Renowned among architects and interior designers for its slender and unassuming table lamps, pendants and floor lamps in brushed nickel and varnish-coated aluminum, Italian manufacturer Lumina has been producing lighting solutions for residential and commercial properties all over the globe for several decades.
Lumina is the brainchild of founder Tommaso Cimini, a Milanese lighting designer who worked as a technician at Artemide prior to establishing his own firm. In 1975, he created a prototype of a very minimalist table lamp — it comprised little more than an articulated arm, a modest-sized diffuser and a transformer that, instead of being tucked inside the base, was visible to anyone who stopped by Cimini’s workbench to admire his clever fixture.
Cimini’s idea — “lots of light, not much lamp” — was the catalyst for the Daphine table lamp, a deceptively simple design that debuted at the Milan Trade Fair to considerable critical acclaim.
Based on the success of the now-iconic Daphine lamp, Cimini formed Lumina in Sedriano, a town in Milan, in 1980. The new decade marked the start of an albeit brief era of postmodern design, which would yield innovative, unconventional furnishings and decorative objects in Cimini’s native Italy from the likes of the Memphis Group and others. Together with several notable figures in the field of lighting design, including Riccardo Blumer, Yaacov Kaufman, Walter Monici and Emanuele Ricci, Cimini’s firm created a range of sculptural fixtures in appealing contemporary styles.
There were Monici’s Tangram metal and aluminum table lamps, which feature a jointed arm and reflector that rotates 360 degrees. Elsewhere, Kaufman’s Matrix pendant light was made of aluminum and steel with 16 moveable arms fitted with halogen or fluorescent bulbs. In the subsequent years, Lumina opened branches in Switzerland and Germany and collaborated with British architecture and design firm Foster + Partners to create sleek pieces such as the Flo desk lamp, Ilium pendant lamp and EVA glass table lamp.
Cimini died in 1997, leaving Lumina to his son Ettore, who runs the company today. Several Lumina lamps, particularly the Daphine, are held in the collections of museums such as the Brooklyn Museum, the Musée des Arts Décoratifs and more, and the company’s fixtures are sold in more than 100 countries all over the world.
Find vintage Lumina table lamps, floor lamps and other lighting on 1stDibs.
$942
H 23.63 in W 17.33 in D 6.89 in
Postmodern Italian Multi X Table Lamp by Yaacov Kaufmann for Lumina, 1980s
By Lumina, Yaacov Kaufman
Located in Hamburg, DE
Flexible desk lamp by Lumina, based on a design by Yaacov Kaufmann from the 1980s. The design stands out for its flexibility and technical aesthetics. The lamp arm is integrated int...
Metal
Italian Desk Lamp from Lumenform, 1970s
By Lumenform
Located in Leuven, Vlaams Gewest
Well designed adjustable desk lamp by Lumenform. The bulb holder can be maove around all along the lamp and the angle of the arm can be adjusted. Very handy desk lamp. Tested and...
Metal, Chrome
Table Lamp by Ernesto Gismondi for Artemide, Italy, 1970s
By Ernesto Gismondi, Artemide
Located in Hagenbach, DE
This table lamp, designed by Ernesto Gismondi for Artemide in Italy during the 1970s, is a fine example of mid-century modern lighting design. It showcases the designer’s signature b...
Metal
$2,061Sale Price|30% Off
H 29 in W 36 in D 12 in
Postmodern Counterweight Desk Lamp by Robert Sonneman, USA 1970-80s
By Sonneman Lighting, Robert Sonneman
Located in Brussels, Brussels
Ingenious desk lamp with a counterweight mechanism which allows the lamp to be stable in every position. The spheric counterweight is solid steel and heavy enough to point or positio...
Aluminum, Steel, Stainless Steel, Chrome
Mid-Century Modern Table Lamp by Veneta Lumi, Metal, Italy, 1970s
By Veneta Lumi
Located in Milano, IT
1970s Gorgeous white space age table lamp by Veneta Lumi. Made in Italy. The lamp works perfectly, some signs of aging on it but however in very good condition. Dimensions: 6,29" x ...
