The dome-shaped spun aluminium shade at the end of the long, curved stem of the lamp dangles effortlessly with so much grace and sophistication. At the base of the lamp the marble fixture is luxurious and opulent and is a stark contrast between its natural characteristics and the modern look of the stainless steel stem. The Arco floor lamp is a true icon of modernist design and is one of the best examples of the interconnection between modernistic, geometric and organic structure.
The Arco floor lamp was designed by Achille and Pier Giacomo Castiglioni for Flos in 1962 and is a modern design classic that is in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York. Often known as the Castiglioni brothers, they have become one of the most witty, elegant and innovative partnerships in modern design. The brothers worked from the viewpoint that design must restructure an object’s function and form as well as the production process. They then applied this principle and ethos to every work that they produced. Castiglioni described this process with these words: “Start from scratch. Stick to common sense. Know your goals and means”. They brothers started out in the 1950′s by redesigning objects such as the tractor seat stool. Mezzadro and their Sella made from a bicycle seat. As well as these iconic redesigns the Castiglioni brothers produced a remarkable number of popular designs throughout the fifties and the sixties such as the Spalter Vacuum cleaner manufactured by Rem which was made of bright red plastic and the minimalist lamps called the Luminator and the Bulb.
It was in the 1960′s that their popularity began to change as they produced the first ever Arco floor lamp with its long, curved arm extending eight feet from a luxurious marble base. It was the Arco lamp that really propelled them into fame and straight into the design history books as it has become one of the most iconic modern lighting designs ever made.
The lamp is made from a dome-shaped, perforated spun aluminium shade, connected to a rectangular white marble base via an adjustable stainless steel stem. The shade has a diameter of 12.6 inches, the arm has an extension that is adjustable from 84.6 inches to 86.6 inches, the base has a height of 21.5 inches and a width of 9.4 inches and finally the height of the lamp reaches t 91.34 inches.
Flos’s lighting fixtures are daring and provocative, yet uphold the fundamental principles of good design and that is why they are perfect for the modern home. The Arco light will fit into a wide variety of different décors and look amazing dangling over a corner sofa or over an armchair. The light that is emitted from this lamp is both direct at certain angles and diffused and ambient at others. The aluminium shade really helps to refract light into the atmosphere and the perforated holes are a wonderful touch as they propel pinhole sized light beams into the ceiling, creating wonderful patterning.
