Martinelli Luce is another very design-oriented Italian lighting brand which we adore. Founder and designer Elio Martinelli was born in Lucca and studied at the Academy of Fine Arts in Florence. His often experimental ideas included using new materials – like his famous 1969 „Foglia“ table lamp made from white methacrylate (acrylic glass). If you still want to call this design „midcentury modern“, then certainly with emphasis on „modern“. It has a bit of a space age-feel – but certainly with a luxurious 21st-century twist.

Despite technical experiments, Martinelli found his inspiration often in nature: from the idea for an articulated mechanism to the naming of his famous lamps ‚Cobra‘ and ‚Serpente‘, for example. But also the scaly surface of ‚Nuvole Vagabonde‘ or the crystalline structure of ‚Poliedro‘ could almost be counted as bionic design.

Many of his lamps and luminous objects have won awards and been included in museum collections worldwide. This matching pair of Foglia lights would look great on a large sideboard – or on a desk where important decisions are made – whether it’s space travel or corporate mergers.