He died tragically young, and his career as a designer lasted little more than 10 years. But through the 1960s, Joe Colombo proved himself one of the field’s most provocative and original thinkers, and he produced a remarkably large array of innovative chairs, table lamps and other lighting and furniture as well as product designs. Even today, the creations of Joe Colombo have the power to surprise.
Cesare “Joe” Colombo was born in Milan, the son of an electrical-components manufacturer. He was a creative child — he loved to build huge structures from Meccano pieces — and in college he studied painting and sculpture before switching to architecture.
In the early 1950s, Colombo made and exhibited paintings and sculptures as part of an art movement that responded to the new Nuclear Age, and futuristic thinking would inform his entire career. He took up design not long after his father fell ill in 1958, and he and his brother, Gianni, were called upon to run the family company.
Colombo expanded the business to include the making of plastics — a primary material in almost all his later designs. One of his first, made in collaboration with his brother, was the Acrilica table lamp (1962), composed of a wave-shaped piece of clear acrylic resin that diffused light cast by a bulb concealed in the lamp’s metal base. A year later, Colombo produced his best-known furniture design, the Elda armchair (1963): a modernist wingback chair with a womb-like plastic frame upholstered in thick leather pads.
Portability and adaptability were keynotes of many Colombo designs, made for a more mobile society in which people would take their living environments with them. One of his most striking pieces is the Tube chair (1969). It comprises four foam-padded plastic cylinders that fit inside one another. The components, which are held together by metal clips, can be configured in a variety of seating shapes (his Additional Living System seating is similarly versatile).
Vintage Tube chairs generally sell for about $9,000 in good condition; Elda chairs for about $7,000. A small Colombo design such as the plastic Boby trolley — an office organizer on wheels, designed in 1970 — is priced in the range of $700.
As Colombo intended, his designs are best suited to a modern decor. If your tastes run to sleek, glossy Space Age looks, the work of Joe Colombo offers you a myriad of choices.
Find vintage Joe Colombo lamps, seating and other furniture for sale on 1stDibs.
$2,536 / item
Colombo Ceiling Lamp by Joe Colombo for Oluce
By Joe Colombo, Oluce
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Colombo suspension lamp designed by Joe Colombo for Oluce. The visionary and futuristic designer Joe Colombo designed the Colombo lamp in 1970, o...
Aluminum
$2,418Sale Price / set|20% Off
Joe Colombo Set of Two Suspension Lamps 'the Globe' Nickel by Oluce
By Oluce, Joe Colombo
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Suspension lamp 'The Globe' designed by Joe Colombo in 1964. Suspension lamp giving direct and diffused light in transparent blown glass. Manufactured by Oluce, Italy. The Globe is ...
Metal
$1,843 / item
Coupe Table Lamp by Joe Colombo for Oluce
By Oluce, Joe Colombo
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Coupe table lamp designed by Joe Colombo for Oluce. The Coupé series was initially conceived as a variation of the Spider family the smart yet simple mechanism that attaches the stem...
Aluminum, Metal
Oluce Coupé 3321 Floor Lamp by Joe Colombo - Red - 220–240V
By Oluce, Joe Colombo
Located in Varedo, Lombardia
The Coupé 3321 floor lamp, designed by Joe Colombo for Oluce, is one of the most celebrated icons of Italian design, combining technical innovation, functionality, and timeless aesth...
Metal, Aluminum
$1,303Sale Price|20% Off
Spider floor lamp by Joe Colombo
By Oluce, Joe Colombo
Located in Torino, IT
Spider floor lamp, by Milanese designer JOE COLOMBO, designed for the company O-LUCE. Winner of the 1967 Golden Compass Award, symbol featured on the lamp. The lamp is fully functi...
Metal
Spider Pendant by Joe Colombo for Oluce
By Oluce, Joe Colombo
Located in Los Angeles, CA
“Spider” pendant by Joe Colombo for Oluce. Designed and manufactured in Italy, 1965. Enameled metal, chrome. Rewired for US standards. Bulb(s) no...
Nickel
$2,448 / item
Colombo Wall Lamp by Joe Colombo for Oluce
By Oluce, Joe Colombo
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Colombo wall lamp designed by Joe Colombo for Oluce. Joe Colombo was one of Italy's most iconic designers and is highly regarded for his imaginary an...
