Wagenfeld studied at the School of Applied Arts in Weimar, where he worked with leading figures of the Bauhaus movement such as Walter Gropius and Marcel Breuer. He went on to work for Jenaer Glaswerk Schott & Genossen, where he created a range of elegant, functional glass products, including the famous Bauhaus table lamp in glass and metal, which has become a classic of industrial design.
During the Second World War, Wagenfeld was taken prisoner of war and interned in a camp in Czechoslovakia. After the war, he worked as a freelance designer and taught design at Stuttgart's College of Applied Arts.
Wagenfeld is considered one of the most important designers of his time, and his work has had a considerable influence on modern industrial design. His work is exhibited in many design museums around the world, including the Museum of Modern Art in New York and the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris.