by Brianna Crandall — July 21, 2014—Ipnos is a new outdoor–indoor light-emitting diode (LED) light sculpture designed by Rossi & Bianchi Studio for Italian lighting specialists FLOS, created with elements of a modern-day lantern. The Ipnos floor lamp was designed in the unique shape of a hollow cuboid, from which light floats effortlessly between its metal frames—something only possible with LED technology, notes FLOS.
Nicoletta Rossi and Guido Bianchi are both Italian architects based in Milan, and are teaming up with Italian lighting manufacturer FLOS for the first time on Ipnos. “We thought it would be interesting to use this innovative technology in the most understated manner, almost mysteriously,” said Ms. Rossi and Mr. Bianchi in a recent interview, “a discreet presence bringing light in the least intrusive way.”
Weighing only two pounds, Ipnos is easily portable yet remains sturdy through wind and various weather elements. The LEDs are hidden within the top edges of the skeletal edging of the extruded aluminum frame, protected by transparent PC diffusers. The lamp can be dimmed or brightened by a dimmable switch on the power cord. The driver is on the plug. The lamp is available in Black, Bronze, or Natural; all finishes are anodized.
For fifty years, FLOS has been crafting objects of light and “shedding brightness on generations of dreams.” The company is situated “on the fine line that divides and unites art and design, craftsmanship and industry, the limited edition and larger scale manufacturing, an individual’s idea and the collective imagination.”
