1970s Orange Acrylic Rise & Fall Pendant Lamp

Materials: Orange acrylic mushroom lampshade. White painted aluminium concave top. Iron tube, some metal parts. Black cord. Bakelite E27 socket.

Cord: This one has an adjustable rise & fall mechanism (40 – 140 cm / 15.74 – 55.11”). It can be easily adjusted in height by grabbing the lamp with both hands, and pulling it gently.

Height: 27 cm / 10.62”

Width: ∅ 35 cm / 13.77”

Electricity: 1 bulb E27, 1 x 60 watt maximum, 110/220 volt.
Any type of light bulb can be used, not a specific one preferred.

Period: 1960s, 1970s – Mid-Century Modern.

Designer: To be appraised.

Manufacturer: Zonca International Spa, Via Lomellina, 145 27058 Voghera, Italy.

Other versions: This 1970s orange acrylic rise & fall pendant lamp exists in white and probably a few other colours. Sold with or without a white painted iron handle. The model of the lampshade was used for several other lamps.

The rise & fall mechanism is for once not made by Rolly, but by Zoom, another Italian company that is long gone. On this lampshade is a sticker glued: “garanty acryl”.

Zonca

The Zonca company was founded by Maffeo Zonca at the beginning of 1900 and then renewed and expanded in the 60s. Today Zonca operates world-wide as manufacturer of lighting solutions for luxury hotels and public spaces. Zonca was selected to provide the entire lighting packages for all five hotels at Eurodisney, near Paris. Zonca moved several times and today the company is located in Milan, Via Gaspare Bugatti 11/13.

Designers that work for the company are, among others: 4BI & Associés (Bruno Moinard & Claire Bétaille), Anouska Hempel, Celeste Dell’Anna, FZI Interiors (Elisabetta Frazuoli & Francesca Fezzi), Jacques Garcia, Marco Piva, Maurizio Papiri, Laleh Amir Assefi, Muza Lab (Inge Moore & Nathan Hutchins), CaberlonCaroppi Studio, Italo Rota Studio (Italo Rota & Alessandro Pedretti) and MHNA Studio (Marc Hertrich & Nicolas Adnet).

La Maison de Marie-Claire

This Zonca pendant lamp appears in the 1972 French magazine “La Maison de Marie-Claire” (The house of Marie-Claire), number 66. It includes a special on the latest Italian design. On the same page several lamps made by Harvey Guzzini; among witch the Focus floor lamp designed by Fabio Lenci in 1968. The Lamperti Pelota desk lamp, the Isao Hosoe Valenti Hebi lamp and several others.

Acrylic: often named by its commercial name: Perspex, Plexiglas, Crylux, Acrylite, Lucite, is a thermoplastic.