Vintage "Birillo" table lamp in chrome and glass by Carlo Nason for Mazzega, Italy 1970

A wonderful vintage Italian table lamp made by Carlo Nason for Mazzega. Produced in Murano, Venice in the 1970s, this chrome and glass lamp exemplifies Carlo Nason’s workmanship. Using vibrant colours, Nason has used a bright orange glass for the base and gorgeous white milky glass for the top which gives a fantastic glow when the light is on whilst being a lovely item of sculptural glassware. The pedal switch offers three light settings whereby the user can choose between having just the white top illuminated, or in combination with the orange base or indeed just the orange base, depending on the level of ambiance and light required for the room. The lamp screams retro chic, a perfect addition to any mid century or modern interior. Carlo Nason influenced the current tradition of glassmaking on an island renowned for it for hundreds of years. Celebrated for their exceptional designs, Nason’s lighting fixtures are sought after by collectors worldwide.Learning to design and craft pieces from the family ‘vetreria’, rather than partaking in any formal training Nason was working with the maestros at his family’s company furnace, V.Nason & C., attached to their family home when he was just 11 years old. Although his roots are in Murano glassmaking, he took inspiration from the clean lines and natural colours of the Japanese metal vases he had seen in his youth at Milanese fairs.Wanting to produce modern glass lamps, Nason worked with his family friend Gianni Mazzega of Mazzega, Murano. The 1970s and 1980s were productive and creative years for Nason as the sole and independent designer at Mazzega Murano. After a mere four years as a glassmaker, Carlo Nason had his creations displayed at the Corning Museum of Glass in New York. The credit for the artisan’s pieces that were included in “Glass 1959“ went to his family’s company, but the designs were all authored by Carlo.Stepping away from the traditional, vibrant Murano stylings, Nason kept true to his inspiration, working with modern and simple forms that are relatively free of colour. In a rare 2019 interview, Nason explained how his emotions inspired the shapes and that his legacy includes fixtures that cannot be replicable or reproduced as Nason made lighting pieces with multiple layers of glass that would be too costly or difficult to recreate today. Some designs were made with processes and materials that are now unavailable or banned in the glassmaking world. Reference : 297464