Pape Onion

Lisa Johansson-Pape is one of the most recognized mid-century Finnish lighting designers, having earned this distinction — in her eyes — unintentionally.

Johansson-Pape began her career as a furniture designer for Kylmäkosku and Stockmann before turning her focus to lighting in the early 1940s for Stockmann-owned lighting manufacturer Orno, where she partnered with designer Yki Nummi. A graduate of Finland’s Central School of Arts and Crafts, Johansson-Pape was famously quoted as having attributed the success of her vintage table lamps, floor lamps and sconces to an “accident.”

“By education, I am a furniture designer, but I had to make lamps during the war," she explained. Her distinctive style sees a balance of clean aesthetics and a prioritization of practicality and function.

Johansson-Pape was a multidisciplinary engineer and designer who created space for women in many industries. She collaborated on a number of high-profile projects through a variety of partnerships, most notably with the glassblowers of Iittala during the 1950s, designing celebrated lighting fixtures for public spaces such as the Helsinki Children’s Hospital. She also collaborated on installations at 150 churches, including the famous Eckerö Church in Finland.

In 1951, Johansson-Pape was awarded the silver medal at the Triennale di Milano, and in 1954, she was awarded the gold medal for her design of the Sipuli, or Onion lamp. This was merely the start of a lifetime of awards and accolades for Johansson-Pape. She won the Pro-Finlandia prize in 1957 for her design of the Laura pendant lamp, and her other iconic lighting designs include the Belle pendant lamp and the Senator floor lamp.

Johansson-Pape’s work, which frequently saw an integration of acrylic and enamled brass alongside its glass components, was featured at the 1939 World’s Fair in New York and the “Design In Scandinavia” exhibition, which traveled extensively throughout the United States and Canada in the 1950s. Her “Rya” textile exhibition debuted in Helsinki and toured Europe in 1956. In 1966, she took part in a joint exhibition in Stockholm with her friend, textile artist Dora Jung.

Lisa Johansson-Pape was an inspiring pioneer of design — she was passionate about traditional Finnish design and worked to build a community and platform for female designers and architects. Through her work at Friends of Finnish Handicraft — for which she designed textiles — Johansson-Pape supported several national movements in textile design and was the organization’s Artistic Director for more than three decades. She was also a recognized public speaker and author, having lectured on the subjects of furniture design, lighting and Scandinavian modernism. 

Find vintage Lisa Johansson-Pape stools, chandeliers and other furniture on 1stDibs. 

The right table lamp, outwardly sculptural chandelier or understated wall pendant can work wonders for your home. While we’re indebted to thinkers like Thomas Edison for critically important advancements in lighting and electricity, we’re still finding new ways to customize illumination to fit our personal spaces all these years later. A wide range of antique and vintage lighting can be found on 1stDibs.

Today, lighting designers like the self-taught Bec Brittain have used the flexible structure of LEDs to craft glamorous solutions by working with what is typically considered a harsh lighting source. By integrating glass and mirrors, reflection can be used to soften the glow from LEDs and warmly welcome light into any space.

Although contemporary innovators continue to impress, some of the classics can’t be beat. 

Just as gazing at the stars allows you to glimpse the universe’s past, vintage chandeliers like those designed by Gino Sarfatti and J. & L. Lobmeyr, for example, put on a similarly stunning show, each with a rich story to tell.

As dazzling as it is, the Arco lamp, on the other hand, prioritizes functionality — it’s wholly mobile, no drilling required. Designed in 1962 by architect-product designers Achille & Pier Giacomo Castiglioni, the piece takes the traditional form of a streetlamp and creates an elegant, arching floor fixture for at-home use.

There is no shortage of modernist lighting similarly prized by collectors and casual enthusiasts alike — there are Art Deco table lamps created in a universally appreciated style, the Tripod floor lamp by T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings, Greta Magnusson Grossman's sleek and minimalist Grasshopper lamps and, of course, the wealth of mid-century experimental lighting that emerged from Italian artisans at Arredoluce, FLOS and many more are hallmarks in illumination innovation. 

With decades of design evolution behind it, home lighting is no longer just practical. Crystalline shaping by designers like Gabriel Scott turns every lighting apparatus into a luxury accessory. A new installation doesn’t merely showcase a space; carefully chosen ceiling lights, table lamps and floor lamps can create a mood, spotlight a favorite piece or highlight your unique personality.

The sparkle that your space has been missing is waiting for you amid the growing collection of antique, vintage and contemporary lighting for sale on 1stDibs.