Wolfgang Laubersheimer

Wolfgang Laubersheimer (1955–) is a German designer based in Cologne. Trained in metalworking in the early 1980s at the Cologne University of Applied Sciences, he is particularly remembered for his work within the design collective Pentagon, which he founded in 1985 together with Gerd Arens, Ralph Sommer, Reinhard Müller, and Meyer Voggenreiter. His most celebrated project dates back to 1987: the Casino Café, designed for the eighth edition of Documenta Kassel, Germany’s most important contemporary art exhibition. Conceived as a modern reinterpretation of the traditional “artists’ café” and furnished with pieces designed by the various members of the collective, the project was characterized by a restrained aesthetic and the use of durable materials. It revisited and updated Bauhaus-derived principles, standing in deliberate contrast to the Postmodern trends that dominated the 1980s. From 1992 onward, following the dissolution of the Pentagon group, Laubersheimer devoted himself primarily to teaching at the Köln International School of Design (KISD). One of his designs, the WL2 bookcase from 1985, is currently reissued by the Italian brand MisuraEmme.