Paolo Rizzatto was born in Milan on 25 December 1941 where he still deals with architecture, interiors, products and lighting.
After graduating in architecture from the Polytechnic of Milan in 1966, he opened his first studio together with Antonio Monestiroli di Leo with whom he mainly dealt with architecture and in the meantime he began to design objects, such as his first Model 265 lamp produced by Arteluce, founded in 1938 by Gino Sarfatti.
265 lamp, 1973 for Arteluce, now produced by Flos. The illuminating body moves with freedom and absolute simplicity, positioning itself with a soft and balanced movement within the space of a room
About ten years after opening the studio, in 1978 he founded the lighting company Luceplan with Riccardo Sarfatti and Sandra Severi for which he designed true masterpieces that have entered the panorama of contemporary living.
Technological research, experimentation and quality of light are the driving principles of the company, capable of producing highly studied series lamps that do not compromise with fashions, to arrive at a result that is as innovative as possible and that lasts over time.
“It was and remains our belief that it is possible to design beautiful lamps that serve people, that illuminate their lives”.
In 1986 the Costanza lamp was released, perhaps its most famous lamp and still the brand’s best seller today, born as a reinterpretation of the classic lampshade. Ethereal and elegant, it is composed of an interchangeable lampshade that diffuses a warm and welcoming light supported by telescopic aluminum rods, with a sensorial dimmer rod that allows you to adjust the switch-on and light intensity.
On the left, Costanza floor, Luceplan, 1986. On the right, Costanza table, Luceplan, 1986 and Costanzina, Luceplan, 1992
The great aptitude for experimenting with industrial processes and materials gives life to unique and scenographic lighting fixtures such as Titania, designed in 1989 together with Alberto Meda. It has a structure that recalls a flying saucer, composed of aluminum slats that act as anti-glare and can be customized through the insertion of colored polycarbonate filters.
Titania, with Alberto Meda, Luceplan, 1989
Whether it is a city, a building or an industrial product, each project is the result of the same methodology based on a balanced study of functional, formal, usage, technical and economic components.
“The relationships between the different components are complex in quality and infinite in number. Design research is a continuous attempt to clarify each individual part. We seek harmony between the parts and between the parts and the whole.”
On the left, Lola, with Alberto Meda, Luceplan, 1987, Compasso d’Oro 1989 for technological innovation in the processing of carbon fibre. On the right, Metropoli, with Alberto Meda and Riccardo Sarfatti, 1992. Compasso d’Oro 1994
Between 1989 and 2000 he shared the studio with the architect Edoardo Guazzoni with whom in 2004 he won, together with Sandro Rossi and Jean-François Bodin, the “International design competition concerning the arrangement of the Darsena area” in Milan, the whose construction concluded in 2015 with the inauguration of the approximately 100,000 m² area coinciding with the opening of EXPO.
Darsena di Milano, with Edoardo Guazzoni, Paolo Rizzatto, Sandro Rossi and Jean-François Bodine, 2004-2015
Parallel to his passion for lighting, he designs accessories for numerous companies around the world such as Artemide, Alias, Cassina, Danese, Fiam, Flos, Guzzini, Knoll, Kartell, Molteni, Nemo, Philips, Poltrona Frau, Thonet, Segis, Serralunga, Veneta Cucine and others.
On the left, Young Lady armchair, Alias, Young Lady, 1991. On the right, Hasami mirror, Fiam, 2005
To his credit he also has a constant activity as a teacher and external guest at various Italian and international institutes: from the Polytechnic of Milan to the IUAV of Venice, up to Columbia University in New York and Washington University in St. Louis.
In his long career he has received numerous awards, among the most important five Compasso d’Oro Awards, La Lampe d’Or Sil, Product Award Lighting Fair, Good Design Award, Light of Future Energy saving sources and the Award of Awards for Innovation in 2011.
Squiggle, Rotaliana, 2019. Inspired by the luminous structures of Lucio Fontana, it is composed of a tubular metal skeleton that hides an LED strip and generates different geometric figures.
In the cover image, portrait of Paolo Rizzatto
