Jo Hammerborg

Jo Hammerborg (1920–1982) was head of design at Fog & Mørup from 1957 to 1980, a period that saw the company's greatest success both artistically and commercially. Hammerborg trained as a silversmith before going on to study fine art at Copenhagen's Kunstakademiet, and worked at Georg Jensen for eight years until he joined F&M, where he rapidly transformed the company's product lines and its fortunes. He was a prolific designer, creating over 60 lamps and collaborating with others to adapt their designs to meet F&M's stringent production requirements. In 1980 Hammerborg left F&M to set up his own lighting design business. His departure coincided with the demise of the company as it underwent a series of mergers that resulted in the F&M brand ceasing to exist. Tragically, his own demise came at around the same time, when on 23 July 1982 he died in a skydiving accident. Read our extended Jo Hammerborg profile here.