Pair of wall lights by Motoko Ishii for Staff

• Pair of wall sconces designed by Motoko Ishii and produced by Staff Leuchten in the late 1960s.
• The supports are made of chrome-plated steel, with an architectural design. Each sconce is equipped with four E14 sockets. The bulbs are protected by screw-on mirrored glass globes on their upper part, creating an interplay of reflection and light diffusion. The light is both concentrated and softened by the partial mirror effect.
• H 63 CM X W 10 CM (globe diameter) X D 21 CM.
• Good condition, slight superficial chrome oxidation (very small black spots, see photos).

The Designer Motoko Ishii

Motoko Ishii and Japanese Lighting Design

Motoko Ishii holds a unique place in the history of Japanese lighting design. Trained at the Tokyo University of the Arts and then in Europe — notably in Finland and Germany — she developed from the 1960s an approach to light as an autonomous discipline, distinct from mere decorative lighting fixtures. For her, light is not an accessory: it reveals material, color, and form.

Her work lies at the intersection of architecture and perception. She conceives light as a structuring element of space, capable of shaping volumes and transforming the sensation of a place. This philosophy is expressed both in her urban projects and in her domestic creations, where formal rigor dialogues with the luminous effect produced.

In pieces designed in the late 1960s, this tension between structure and diffusion is particularly noticeable. The chrome-plated steel supports assert a clear, almost graphic architectural presence, while the mirrored glass globes modulate the light, partially reflecting it and softening its radiance. Light is not merely emitted: it is directed, filtered, and staged.

Through these creations, Motoko Ishii participates in a redefinition of the modern luminaire: no longer an object added to space, but a device that transforms the very experience of the environment.

Learn more: Motoko Ishii.