57 - Attributed to MICHELE DE LUCCHI (Italy, 1951)

Attributed to MICHELE DE LUCCHI (Italy, 1951) Sculptural wall sconces, 1980s. Metal and aluminum. Measurements: 195 x 42 x 33 cm. A pair of sculptural wall sconces, made of metal and aluminum, featuring a vertical composition and a geometric design with a distinctly industrial character. Each piece features an elongated tubular arm, articulated by a pronounced curve in its lower section and secured to the wall by two circular brackets. At the upper end, the light fixture takes the form of a concave reflector, topped by a perimeter metal ring secured by small vertical struts. The pair is part of the experimentation with industrial language and sculptural forms characteristic of Italian design in the 1970s and 1980s, largely following the aesthetic of Michele De Lucchi. Lucchi studied at the Enrico Fermi Scientific High School in Padua and trained as an architect under Adolfo Natalini at the University of Florence. In 1973, he co-founded the architecture and design group Cavart, which promoted a program of radical design through happenings, publications, and seminars. De Lucchi also collaborated with Superstudio, Ettore Sottsass, and Gaetano Pesce. He also taught architecture at the University of Florence from 1975 to 1977. That year, he moved to Milan to work as a consultant at the Kartell studio, Centrokappa. He later worked with his friend Ettore Sottsass on the plans for the first Memphis exhibition. In 1979, he designed prototypes of household appliances for Studio Alchimia and served as a consultant for Olivetti. In 1981, he co-founded Memphis and introduced geometric patterns into the cooperative’s plastic laminates. In the early 1990s, he founded the De Lucchi Group and has since completed numerous projects in Japan and Germany. De Lucchi has won numerous design awards, including the Good Design Award (Japan), Die Gute Form and Deutsche Auswahl (Germany), and a Compasso d’Oro (Italy).