Gino Sarfatti designed the model 516 desk lamp for Arteluce in 1948, a period that saw the designer exploring increasingly sophisticated solutions for adjustable and directional lighting. Combining elegant materials with a highly functional design, the model demonstrates Sarfatti's distinctive ability to merge technical innovation with refined aesthetics.

The lamp is composed of a brass trestle framework mounted on a substantial white marble base, creating a striking balance between visual lightness and structural stability. The enamelled metal shade is suspended within the frame by a ball-joint mechanism, allowing it to be freely adjusted and directed as required. A practical handle positioned at the top of the shade enables effortless repositioning without coming into contact with the bulb or heated surfaces.

About the designer

Gino Sarfatti (1912-1985) was one of the most influential Italian lighting designers of the twentieth-century. Through founding his company Arteluce in Milan in 1939, he transformed the language of modern lighting through his rigorous experimentation with form, materials, and technology.

Largely self-taught, Sarfatti approached lighting as both a technical and aesthetic discipline, creating more than 600 designs during his career. His work combined industrial innovation with sculptural clarity, often reducing lamps to their essential elements while exploring new possibilities in reflection, balance, and illumination.

From early experiments in the 1940s to iconic designs such as the Model 2097 chandelier (1958), Sarfatti’s lamps became defining objects of Italian modernism. His designs received numerous awards, including multiple Compasso d’Oro recognitions, and continue to be celebrated for their timeless elegance and inventive character.

Today, Sarfatti’s work represents a key chapter in the history of twentieth-century design, bridging the worlds of architecture, technology, and art.