Vintage Desk Lamp by Josef Hurka for Stilnovo, 1960s

There is very little verifiable information available on the Czech designer Josef Hůrka, however it is known that he designed lighting - including desk and table lamps, as well as floor and ceiling lights - for the manufacturers Drupol, Napako, and Lidokov. His career spanned almost four decades, but one of his early collaborations, with lighting manufacturer Napako (NÁstrojaři-PAsíři-KOvotlačitelé), proved to be the most fruitful. His lamps appear in bright colors and take on geometrical and angular forms. Designs for Napako include a UFO-shaped, Bauhaus inspired ceiling light (1930s); the Model 1618 Table Lamp (1954), which features a height adjustable cylindrical shade on a tripod base; the Model 1633 Table Lamp (1950s); the Model 0513 Table Lamp (1950s), which has a conical tin-lacquered shade; and for Drupol the Model 21616 Table Lamp (1963).

Italian lighting manufacturer Stilnovo was founded by designer Bruno Gatta in 1946 in Lainate, an industrial suburb of Milan. In response to the aftermath World War II—at a time when Italy was focused on rebuilding under conditions of scarcity—Gatta dedicated Stilnovo to the production of innovative lighting elements that embody rationalist, form-follows-function principles.

In the postwar era, designer Gaetano Sciolari took on the role of in-house designer. As economic recovery swept through Italy, Stilnovo became known as a prestigious and cutting-edge brand for both public and private spaces.

In the mid-1960s, Bruno’s son, Dino Gatta, had the idea to invite some of the best designers of the day to develop new products, and Stilnovo became a hotbed of progressive design ideas and a laboratory for material experimentation. Standouts from this futuristic era include the Periscopio Floor Lamp (1967) by Danilo & Corrado Aroldi, the Treiedo Spotlight (1970) and the Topo Adjustable Wall Lamp (1970) by Joe Colombo, the Lucetta Table Lamp (1970) by Cini Boeri, the Fante Desk Lamp (1978) by De Pas, D’Urbino, Lomazzi, and the Valigia Desk Lamp (1977) by Ettore Sottsass. Many Stillnovo pieces were exhibited in MoMA’s landmark Italy: The New Domestic Landscape exhibition in 1972.

Massimo Anselmi, an art director from the worlds of fashion design and contemporary art, acquired Stilnovo in 2012 and launched re-editions of iconic Stilnovo designs at Salone the following year.