INSPIRED BY GENERATIONS OF MAKERS
Atelier Stōbben specializes in modern lighting inspired by minimalism, Mennonite heritage and generations of self-sufficiency. We design with long-lasting, raw materials, such as hardwood, metal and concrete. Designer and founder behind Atelier Stōbben, Paul Neudorf, handles all aspects of lamp design, and works with local artisans, woodworkers and metalworkers who make everything in Quebec and Ontario. All lamps are designed and handcrafted locally.
Neudorf's design style ranges from Scandinavian, with his line of solid hardwood birch and walnut woodturned lamps in various sizes and shapes, to modern contemporary with his geometric lamps that pair hard metallic angles with the soft curves of natural wood.
For his collection of circadian wall lamps, he's been working with circadian scientists and experts proficient in new technologies to create lamps that are beneficial to our mental health. After further research, we will be offering these lamps, plus a table-lamp version, sometime in the near future.
Since the pandemic hit, he has been working on new wooden hanging lamps in the Bommel line with wood-turner Pierre Tardif, one of the most talented wood turners in Montreal. Our newest lamp is the Stohl Floor Lamp, a cross between the geometry of our Dovell lamps and the warmth and curves of our wood-turned Bommel lamps.
From film to design
Neudorf comes from a long line of creators and makers, and considers himself a modern, queer Mennonite, one generation away from the Mennonite colony, where his father grew up. His background in experimental video art, modern dance, and an interest in sustainability and minimal design also influence his aesthetic.
After working in the film industry for over a decade as an experimental/documentary filmmaker and video editor, Neudorf realized he needed a change and wanted to work more with his hands in the studio. With a design obsession and the desire to connect with his Mennonite background, Atelier Stōbben was launched in the fall of 2017.
Neudorf’s collections often have titles in Low German, a nod to the language his father’s family spoke growing up in the Old Colony Mennonite communities in Chihuahua, Mexico. “Stobben” means “stump” in Low German, inspired by aspen stumps drying outside his parents’ former house in southwestern Alberta, which he then turned into his first collection of stump lamps.