Name: Achille Castiglioni Mid-Century Beige "Cocoon" Pendant, Italy 1960s
Brand: Achille & Pier Giacomo Castiglioni
Rating: 5 (150 reviews)

About the Item

Stunning mid-century beige cocoon pendant in resin and steel. This gorgeous cocoon ceiling lamp was designed by Achille Castiglioni in Italy during the 1960s. In amazing vintage conditions, with no tear or rips. This cocoon has a marvelous vintage beige patina that makes it incredibly charming and elegant when lit. The pendant is wired and tested, compatible with both US and EU/UK standards, it uses a single E26/27 light bulb. The pendant features a round shade made in a natural soft resin which covers a metal frame with a regular and sensual convex shape. The effect when lit is simply spectacular. The lamp is in excellent vintage condition with no rips. An iconic pendant to complement a midcentury-style living room or a modern organic kitchen. Measures in cm: Diameter - 40 Height- 35 Max Height with cord - 150 Castiglioni was born on 16 February 1918 in Milan, in Lombardy in northern Italy. He was the third son of the sculptor Giannino Castiglioni and his wife Livia Bolla. His elder brothers Livio and Pier Giacomo were both architects. Castiglioni studied classics at the Liceo classico Giuseppe Parini [it] in Milan, but switched to study the arts at the Liceo artistico di Brera. In 1937 he enrolled in the faculty of architecture of the Politecnico di Milano. When the Second World War broke out, he became an officer in the artillery, and was stationed on the Greek front and later in Sicily. He returned to Milan before the Allied Invasion of 1943. In March 1944 he graduated from the Politecnico. When the War was over, Castiglioni joined the architectural design practice that his brothers Livio and Pier Giacomo had started with Luigi Caccia Dominioni in 1938. Much of their work was in exhibition design, but they also carried out a number of architectural projects, including the reconstruction in 1952–53 of the Palazzo della Permanente [it], which had been destroyed by bombing in 1943. Livio Castiglioni left the practice in 1952. From then until Pier Giacomo died in 1968, he and Achille worked as a team; their designs are not attributable to either one of them. After the death of Pier Giacomo, Castiglioni worked alone. From 1969 he taught architectural and design subjects, first at the Politecnico di Torino, and then, from 1980 when he became an ordinario or full professor, at the Politecnico di Milano. Achille Castiglioni died on 2 December 2002 in Milan. The Castiglioni brothers designed the Lierna chair – an upright dining-chair in lacquered wood with a slightly padded plywood seat – for Cassina in 1960. In the exhibition brochure for Design!, the 1997 monographic exhibition about Castiglioni's work at MoMA Paola Antonelli writes: "Castiglioni loves paradoxes and the new perception and wisdom they can engender. One example is the Sella (saddle), the pivoting stool designed with Pier Giacomo in 1957, which garnered the Castiglionis an incongruous "Dadaist" label because of its use of an already existing, everyday object in an unexpected context.".

Creator:
Achille & Pier Giacomo Castiglioni (Designer)
Dimensions:
Height: 13.78 in (35 cm)Diameter: 15.75 in (40 cm)
Power Source:
Hardwired
Voltage:
110-150v,208v,220-240v
Lampshade:
Included
Style:
Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
Materials and Techniques:
Metal,Resin,Steel,Hand-Crafted
Place of Origin:
Italy
Period:
1960-1969
Date of Manufacture:
1960
Condition:
Seller Location:
Roma, IT
Reference Number:
1stDibs: LU3067346956132

Shop All Achille & Pier Giacomo Castiglioni

Achille & Pier Giacomo Castiglioni

Milanese industrial designer-architects Achille and Pier Giacomo Castiglioni (1918–2002; 1913-68) created some of the most iconic furniture designs in the world, particularly those that originated in the realm of mid-century modern lighting.

In the late 1930s, after graduating from the acclaimed Polytechnic University of Milan, Pier Giacomo opened a design studio with his brother Livio and likeminded architect Luigi Caccia Dominioni. Achille, also a graduate of Milan Polytechnic, joined the group after completing his studies in 1944. The era’s architects were encountering difficulty in their attempts to secure building commissions, so the group focused on designing practical everyday objects such as the Model 547, a tabletop radio for Phonola that was encased in Bakelite.

The Castiglioni brothers produced wildly popular and innovative designs throughout the 20th century. While Livio departed the practice in 1952 to pursue lighting design and sound technology on his own, Pier Giacomo and Achille would continue to collaborate on a wealth of projects in the ensuing years.

Vintage furniture collectors may be familiar with Livio and Italian designer Gianfranco Frattini’s serpent-like Boalum lamp, while Achille’s Taraxacum hanging lamp — created for FLOS with sprayed plastic polymers originally intended for military use — as well as the Arco, Snoopy and Toio lamps, which were the result of the collaboration between Pier Giacomo and Achille, are milestones in modernist lighting design.

Also for FLOS, Pier Giacomo and Achille created a series of metal frames that, wrapped in the polymer, became floor lamps (Gatto) or pendant lights (Viscontea and Taraxacum), all released in 1960. The Gatto floor lamp takes its name from the Italian word for “cat” and the inspiration for its aesthetic from lighting that George Nelson developed for legendary American furniture manufacturer Howard Miller during the 1940s. Around the same time, the designer Tobia Scarpa (son of the famed Italian architect Carlo Scarpa and one-half of the widely revered postmodern husband-and-wife design duo Afra and Tobia Scarpa) created a floor lamp called Fantasma (1961) using the polymers technique. FLOS continues to make the Castiglionis’ innovative pieces today.

In addition to their provocative lighting works, Pier Giacomo and Achille also created stereo systems, decorative objects, seating, tables and other items for the likes of Brionvega, Alessi, Zanotta, Kartell and more.

Find vintage Achille and Pier Giacomo Castiglioni floor lamps, table lamps, pendants, seating and other furniture on 1stDibs.

Materials

Metal, Steel

Achille Castiglioni Mid-Century Beige "Cocoon" Pendant, Italy 1960s

About the Item

Achille & Pier Giacomo Castiglioni

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