Pair of 'Snow' Italian Midcentury Table Lamps by Vico Magistretti for Oluce
View Similar Items
Pair of 'Snow' Italian Midcentury Table Lamps by Vico Magistretti for Oluce
About the Item
- Creator:Oluce (Maker),Vico Magistretti (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 24.02 in (61 cm)Diameter: 24.41 in (62 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1970-1979
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. The lamps are in very nice condition but, although not particularly noticeable, there is a little flaking to the black paint on the top of each dome (see photos).
- Seller Location:Glasgow, GB
- Reference Number:Seller: 2 VICO1stDibs: LU4540215440752
Vico Magistretti
As one of the founding fathers of modern Italian design, prolific architect and industrial designer Ludovico Magistretti (known by his nickname Vico) was guided by his philosophy, “There is no excuse for bad design.” His architectural projects are widely revered, and an ingenious meld of form and function can be found in his stylish and deceptively simple table lamps, sofas, armchairs and other mid-century furnishings.
Born in Milan, Magistretti followed in the footsteps of his father and grandfather (both architects) to study architecture at the Polytechnic University of Milan. At the outbreak of World War II, he fled to Switzerland, and it was there he met his role model and mentor, renowned humanist architect Ernesto Nathan Rogers. Magistretti was inspired by Rogers’s vision to revive postwar Italy, and they collaborated on several reconstruction projects. Among Magistretti’s first architectural designs is a “poetic” round church, which he created for the QT8, an experimental Milanese neighborhood.
When Magistretti returned to Milan in 1945, he worked at his father’s architectural firm. It wasn’t until the early 1950s that he expanded his talents into design while working with furniture artisans.
In the 1960s, Magistretti began his 30-year working relationship with famed entrepreneur Cesare Cassina of the Cassina furniture manufacturing company. In their design approach, the two men shared a vision of the relationship between modernity and tradition and enjoyed a close bond (Magistretti designed Cassina’s luxurious villa in 1965). However, their friendship was not without contention.
Legend has it that upon seeing the prototype for Magistretti’s Maralunga sofa, Cassina hated it so much that he punched it, breaking the back of the sofa, which crumpled into itself.
“Right, great, it looks perfect to me like that,” an unfazed Magistretti allegedly responded, and the Maralunga’s slumped, adjustable-height backrest was born. Incidentally, the Maralunga sofa won Italy’s Compasso d’Oro award as did his Eclisse lamp for Artemide and his Atollo lamp for Oluce.
Magistretti died in 2006, but his designs live on in galleries, museums and private residences and offices around the world.
Find a range of vintage Vico Magistretti furniture and lighting on 1stDibs.
- Vico Magistretti 'Atollo' Opaline Glass Table Lamp for OluceBy Vico Magistretti, OluceLocated in Glendale, CAVico Magistretti 'Atollo' opaline glass table lamp for Oluce. Originally designed in 1977, this iconic re-edition is still crafted by Oluce in I...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsMetal
- Small Vico Magistretti 'Atollo' Opaline Glass Table Lamp For OluceBy Vico Magistretti, OluceLocated in Glendale, CASmall Vico Magistretti 'Atollo' opaline glass table lamp for Oluce. Originally designed in 1977, this iconic re-edition is still crafted by Oluc...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsMetal
- Large Vico Magistretti 'Atollo' Opaline Glass Table Lamp For OluceBy Vico Magistretti, OluceLocated in Glendale, CALarge Vico Magistretti 'Atollo' opaline glass table lamp for Oluce. Originally designed in 1977, this iconic re-edition is still crafted by Oluce in Italy using many of the origina...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsMetal
- Vico Magistretti for Oluce Snow Table Lamp, 1973By Oluce, Vico MagistrettiLocated in San Francisco, CAA 1973 postmodern Snow table lamp by Vico Magistretti for Oluce. A very cool model 201 table lamp from Italian design icon Vico Magistretti’s Snow...Category
Vintage 1970s Italian Post-Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsCarrara Marble, Metal
- Vico Magistretti Kuta Table Lamp for Oluce, Italy, 1980sBy Vico Magistretti, OluceLocated in Milan, ITMinimalistic Kuta table lamp by Vico Magistretti for Oluce, Italy, 1980s.Category
Vintage 1980s Italian Post-Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsMarble, Metal
- Atollo 236 Table Lamp by Vico Magistretti for OluceBy Oluce, Vico MagistrettiLocated in London, EnglandThe archetypal table lamp, this is an example of an early edition of the Atollo lamp, finished in high gloss black aluminium. The classic design is known universally for its simpli...Category
Vintage 1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsAluminum