Maria Berntsen is an industrial designer who has had her own practice since 1992. She finds her design inspiration in architecture, nature, fashion and current trends. Maria Berntsen has a special love of glass as a material with its visual lightness and its ability to capture and reflect light. ”When I approach a new project, I start by looking for its nerve, its spirit. A beginning. It is like stepping into a special space where your heart can speak. A place where everything is possible, and I am able to look at everything with a new energy and without prejudice or preconception. I visualize how the product will be used and the presence it has in a room – and based on this feeling, I start to think in form and function”. Maria Berntsen is the woman responsible for Holmegaard’s One lamp and the successful Design with Light range which includes a number of lanterns with a distinctive leather strap – these lanterns are available in both transparent and frosted glass. The lanterns have been created as mobile light sources for use both indoors and out. Most recently, Maria Berntsen has given the classic chamber candlestick a makeover in a Design with Light version for the contemporary home. Both ranges have been created on the basis of Maria Berntsen’s design philosophy which is basically about creating design that brings joy to many every day.