Aluminum, Chrome
Oluce Colombo 626/L Floor Lamp by Joe Colombo - Scarlet red - 220–240V
By Oluce, Joe Colombo
Located in Varedo, Lombardia
The Colombo 626/L floor lamp, designed by Joe Colombo for Oluce, is one of the most iconic examples of Italian industrial design, originally conceived in 1970 as a response to the in...
Metal, Aluminum
Oluce Colombo 626/L Floor Lamp by Joe Colombo - Bronze - 220–240V
By Oluce, Joe Colombo
Located in Varedo, Lombardia
The Colombo 626/L floor lamp, designed by Joe Colombo for Oluce, is one of the most iconic examples of Italian industrial design, originally conceived in 1970 as a response to the in...
Metal, Aluminum
Fresnel-1148 EC Outdoor Lamp by Joe Colombo for Oluce
By Oluce, Joe Colombo
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Fresnel-1148/EC Outdoor lamp by Joe Colombo for Oluce. The iconic Fresnel lamp for outdoors with a fixture diameter of 10cm. The Fresnel lens makes the l...
Metal, Aluminum, Zinc
Joe Colombo 'Boby' Trolley Size M with 6 Drawers in Black for B-Line
By Joe Colombo
Located in Tilburg, NL
Joe Colombo 'Boby' Trolley for B-Line. Designed in 1970, current production. Part of the permanent collection of MoMA in New York and the “Triennale” in Milan, Smau Prize in 1971. ...
Plastic
Joe Colombo 'Boby' Trolley Size M with 5 Drawers in Black for B-Line
By Joe Colombo
Located in Tilburg, NL
Joe Colombo 'Boby' Trolley for B-Line. Designed in 1970, current production. Part of the permanent collection of MoMA in New York and the “Triennale” in Milan, Smau Prize in 1971. ...
Plastic
Joe Colombo 'Boby' Trolley Size M with 5 Drawers in Tornado Grey for B-Line
By Joe Colombo
Located in Tilburg, NL
Joe Colombo 'Boby' Trolley for B-Line. Designed in 1970, current production. Part of the permanent collection of MoMA in New York and the “Triennale” in Milan, Smau Prize in 1971. ...
Plastic
Joe Colombo 'Chair 300' Wood and Sørensen Leather by Karakter
By Joe Colombo
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Chair designed by Joe Colombo in 1965. Designed by the forward-thinking Italian designer Joe Colombo, Chair 300 is a beautiful example of his functional design sensibility. Upholst...
Leather, Wood
Oluce Fresnel 1148/LBT Outdoor Floor Lamp design Joe Colombo - 220–240V - 4 unit
By Joe Colombo, Oluce
Located in Varedo, Lombardia
The Fresnel 1148/LBT, designed by Joe Colombo for Oluce, is an iconic outdoor lighting solution originally conceived in 1966. Joe Colombo designed Fresnel to resemble one of those t...
Aluminum
$2,137Sale Price / item|20% Off
Domo Table Lamps by Joe Colombo: Mid-Century Modern Italian Design
By Joe Colombo
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Domo Table Lamp by Joe Colombo The Domo lamp was originally designed by Italian designer Joe Colombo in 1965. Back then he designed three lamps based on the same core shape. Known f...
Steel
$712Sale Price / item|20% Off
Domo Table Lamp by Joe Colombo, Steel & Brass, Mid-Century Modern Design
By Joe Colombo
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Domo Table Lamp by Joe Colombo The Domo lamp was originally designed by Italian designer Joe Colombo in 1965. Back then he designed three lamps based ...
Steel
$3,820 / item
Joe Colombo Chair 300 for Karakter
By Joe Colombo
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Joe Colombo Chair 300 for Karakter Designed by the forward-thinking Italian designer Joe Colombo, Chair 300 is a beautiful example of his funct...
Wood
$5,413 / item
Joe Colombo Chair 300 for Karakter
By Joe Colombo
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Joe Colombo Chair 300 for Karakter Designed by the forward-thinking Italian designer Joe Colombo, Chair 300 is a beautiful example of his funct...
Wood
$1,209Sale Price / item|20% Off
Joe Colombo Suspension Lamp 'the Globe' Large Gold by Oluce
By Oluce, Joe Colombo
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Suspension lamp 'The Globe' designed by Joe Colombo in 1964. Suspension lamp giving direct and diffused light in transparent blown glass. Manufactured by Oluce, Italy. The Globe is ...
