Not currently on display at the V&A

Hebi

Table Lamp
1971 (designed), 1973 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Born in Tokyo in 1942, Hosoe studied there at Nihon University where he graduated in 1965 with a major in aerospace engineering with a thesis on a human-powered aircraft, followed by a Master in Sciences in 1967. From the same year he moved to Milan where he lived until his death, mainly collaborating with Alberto Rosselli and Gio Ponti of the Studio Ponti-Fornaroli-Rosselli from 1967 to 1974. In 1985 he founded his own studio Isao Hosoe Design.

Hosoe was a member of the ADI, the SIE (Italian Society of Ergonomics), the Japan Design Committee and the Japan Inter-Design Forum. He was Professor of Industrial Design at the Polytechnic University of Milan and at the Sapienza University of Rome. He has taught in several institutions: the Faculty of Architecture in Alghero, Domus Academy, the University of Siena, ISIA of Florence, Institute of Design in Cagliari, Les Ateliers in Paris, Elisava of Barcelona, RISD in Providence, and the University of Lisbon.

Several projects of Hosoes' are on permanent display at the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris, and also in Milan and Chicago. He has received numerous awards, regionally and internationally, for projects in the field product design and interior design, transportation, telecommunications and electronics: these include the Compasso d'Oro by Iveco Space for Carrozzeria Orlandi, the Good Design Award of Japan and Chicago and the Gold Medal at the Milan Triennale.

He died on October 3, 2015, in Milan.


Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleHebi (manufacturer's title)
Materials and techniques
Plactic, metal and glass
Brief description
Table Lamp, plastic and metal, Milan, Valenti & Co., 1973, designed by Isao Hosoe, 1971.
Physical description
Table lamp, a black plastic flexible tube, strong enough to be pushed into upright or angled positions with part of itself on the ground as a curled base (snake-like). Black shiny metal fitting and shade. The round shade has a white interior, and is cut off at an angle to provide directional light from a small round bulb. The whole fitting swivels on the main tube. Black flex from the end of the main tube with a push switch.
Dimensions
  • Length: 148cm (Note: Total length of coil and shade)
  • Diameter: 8.7cm (Note: Diameter of shade)
Style
Production typeMass produced
Object history
The `Hebi' lamp won an Honourable Mention at the Ljubljana Biennale in 1973.
Summary
Born in Tokyo in 1942, Hosoe studied there at Nihon University where he graduated in 1965 with a major in aerospace engineering with a thesis on a human-powered aircraft, followed by a Master in Sciences in 1967. From the same year he moved to Milan where he lived until his death, mainly collaborating with Alberto Rosselli and Gio Ponti of the Studio Ponti-Fornaroli-Rosselli from 1967 to 1974. In 1985 he founded his own studio Isao Hosoe Design.

Hosoe was a member of the ADI, the SIE (Italian Society of Ergonomics), the Japan Design Committee and the Japan Inter-Design Forum. He was Professor of Industrial Design at the Polytechnic University of Milan and at the Sapienza University of Rome. He has taught in several institutions: the Faculty of Architecture in Alghero, Domus Academy, the University of Siena, ISIA of Florence, Institute of Design in Cagliari, Les Ateliers in Paris, Elisava of Barcelona, RISD in Providence, and the University of Lisbon.

Several projects of Hosoes' are on permanent display at the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris, and also in Milan and Chicago. He has received numerous awards, regionally and internationally, for projects in the field product design and interior design, transportation, telecommunications and electronics: these include the Compasso d'Oro by Iveco Space for Carrozzeria Orlandi, the Good Design Award of Japan and Chicago and the Gold Medal at the Milan Triennale.

He died on October 3, 2015, in Milan.
Collection
Accession number
CIRC.507-1973

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Record createdJune 24, 2009
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