Metal
Mid-Century Modern Table Lamp by Riccardo Blumer, Italy, 1960
By Artemide, Riccardo Blumer
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
A grey, vintage Mid-Century Modern Italian table lamp made of hand crafted brushed aluminum, designed by Riccardo Blumer and produced by Artemide, featuring a one light socket in good condition. This desk light is a discontinued model, the base has still the original label. The wires have been renewed. Wear consistent with age and use. circa 1960, Italy. Measures: Base: 0.5" H x 8.5" W x 8.5" D Shade: 2.75" H x 4.5" W 5" D Riccardo Blumer is an Italian designer, architect, professor and a choreographer born in 1959, in Bergamo, Italy. Blumer graduated from the Polytechnic University of Milan, the largest technical university in Italy. In 1966, he designed laleggera for Alias, which won the ADI Compasso d’Oro in 1998. Since 2006, Blumer works at the University of San Marino, Italy. Artemide is an Italian design-oriented manufacturer, founded in 1960 in Pregnana Milanese, Italy by the Italian engineer Ernesto Gismondi. The company Artemide is well-known for their excellent design, for example the Tizio desk lamp...
Metal, Aluminum
Design Adjustable Midcentury Table Lamp by Lidokov, 1970s
By Lidokov
Located in Praha, CZ
- 1970s - Czechoslovakia - Good original condition - Marked by maker.
Metal
Midcentury Adjustable Table Lamp, 1980s
Located in Praha, CZ
- Made in Czechoslovakia - Made of metal, steel - Re-polished - Fully functional - Good, original condition.
Metal, Steel
Midcentury Table Lamp Designed by J. Hurka, 1970s
By Josef Hurka, Napako
Located in Praha, CZ
- Czechoslovakia - Design: Josef Hurka - Good original condition.
Metal, Chrome
Design Adjustable Midcentury Table Lamp by Lidokov, 1970s
By Lidokov
Located in Praha, CZ
- 1970s - Czechoslovakia - Good original condition - Marked.
Metal
Nana Table Lamp by Carlo Nason for Lumenform, 1980s
By Carlo Nason, Lumenform
Located in Rotterdam, NL
Nana is a playful table lamp that was designed by Carlo Nason and produced by Lumenform in the 1980s. The lamp can be placed in different positions, f...
Metal
Galdino Clamp Lamp by Carlo Urbinati for Harvey Guzzini, 1970s
By Harvey Guzzini, Carlo Urbinati
Located in Rotterdam, NL
Galdino table lamp that was designed by Carlo Urbinati for Harvey Guzzini in 1972. Galdino has been produced in many versions; a table lamp, a wall lamp and a floor lamp (with one a...
Metal, Aluminum
Philips Table Lamp Model NX 110 by Louis Kalff, 1950s
By Louis Kalff, Philips
Located in Rotterdam, NL
Rare table lamp, Model NX 110, designed by Louis Christiaan Kalff for Philips Eindhoven. It has a grey steel frame; the shade is ...
Metal
Adjustable table lamp by Vid Brataševec for Lumenform, 1970s
By Lumenform
Located in Rotterdam, NL
Adjustable table lamp designed by Vid Brataševec and manufactured by Lumenform, 1970s. The lamp consists of a chrome-plated adjustable reflector, a slim frame and a relatively heavy...
Metal
Periscopio Table Lamp by Danilo & Corrado Aroldi for Stilnovo, 1967
By Stilnovo, Danilo & Corrado Arnoldi
Located in Rotterdam, NL
Periscopio table lamp with standard by Danilo and Corrado Aroldi for Stilnovo, 1967. As described in Stillovo Catalogue No. 30: "Swivelling lamp, with vertical and horizontal motion...
Aluminum, Iron
Black Pala Clamp Table Lamp by Corrado and Luigi Aroldi for Luci, 1970s
By Corrado and Luigi Aroldi, Luci Italia
Located in Rotterdam, NL
Black Pala clamp table lamp by Corrado and Luigi Aroldi for Luci, designed around 1970. The shade is made of lacquered metal and contains a chromed steel screen. The lamp can be a...
Metal, Steel
