Vico Magistretti

Vico Magistretti was a Milanese architect who moved between buildings, furniture and lighting for six decades, and who described his method as drawing an object in words before drawing it on paper.

Eclisse, from 1965, is the clearest example. An inner shade rotates inside an outer one so the light can be dimmed to nothing by hand, with no switch and no dimmer. Artemide won the Compasso d'Oro for it in 1967.

Teti, a small wall and ceiling lamp, applies the same economy at a smaller scale. Magistretti's pieces are held by MoMA and the Victoria & Albert Museum.