Since ancient classical times, and
later on throughout the Middle
Ages and the Renaissance up to
the present, the repetitive game
of mathematical sequences and
of geometrical compositions has
inspired artists and experimenters
across the world: the Arabian
architects who used a system
of niches and stalactites of a
prevailingly triangular shape,
called “Muqarnas” (initially used
alone and with large dimensions,
then used repeated in sets
and with smaller dimensions)
have been a stimulating source
of inspiration, but it is the
in–depth work conducted by
Escher on the combinations of
triangles and hexagons that has
suggested Febo’s final shape.
As in Granada, Jerusalem and
Isfahan, in the Alhambra and in
the Mosques, the outer volumes
are simple and compact, while
the inside volumes, thanks to
the light that filters through the
windows placed all around the
base of the cupolas, magically
and astoundingly dilate. The
same happens in the Febo
suspended lamp: both the natural
light and the LED light hidden
inside the circular frame reflect
on the faceted and mirroring
surface of the lowered dome and
transform the smooth and simple
rounded volume of the lamp into
a surprising and ever–changing
exponential game of defined and
luminous refractions.
“Know that the world from end
to end is a mirror; in each atom a
hundred suns are concealed”
Mahmud Shabistari
“Habits take hold only through
continuous repetition and long
custom”
Ibn Khaldun
E
D
Interno della moschea di Omar, Gerusalemme, 690 d.C.