Metal
White Flash Table Lamp by Joe Colombo for O-Luce, 1970s
By O-Luce, Joe Colombo
Located in Rotterdam, NL
White table lamp model Flash designed by Joe Colombo for O-Luce reflects the innovative spirit of its creator. It was inspired by the flash lights used for photo cameras. The heavy ...
Metal
Set of Six Joe Colombo 'Chair 300' Wood and Kvadrat Fabric by Karakter
By Joe Colombo
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Chair designed by Joe Colombo in 1965. Designed by the forward-thinking Italian designer Joe Colombo, Chair 300 is a beautiful example of his functional design sensibility. Upholst...
Fabric, Wood
$1,284Sale Price / item|20% Off
Joe Colombo Wall Lamp 'Colombo' Anodic Bronze by Oluce
By Oluce, Joe Colombo
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Wall lamp 'Coupé' designed by Joe Colombo in 1967. Wall lamp with chromium-plated stem, wall fixings lacquered and height adjustable reflector in lacquered aluminium. Manufactured by...
Metal, Aluminum
Set of Four Joe Colombo 'Chair 300' Wood and Kvadrat Fabric by Karakter
By Joe Colombo
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Chair designed by Joe Colombo in 1965. Designed by the forward-thinking Italian designer Joe Colombo, Chair 300 is a beautiful example of his functional design sensibility. Upholst...
Fabric, Wood
Set of Four Joe Colombo 'Chair 300' Wood and Sørensen Leather by Karakter
By Joe Colombo
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Chair designed by Joe Colombo in 1965. Designed by the forward-thinking Italian designer Joe Colombo, Chair 300 is a beautiful example of his functional design sensibility. Upholst...
Leather, Wood
$510Sale Price / item|20% Off
Joe Colombo Mini Coupé Table Lamp by Oluce, Mid-Century Modern
By Joe Colombo, Oluce
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Table Lamp model Mini Coupe designed by Joe Colombo. Table lamp giving direct light, lacquered metal base, chromium-plated stem, adjustable reflector in lacquered aluminium. Manufact...
Metal
$2,043Sale Price / set|20% Off
Set of Four Joe Colombo Mini Coupe Table Lamps by Oluce
By Joe Colombo, Oluce
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Set of Four Table Lamps model Mini Coupe designed by Joe Colombo. Table lamp giving direct light, lacquered metal base, chromium-plated stem, adjustable reflector in lacquered alumin...
Metal
$1,124Sale Price|20% Off
Italian Boby 3 Portable Storage System by Joe Colombo for Bieffeplast, 1960’s
By Joe Colombo
Located in Tel Aviv-Yafo, Tel Aviv District
Created in 1969, Joe Colombo's renowned "Boby 3" portable storage system, manufactured by Italian company Bieffeplast, ingeniously maximizes space with its swivel design. This compac...
Plastic
$824Sale Price / item|20% Off
Joe Colombo Domo Steel Table Lamp by Karakter, Mid-Century Design
By Joe Colombo
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Table lamp designed by Joe Colombo in 1965. The Domo lamp was originally designed by Italian designer Joe Colombo in 1965. Back then he designed three lamps based on the same cor...
Steel
$890Sale Price / item|20% Off
Joe Colombo Domo Brass Table Lamp by Karakter, Mid-Century Modern Design
By Joe Colombo
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Table lamp designed by Joe Colombo in 1965. The Domo lamp was originally designed by Italian designer Joe Colombo in 1965. Back then he designed three lam...
Brass
$1,640Sale Price / item|20% Off
Set of Two Joe Colombo 'Domo' Steel Table Lamps by Karakter
By Joe Colombo
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Table lamp designed by Joe Colombo in 1965. The Domo lamp was originally designed by Italian designer Joe Colombo in 1965. Back then he designed three la...
Steel
Set of Four Joe Colombo 'Chair 300' Wood and Kvadrat Fabric by Karakter
By Joe Colombo
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Chair designed by Joe Colombo in 1965. Designed by the forward-thinking Italian designer Joe Colombo, Chair 300 is a beautiful example of his functional design sensibility. Uphol...
Fabric, Wood
Set of Six Joe Colombo 'Chair 300' Wood and Sørensen Leather by Karakter
By Joe Colombo
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Chair designed by Joe Colombo in 1965. Designed by the forward-thinking Italian designer Joe Colombo, Chair 300 is a beautiful example of his functional design sensibility. Uphol...
