21st Century Triennale Floor Lamp, brass & black, Angelo Lelii, 2019, Italy

For some, there’s nothing wholly remarkable about the Eye floor lamp at first glance. It’s a slender metal pole with a flared top and an orb that houses the bulb. But if you lean in to take a closer look at that orb — which pivots in a socket positioned on the stem about two-thirds of the way up — it becomes clear that it was intended to mimic an eye. Such was the adventurous nature of Italian designer Angelo Lelii (1911–79), a pioneer of postwar lighting.

While not much has been reported about Lelii’s life — even his last name is frequently misspelled “Lelli” — it is certain that he founded the legendary lighting design company Arredoluce in Monza, Italy, in 1943, after building light fixtures in his basement. Lelii’s work exemplified a dedication to craftsmanship and employed innovative technology. In 1946, after his lamps appeared in the acclaimed design magazine Domus, he went on to collaborate with modernist greats such as Domus cofounder and furniture maker Gio Ponti and Memphis Group member Ettore Sottsass Jr. Lelii’s best-known design is likely his Triennale floor lamp, which debuted at the Milan Triennale VIII in 1947. The Eye floor lamp arrived later.

With a base made of marble, a painted nickel shaft and an eye formed from brass and glass, the Eye floor lamp is demonstrative of a decidedly sleek and futuristic direction for Lelii. The fixture is thought to have been designed during the early 1960s. It was produced by Arredoluce until its closure in 1979, when Lelii died.

Angelo Lelii’s energetic and imaginative floor lamps, sconces and chandeliers often reflected his singular personality — whimsical but practical. He is responsible for some of the most delightfully eye-pleasing but functional works in the history of Italian mid-century modern lighting design.

Lelii was born Paolo Angelo Lelii in the seaport town of Ancona and moved to Milan when he was quite young. Not much is known about his early life — online resources frequently have his last name misspelled “Lelli” — except that he studied at the Superior Institute of Industrial Art in nearby Monza.

While there was no shortage of pioneering work being done in the field of mid-century modern lighting design, Lelii was a visionary whose dream was to create technologically advanced lighting that embodied the simple lines of modern design but would be defined by his own imaginative twists. In 1943, Lelii opened his first workshop in a tiny basement in Monza, under the name Arredoluce. A few years later, he designed the single-light, bent-arm Tris floor lamp. Later that year, he exhibited his Triennale floor lamp at the Milan Triennale VIII and garnered wide acclaim. This iconic, slender lamp features three adjustable arms with enameled aluminum shades.

Lelii’s sculptural fixtures in brass and cast iron appeared in the acclaimed design journal Domus, and he embarked on high-profile collaborations with Italian modernist legends such as Gio Ponti — a giant of architecture and design as well as a founder of Domus — Memphis Group member Ettore Sottsass Jr. and the brothers Castiglioni (formally known as Achille, Pier Giacomo and Livio).

Massive success followed for Arredoluce from the late 1950s and into the 1960s. For Lelii, there was his seminal Stella ceiling lamp, featuring opaque, acid-etched glass globe shades; his minimalist Cobra table lamp, which was one of the world’s first low voltage light fixtures; and his aptly named Eye floor lamp. Lelii continued to oversee design and production at his revolutionary lighting firm until his death in 1979.

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