Italian Hebi Table Lamp by Isao Hosoe for Valenti Luce, 1970s

This small table lamp is formed by a flexible metal tube coated with PVC and an enameled aluminum lampshade.

The Hebi lamp, which means 'snake,' is a work lamp, with a fully adjustable arm and a rotatable shade, which allows you to obtain a beam of direct light in the desired point. The metal tube may be lying entirely on the surface of the table.

The Hebi lamp is an example of exquisite design and high engineering, which embodies the flexibility and personality of other Italian design of the late sixties, such as the Boalum lamp by Livio Castiglioni, who also uses a PVC pipe.

The lamp can stand up by itself by bending the tube in such a way as to form a base. The underlying concept of this product is the movement: with its soft curves, it unfolds upwards, crowned by a small speaker. Its secret is that there is no base, which simplifies the design, making it useful and allowing immediate interaction by the user.

The Hebi lamp is still in continuous production since it was introduced on the market by Valenti, an industrial lighting company founded in 1929. It is generally associated with experimental and innovative technical products in the sixties and is one of the most successful products of Valenti. It embodies the futuristic and somewhat eccentric spirit of the decade.