Leather, Wood
Set of Four Joe Colombo 'Chair 300' Wood and Kvadrat Fabric by Karakter
By Joe Colombo
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Chair designed by Joe Colombo in 1965. Designed by the forward-thinking Italian designer Joe Colombo, Chair 300 is a beautiful example of his functional design sensibility. Uphol...
Fabric, Wood
$824Sale Price / item|20% Off
Joe Colombo Domo Steel Table Lamp by Karakter, Mid-Century Modern Design
By Joe Colombo
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Table lamp designed by Joe Colombo in 1965. The Domo lamp was originally designed by Italian designer Joe Colombo in 1965. Back then he designed three lamps based on the same cor...
Steel
$1,157Sale Price / item|20% Off
Joe Colombo Suspension Lamp 'the Globe' Large Nickel by Oluce
By Oluce, Joe Colombo
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Suspension lamp 'The Globe' designed by Joe Colombo in 1964. Suspension lamp giving direct and diffused light in transparent blown glass. Manufactured by Oluce, Italy. The Globe ...
Metal
Set of Two Joe Colombo 'Chair 300' Wood and Sørensen Leather by Karakter
By Joe Colombo
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Chair designed by Joe Colombo in 1965. Designed by the forward-thinking Italian designer Joe Colombo, Chair 300 is a beautiful example of his functional design sensibility. Upholst...
Leather, Wood
$824Sale Price / item|20% Off
Joe Colombo Domo Steel Table Lamp by Karakter, Mid-Century Modern Design
By Joe Colombo
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Table lamp designed by Joe Colombo in 1965. The Domo lamp was originally designed by Italian designer Joe Colombo in 1965. Back then he designed three lamps based on the same cor...
Steel
Set of Four Joe Colombo 'Chair 300' Wood and Kvadrat Fabric by Karakter
By Joe Colombo
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Chair designed by Joe Colombo in 1965. Designed by the forward-thinking Italian designer Joe Colombo, Chair 300 is a beautiful example of his functional design sensibility. Uphol...
Fabric, Wood
Set of Four Joe Colombo 'Chair 300' Wood and Sørensen Leather by Karakter
By Joe Colombo
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Chair designed by Joe Colombo in 1965. Designed by the forward-thinking Italian designer Joe Colombo, Chair 300 is a beautiful example of his functional design sensibility. Uphol...
Leather, Wood
Set of Six Joe Colombo 'Chair 300' Wood and Kvadrat Fabric by Karakter
By Joe Colombo
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Chair designed by Joe Colombo in 1965. Designed by the forward-thinking Italian designer Joe Colombo, Chair 300 is a beautiful example of his functional design sensibility. Uphol...
Fabric, Wood
Set of Four Joe Colombo 'Chair 300' Wood and Kvadrat Fabric by Karakter
By Joe Colombo
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Chair designed by Joe Colombo in 1965. Designed by the forward-thinking Italian designer Joe Colombo, chair 300 is a beautiful example of his functional design sensibility. Uphol...
Fabric, Wood
Set of Two Joe Colombo 'Chair 300' Wood and Sørensen Leather by Karakter
By Joe Colombo
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Chair designed by Joe Colombo in 1965. Designed by the forward-thinking Italian designer Joe Colombo, Chair 300 is a beautiful example of his functional design sensibility. Uphol...
Leather, Wood
Joe Colombo 'Chair 300' Wood and Kvadrat Fabric by Karakter
By Joe Colombo
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Chair designed by Joe Colombo in 1965. Designed by the forward-thinking Italian designer Joe Colombo, Chair 300 is a beautiful example of his functional design sensibility. Uphol...
Fabric, Wood
Italian metal LED floor lamps 626 di Joe Colombo for Oluce, 1970s
By Joe Colombo, Oluce
Located in MIlano, IT
Italian metal LED floor lamp 626 di Joe Colombo for Oluce, 1970s Pair of floor lamps model 636 with adjustable diffusers in white curved metal with black details. The diffuser featur...
Metal
$637Sale Price / item|20% Off
Joe Colombo Riscio Table Lamp, Steel, Mid-Century Modern Design, Denmark
By Joe Colombo
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Table lamp designed by Joe Colombo in 1968. With its sleek yet optimistic clarity of form; a light, triangular shade seemingly floating off a weighty cylindric base, Italian desi...
