This design classic was designed in 1966 by Gae Aulenti, using highly innovative techniques for the time. It is both a table lamp and a floor lamp and provides diffused light. A telescopic system enables the height to be adjusted between 66cm and 86cm. The lamp's diffuser is made of white opaline methacrylate. The metal base is painted in very dark brown or white. The lampshade alludes to a bat, or "pipistrello" in Italian.
Born in Italy in 1927, Gaetana Aulenti (known as Gae Aulenti) graduated in architecture in 1954 from the Milan Polytechnic, where she later taught. She designs furniture and lighting, and is involved in the interior design of numerous hotels and museums, including the Musée d'Orsay in Paris, the Centre Georges Pompidou, and in Barcelona, where she refurbished the Palacio Nacional de Montjuic as the Meseo de l'Arte Catalana. An architect of international renown in the 1980s, Gae Aulenti also works as an editor and graphic designer for Casabella Conitunuita and teaches in schools around the world. She exhibited at the Milan Triennale, where she won numerous prizes. Her work is as varied and comprehensive as his personality. She excelled in all aspects of design, and in 1987 was awarded the Légion d'Honneur by François Mitterrand. One of its most famous works is the Pipistrello lamp for Martinelli Luce, considered a design classic, which takes pride of place in many galleries around the world with its particularly original bat-like shape that diffuses a soft, warm light.
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MARTINELLI LUCE
Created in 1980 by Elio Martinelli, Martinelli Luce designs and manufactures lighting systems using innovative design both in terms of shape and technology. Lighting fixtures are inspired by nature and geometry, and designed above all to be functional. The Pipistrello lamp, created by Gae Aulenti and featured in the world's largest galleries and museums, is one of its most famous creations and a true design icon. Since its creation, Martinelli Luce has constantly innovated by introducing new technologies for products characterised by essential design.