Timeline:
Iconic Italian Lamps

1968
Flash by Joe Colombo
for O-Luce

Reflecting the innovative spirit of its creator Joe Colombo, Flash draws clear inspiration from flashbulb cameras. The fixture was concepted as a full lighting system, with a set of frames and bases allowing you to transition the light into a floor, wall or desk lamp.

602 by Cini Boeri
for Arteluce

In a discipline and era dominated by men, Cini Boeri broke the mold and offered a refreshing new perspective. A frequent collaborator with both Gio Ponti and Marco Zanuso, Boeri designed a series of unforgettable buildings and interiors, always focusing on usability and freedom. Her 602 lamp is a clean, pipe-like form with a turnable arm that offers both useful and playful flexibility.

KD 27 by Joe Colombo
for Kartell

In the late ‘60s, as Space Age design was in its prime, many designers turned to polished, globular forms instead of the sharp angles of the past. KD 27 was no exception. The clean and curvaceous design allows it to serve as a soft, warm table lamp, or it can be stacked like a customizable floor lamp.

Biagio by Tobia Scarpa
for Flos

Carved from a single piece of Carrara marble, Tobia Scarpa’s Biagio lamp sits right at the intersection of luxury and contemporary lighting. With soft curves and sharp angles, the ultramodern shape proves that lighting and sculpture go hand-in-hand.

1969
Boalum by Livio Castiglioni and Pio Manzù
for Artemide

The embodiment of lighting flexibility, Boalum is like a futuristic space worm from a Stanley Kubrick film. Inspired by the movement and shape of a snake (a boa that illuminates … Boalum), the semi-transparent tubular body can be coiled, extended or compressed to fit any size space.

1970
Samurai by Shigeaki Asahara
for Stilnovo

Designed by Shigeaki Asahara for the Italian manufacturer, Stilnovo, the Samurai Desk Lamp is the perfect addition to any work space. With an adjustable arm and a dimmer incorporated into the base of the lamp, Samurai fixtures never fail to appeal to minimalist lovers and design enthusiasts.

Part of the Light Art Collection, on display at the Lightology showroom.

1971
Parentesi Achille Castiglioni and Pio Manzù
for Flos

Originally concepted as a light sliding up and down a boom, held in place by a screw, designer Pio Manzù decided to take the physics one step further. The result: Parentesi, a metal chord bent inside a rod creating constant friction, holding the light in place without the use a screw. It’s a study in minimalist ingenuity.

1972
Tizio by Richard Sapper
for Artemide

Prolific designer Richard Sapper, together with Marco Zanuso, designed some of the most memorable products of the ‘60s and ‘70s, from the Grillo folding telephone to the Algol TV. The Tizio for Artemide went on to become a pillar in desk lamp design, featuring a transformer in the base that powers the lamp through rods and press button joints. The counterbalanced engineering allows for precise positioning, making it one of the most adjustable and recognizable desk lamps to this day, earning it several awards including the Compasso d’Oro in 1979.

Part of the Light Art Collection, on display at the Lightology showroom.

1973
265 by Paolo Rizzatto

Minimal aesthetic, maximum flexibility, Paolo Rizzato’s 265 wall light swings, pivots and twists to direct light exactly where you need it. The clean, simple form steered away from the rounded, plastic Spage Age vernacular so many designers were still using at the time, paring the fixture down to its purest functional form.

1976
Aggregato by Enzo Mari
for Artemide

An elegant way to both hide the cord and adjust the height, Enzo Mari’s Aggregato lamp took the minimal, functional aesthetic of the time and dressed it up. The result is both stunning and simple.

1977
Atollo by Vico Magistretti
for O-luce

A true icon in Italian design, Atollo appears to defy physics: A dome balancing delicately on the very tip of a conical cylinder. The soft glow creates a hemispheric effect, like gazing out onto a horizon. Refined, geometric, it’s no surprise that Magistretti’s design won the most prestigious prize in Italian design, the Compasso d’Oro.

1980
Tokio by Asahara Shigea
for Stilnovo

The Tokio Table Lamp is a timeless fixture designed by Asahara Shigeaki for Italian lighting manufacturer, Stilnovo. The lamp is highly adjustable with a maximum height of 64 centimeters. Featuring a mailbox-like shade supported by four adjustable arms, allowing the lamp is capable of moving in all directions. With a dimmer and sliding switch cleverly concealed within the base, Tokio lamps are perfect atop home offices and work desks alike.

Part of the Light Art Collection, on display at the Lightology showroom.

Ziggurat by Asahara Shigea
for Stilnovo

Designed by Shigeaki Asahara for Stilnovo, the Ziggurat Table Lamp has a base made from thick lacquered metal and is enhanced by a brass ring on both the base and the top of the trunk. With a shade made from Murano glass, Ziggurat lamps add warm illumination while offering your space a vintage feel.

Part of the Light Art Collection, on display at the Lightology showroom.

Gibigiana by Achille Castiglioni
for Stilnovo

Designed by Achille Castiglioni, the Gibigiana Table Lamp is the epitome of iconic Italian lighting. The Gibigiana features an aluminum reflector, which in turn provides reflected light - perfect everywhere from bedside tables to home offices. With a base made from anthracite painted steel, Gibigiana lamps are not only built to last but offer design that never goes out of style.

Part of the Light Art Collection, on display at the Lightology showroom.

1981
Ashoka by Ettore Sottsass

A truly prolific figure in the world of design, Ettore Sottsass designed some of the first computers and portable typewriters in the ‘60s, eventually pioneering the Memphis movement of the ‘80s. Ashoka serves as a mascot for the movement, epitomizing the main characteristics: Color, scale, whimsy and a touch of imperfection or handmade. The Ashoka lamp went on to travel the world, as part of the infamous Memphis exhibition.

Super by Martine Bedin

Produced for the Memphis Group’s first exhibition, the Super lamp was described by the designer as "a small dog that I could carry with me" With exposed light bulbs lining a half-circle and four wheels, the whimsical fixture feels more like a pet dinosaur, able to be pulled around the room.

1985
Nastro by Alberto Fraser
for Stilnovo

Scottish designer Alberto Fraser celebrates lighting down to its raw form, letting the rainbow-colored cabling serve as the focus on the Nastro table light. The flexible PVC/cable stem retracts and moves with a sort of vibrant grace, inspiring the lamps very name: Nastro, or “ribbon” in Italian.

1987
Tolomeo by Michele de Lucchi & Giancarlo Fassina
for Artemide

Perhaps the most flexible desk lamp on the market, even today, Tolomeo quickly became a bestseller for Artemide. Relying on the technology of the time, Lucchi and Fassina were able to create something modern, sophisticated, lightweight and flexible, becoming the litmus test many of today’s desk lamps measure up to.

1992
Orbital by Ferrucio Laviani
for Foscarini

If the ‘80s were about perfection and computer-generation, the ‘90s deconstructed it. Orbital draws clear inspiration from ‘80s aesthetic--color, whimsy, scale--but pulls it apart with a unique twist. Primary colors replaced the neons and pastels of Memphis, and meticulous forms evolved back to organic shapes, still with the aid of modern technology.

2009
Hope by Paolo Rizzatto & Francisco Gomez Paz
for Luceplan

With small-batch production and new, lightweight technology, more and more designs emerge each year, making it hard to pinpoint which will leave a lasting mark. Hope pulls together many of the characteristics found in today’s fixtures. Iridescent, futuristic materials, organic shapes, laser-cut precision and energy-efficient technology embody a moment in design we’ll fondly look back on.