Steel
$1,054Sale Price / item|20% Off
Joe Colombo Wall Lamp 'The Globe' Transparent Blown Glass by Oluce
By Oluce, Joe Colombo
Located in Barcelona, Barcelona
Wall lamp 'The Globe' designed by Joe Colombo in 1964. Wall lamp giving direct and diffused light in transparent blown glass. Manufactured by Oluce, Italy. The Globe is a lamp wh...
Nickel
Oluce Colombo 885/L Ceiling Lamp by Joe Colombo - Scarlet red - 220–240V
By Joe Colombo, Oluce
Located in Varedo, Lombardia
The Colombo 885/L ceiling lamp, designed by Joe Colombo for Oluce, is a milestone of Italian industrial design, originally conceived in 1970 during the rapid diffusion of halogen lig...
Metal, Aluminum
4 Triedro Appliques, Joe Colombo for Stilnovo
By Joe Colombo
Located in Milano, Lombardia
Triedro, a 1970 design by Joe Colombo, evokes the stage lamps of photographic sets. The lampshade is made of shaped metal and bent into three parts so that it reflects light without ...
Metal
Flash Table Lamp Model 2207 by Joe Colombo for O-Luce, 1970s
By O-Luce, Joe Colombo
Located in Rotterdam, NL
The Flash table lamp model 2207 designed by Joe Colombo for O-Luce reflects the innovative spirit of its creator. Flash was designed as a well thought-o...
Metal
Travertine Coffee Table with Monumental Travertine Legs
By Joe Colombo
Located in Sag Harbor, NY
This luxurious coffee table features a beautiful travertine tabletop and matching monumental travertine legs that are sure to make a statement. Perfect for a living room or formal re...
Travertine
6 Bicchieri Smoke Joe Colombo per Arnolfo di Cambio altezza 12 cm.
By Joe Colombo, Arnolfo di Cambio
Located in Milano, IT
6 Bicchieri Smoke Joe Colombo per Arnolfo di Cambio
Glass
Oluce Acrilica 281 MP Limited Edition Table Lamp - Joe & Gianni Colombo 220–240V
By Joe Colombo, Oluce
Located in Varedo, Lombardia
The Acrilica 281 MP Limited Edition, designed by Joe Colombo and Gianni Colombo for Oluce in 1962, is one of the most iconic masterpieces of Italian design and a landmark in the hist...
Marble
White Joe Colombo floor lamp with dry bar
By Joe Colombo
Located in Brussel, BE
Impressive large white Joe Colombo floor lamp with dry bar. Really good condition !
Chrome
White 4630 Roto Ashtray by Joe Colombo for Kartell
By Kartell, Joe Colombo
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Originally designed in 1970 and produced by Kartell in 1973 two years after designer Joe Colombo's death, the Kartell 4630 Roto/Rotocenere ashtray is Colombo at his finest. White pla...
Plastic
Joe Colombo Plywood 4801 Lounge Chair No 42, Kartell, 1960s
By Joe Colombo, Kartell
Located in Echt, NL
Early 4801 Lounge Chair by Joe Colombo in very good condition Number 42 This chair is formed from 3 pieces of plywood which lock together without a...
Plywood
Oluce Spider Table Lamp by Joe Colombo - Black - 220–240V
By Joe Colombo, Oluce
Located in Varedo, Lombardia
The Spider table lamp, designed by Joe Colombo for Oluce, is one of the most celebrated icons of Italian lighting design. Originally introduced in 1965, Spider perfectly embodies Joe...
Metal, Aluminum
Joe Colombo Vademecum Lamp in Red
By Joe Colombo, Kartell
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Scarce Vademecum table lamp, model 4034, designed Joe Colombo for Kartell. The forward-thinking design is intended to be versatile and portable, with a name in Latin that translates ...
Chrome
Joe Colombo Model #2201 'Mini Coupé' Table Lamp in Scarlet Red for Oluce
By Oluce, Joe Colombo
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Joe Colombo model #2201 'Mini Coupé' table lamp in scarlet red for Oluce. Executed in red enameled metal and chrome, this table lamp is a smaller-scale version of one of the most r...
Metal, Aluminum, Chrome
Oluce Coupé 1158 Wall Lamp design Joe Colombo - Black - 220–240V
By Joe Colombo, Oluce
Located in Varedo, Lombardia
The Coupé 1158 wall lamp, designed by Joe Colombo for Oluce, is part of the iconic Coupé family, one of the most recognized lighting systems in contemporary Italian design. Original...
Metal, Aluminum