Pair of vintage model 600P lamps in lacquered aluminum and synthetic leather by Gino Sarfatti for Arteluce, Italy 1966

For sale are a pair of iconic and extremely rare orange 600P table lamps by GINO SARFATTI, designed in 1966 and produced by Arteluce of Italy. Thanks to their lead-filled weighted pouch bases, the lamps can be placed at any angle and the reflector shades can be rotated to direct light in any direction. Made of orange synthetic leather & lacquered aluminium, the lights are in good overall condition despite some chips to the paintwork on the shade of one of the lamps in particular (see photos). This ingenious design was intended as a lamp you could pack in a suitcase and take on holiday. Exhibited at the 14th Milan Triennale in 1968, the Model 600 was also exhibited at the 1972 "Italy: The New Domestic Landscape" at MoMA in New York, the 1985 exhibition "Lumieres je pense à vous" at the Centre Pompidou in Paris and in 1986 the "Italia diseño" exhibition at the Museo Rufino Tamayo in Mexico City. It is, amongst others, part of the permanent collection of MoMA in New York. About Sarfatti: Sarfatti’s singular focus on creating opulent lighting designs that were rational in their use of resources makes him one of the most innovative lighting designers in history. He was studying to be an aeronautical engineer at the University of Genoa when his family’s financial troubles led him to drop out and move to Milan to help. During this time, he built a lamp for a friend using a coffee machine’s electric components and a glass vase. This exercise sparked his fascination with lighting, and he went on to found Arteluce in 1939. What followed was a period of working with skilled artisans and tinkering with materials instead of sketching. The self-taught designer soon established himself as a creator of provocative, sculptural luxury lighting. Through the company, he collaborated with some of the 20th century’s most influential designers, such as Vittoriano Viganò, who worked on Arteluce lighting between 1946 and 1960. In the 1950s and ’70s, Franco Albini, Franca Helg, Ico Parisi and Massimo Vignelli all contributed designs. Sarfatti used resources mindfully and injected functionality into everything he designed. His light fixtures were lightweight, easy to take apart and reassemble and could be affordably repaired. This marriage of utilitarianism and glamour lent Sarfatti’s designs a clean, minimal yet arresting splendour, based on their graphical forms and construction. Reference : 305314