The lights of Louis Weisdorf: Turbo (1967)
13 January 2012
Louis Weisdorf created the design for his Turbo pendant light in 1965, and in 1967 Lyfa was ready to start production. Consisting of 12 uniform aluminium lamellae spiral-twisted to form a flower-like sphere, the Turbo was partly inspired by Japanese rice-paper lanterns, and came in two sizes – the 35cm diameter Turbo I (available in orange, red, beige or white) and the 60cm Turbo II (in white only).
In contrast to Konkylie the lamellae were positioned vertically, reducing the accumulation of dust but still conforming 
to Weisdorf’s guiding principle of shielding the eye from direct bulb glare at all angles. Like other experimental lights of that decade, it was expensive – the larger version, Turbo II, coming with a price tag not much below an average worker’s monthly wage.
The Turbo attracted quite some attention, winning an iF (Die gute Industrieform) product design award in 1973, and remained in production well into the 1970s. But after the economic downturn of the late 1970s the Turbo became one of numerous casualties of the subsequent merger between Lyfa and another major Danish lighting company, Fog & Mørup.
Much later – in 1991 – a new version of the Turbo was put into production by the further-merged company Lyskjær-Lyfa, without the knowledge or approval of Louis Weisdorf. Renamed Regina and made of steel, the lamp was so heavy it had to be suspended by a wire. Weisdorf took the company to court and sales were halted.
In 2004 the Turbo was reissued again, in white versions of both original sizes – this time by Bald & Bang in agreement with the designer. The release coincided with a growing renewal of 
interest in Weisdorf’s lighting designs, and rekindled his passion for lamp design after 25 years during which he became one of the first Danish architects to move into the digital era and start using computer-aided design (CAD). The rediscovered lighting enthusiasm led to models of new lamp designs beginning to appear on his computer screens.
When pushed to say whether he has a favourite amongst his own lighting designs, it is the Turbo that Louis Weisdorf points to. “I prefer the Turbo because of its logical simplicity, which makes it more timeless than many of my other lights,” he explains.
© 2011 Sune Riishede and vintage-danish-lights.com. All rights reserved. This article is based on extensive correspondence between Louis Weisdorf and Sune Riishede and a personal meeting in November 2011 at the architect’s Copenhagen residence. The photo above left shows Louis Weisdorf in his studio with a miniature paper model of the Turbo. The article and its contents may not be copied or reproduced in any part or form without the prior written permission of the copyright holders. Links to http://www.vintage-danish-lights.com/the-lights-of-louis-weisdorf-turbo-1967 are welcome.
Posted in 
Hi,
Re Louis Weisdorf’s turbo lamp – you say it was originally made in orange red white and beige – butthis is next to a photo where one of the lamps is purple – i note this only because i’ve just bought a purple turbo light off Ebay which claims to be a 1960′s original – do you know if there were in fact produded in purple?
thanks
Hi Jon, in the photo showing the four colour variations of the Turbo, the version that looks purple/pink/magenta is the one described as red in the catalogues.
Hi,
I’ve just seen in a vintage shop in Milan a Weisdorf’s turbo lamp in biege or off white….I’ve simply fallen for it and would love to buy it. Would you be so kind to let me know more or less what sort of price should I pay for it (sure it depends on the year of production but it would be enough to know a maximum and minumun market price) and if there are any tips to state how old is the lamp.
Thank you ever so much
Alessia
Hi Alessia, we have records of completed sales of the Turbo 1 (35cm diameter) at prices ranging from 135 euros (for an orange example in excellent condition) to 540 euros (in mint condition and in its original box). As outlined in our article above, there have been two reproductions of the Turbo since the original Lyfa production ended in the 1970s. If you’re not confident about judging the age of a lamp by its components and finish, the easiest way to ensure that you’re buying an original example is to check that its Lyfa label is still in place. Good luck!
Thank you so much….very helpful!
A.