Swiss Cultural Fund UK is incredibly valuable, and I am very grateful to have access to it.
During the London Design Festival, visitors to Tenderbooks will be able to discover this new collection of light objects alongside Livia Lauber’s BOCKSHELF and a selection of her latest design pieces. BOCKSHELF is a compact custom bookshelf originally created by Lauber to store her favourite reference books. Equipped with castors, the shelf can be easily moved around a studio space. At Tenderbooks the BOCKSHELF will be arranged with Lauber’s curated selection of design titles. Placement of SOLO stools will encourage visitors to browse the titles with the opportunity to sit and read comfortably. The installation will be accompanied by an editorial project, created in collaboration with Studio Ardworks.
Livia Lauber, Objects & Stories, Tenderbooks, 6 Cecil Court, London WC2N 4HE, 10 – 30 September 2025.
