Design

Artificial light as a playground

A table lamp, a sculpture whose concave body emerges from a single carved block of statuary marble from Carrara.
“For me, artificial light is a tool that at every step of its life stunts you, always changing something. However, this represents the game’s flavor: therefore, artificial light is a playground.

It is only with apparent weightlessness that Tobia Scarpa addresses his design projects, as evidenced by his Biagio lamp. A piece named in homage to the poet Biagio Marin, a friend of Afra and Tobia Scarpa, executed with expertise and in-depth knowledge of the material. When switched off, it is a sculpture whose smooth surface shines and reflects the natural light enhancing the Carrara statuary marble; once lit, it takes on warmer tones that emphasize the material’s grain.

Designed in 1968 for Flos, a company that he helped to found in 1960, Biagio is a table lamp with direct light. Its concave body was shaped from a single carved block of Carrara statuary marble. The natural veins of the marble, accentuated by the filtered light, render each piece unique.

Born in 1935, son of an artist Carlo Scarpa, Tobia Scarpa has received several design awards, including two Compassi d’Oro, one in 1969 for the Soriana armchair designed for Cassina, and one for his career in 2008. Some of his projects are exhibited in some of the world’s leading museums.
He signed most of his projects with his wife, Afra. As an architect, he worked for both public and private clients, including the Benetton Group, for which he designed the industrial area and production facilities in Castrette di Villorba (Treviso).

By Sabrina Sciama

 

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