Armilla, designed by Lorenzo Truant for Fabbian, is inspired by the very first Renaissance depictions of the motions of stars and planets. At that time, it was customary for people to construct models called armillary spheres comprising a framework of rings. To begin with, they were centered on Earth, but as time went by and the theories of Copernicus entered the picture, the Earth was replaced with the Sun, an infinite source of light and the new center of the universe.
The rings of Armilla recall this custom, supporting the sphere and complementing the abundance of opal glass that diffuses light from the source at the centre of the composition—just like the armillary spheres dreamt up by the Copernican cosmographers, with their heliocentric view of the world. Examining Armilla in more detail, three rings of precious metal are cleverly fixed together and contain the diffuser, which—thanks to a ring fixed to the equator—is attached to the support cable, also made of metal.
Lamps from the Armilla collection are available with a diameter of 36 cm, and come in the form of pendant and table lamps. The diffuser is made of glossy white glass blown on a round mould, with the metal rings inserted and carefully fixed in place using the melted glass at the end of the process. The rings have a polished finish, with gold and chrome plating. They are designed to work with halogen, fluorescent and LED light bulbs (if connected to a mains electricity supply).
