Tizio

Tizio is a desk lamp created by Richard Sapper for Artemide in 1972.^[1] It was selected for the Compasso d'Oro industrial design award in 1979. An item of it is part of the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art^[2] and of the Museum of Modern Art.^[3]

The position and the direction of the bulb can be adjusted; thanks to two counterweights, moving it requires little effort. There are no wires between the base and the lamp: the two parallel arms, connected with snap fasteners, conduct safe 12-volt electricity.^[4] The bulb is halogen, which was previously mainly used in the automotive industry.^[5]

The Tizio is available in a variety of sizes and colours; the original, and most widely known, is the 50 (referring to the wattage of the bulb) in black. The mid-sized model is the 35, and there is the bedside-sized Micro (20 Watts). Other colours are white, and grey metallic; and, the occasional limited edition in polished aluminium, or titanium-colour. There also is a floorstanding version, the Terra, which consist of a 70-centimeter-high pedestal with the same 11 cm diameter as the lamp's base, with the 50 added on top. The Terra-stand is also available in a 10 cm diameter, matching the 35 model. Recently,^[when?] an energy-saving LED-powered version of the full-sized model has been added; as has a version of the regular 50 with a horizontally rotatable head, the Plus. The LED and Plus versions are equipped with a dimmer; all other versions have a three-position switch, allowing for off, full, and – approximately – half power.

Design changes were made to the head in the nineties – a glass cover, and a thin wire terminating in a small red bead were added.

The name Tizio was given by Ernesto Gismondi, the founder of Artemide, and alludes to Tizio, Caio e Sempronio [it], the Italian equivalent of Tom, Dick and Harry. One explanation for the name is that Gismondi hoped to appeal to everyone;^[6] another is that Gismondi hoped to convince Sapper to create Caio and Sempronio designs as well.^[4]