Vico Magistretti for Oluce Snow Table Lamp, 1973

About the Item

A 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 collection of lighting for Oluce—comprised of a table lamp, floor lamp, and pedant—that was only in original production for about a year. Substantial 1.75-inch-thick round carrara marble base with dynamic veining and a chamfered bottom edge. Oversized white acrylic plexiglass shade sits freely upon a black enameled ball-shaped element with dual sockets on a thin matching stem. Minimalist form and black & white materials transform into a warm and inviting light source with a flick of the inline switch.

Creator:
Vico Magistretti (Designer),Oluce (Manufacturer)
Design:
Snow Table LampSnow Series
Dimensions:
Height: 24.25 in (61.6 cm)Diameter: 24.25 in (61.6 cm)
Power Source:
Plug-in
Voltage:
110-150v
Lampshade:
Included
Style:
Post-Modern (Of the Period)
Materials and Techniques:
Acrylic,Carrara Marble,Metal,Plexiglass,Enameled
Place of Origin:
Italy
Period:
1970-1979
Date of Manufacture:
1973
Condition:
Rewired: Cord, inline switch, and plug are more recent. Wear consistent with age and use. In very good vintage condition. A couple small marks on black enameled top element, as well as some very tiny white paint specks. Shade with a few light line marks and a small dark spot on interior.
Seller Location:
San Francisco, CA
Reference Number:
1stDibs: LU955037060322
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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.