See How Flos’s Clever New Collection Came to Life With Designer Guglielmo Poletti
The To-Tie lamp by Flos is constructed using only tension—no screws, glue, or welding—to create a beautiful object with a clarity of expression.
When Milanese designer Guglielmo Poletti was approached in April 2020 by iconic Italian lighting brand Flos to discuss the possibility of a collaboration, there were no preconceived ideas about what this synergy could produce. "There was no brief and I started working very freely," recalls Poletti. "I like to work like this to explore the potential of a project." He came up with a number of proposals in continuity with his previous research from his time at the Design Academy Eindhoven, that eventually shaped the direction of the To-Tie collection.
Milan-based Italian designer Guglielmo Poletti founded his studio in 2016 after graduating from the renowned Design Academy Eindhoven in the Netherlands. His work covers everything from spatial interventions to furniture design, and the To-Tie collection is his first industrial lighting design.
Photo by Bea De Giacomo
The new collection of three table lamps draws its inspiration from Poletti’s innate interest in the use of tension in relation to architectural constructions and his research on furniture that utilizes a cable as its main structural role—most significantly a prototype for a tensioned table joint. This idea naturally evolved and shaped the direction of the lighting.
A 1:10 scale model of the To-Tie lamp alongside earlier models of Poletti’s research into using tension constructions in furniture that were developed during his time at the Design Academy Eindhoven. Although completely different in function, the two projects explore similar methods of construction.
Photo by Bea De Giacomo
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There are three lamps in the To-Tie collection—T1, T2, and T3. Each lamp has different proportions and they can be grouped together or arranged individually to create different lighting landscapes within the interior. The aluminum bars are available in either anodized natural or anodized black.
Photo by Bea De Giacomo
Shop the Collection
To-Tie T1
To-Tie is a collection of new table lamps made up of elements reduced to the bare minimum and held together by mechanical tension alone, without needing screws, glues, or welds. Available in three sizes and two anodized finishes, in the colors chosen by designer Poletti to emphasize the purity of the design: black and aluminum grey.The light source is integrated into an anodized aluminum bar that not only emits light but also acts as a handle to lift the lamp. Constructed without screws and glues, components can be easily disposed of and replaced, facilitating the recycling process at the end of the product's life.
ShopTo-Tie T2
To-Tie is a collection of new table lamps made up of elements reduced to the bare minimum and held together by mechanical tension alone, without needing screws, glues, or welds. Available in three sizes and two anodized finishes, in the colors chosen by designer Poletti to emphasize the purity of the design: black and aluminum grey. The light source is integrated into an anodized aluminum bar that not only emits light but also acts as a handle to lift the lamp. Constructed without screws and glues, components can be easily disposed of and replaced, facilitating the recycling process at the end of the product's life.
ShopTo-Tie T3
To-Tie is a collection of new table lamps made up of elements reduced to the bare minimum and held together by mechanical tension alone, without needing screws, glues, or welds. Available in three sizes and two anodized finishes, in the colors chosen by designer Poletti to emphasize the purity of the design: black and aluminum grey. The light source is integrated into an anodized aluminum bar that not only emits light but also acts as a handle to lift the lamp. Constructed without screws and glues, components can be easily disposed of and replaced, facilitating the recycling process at the end of the product's life.
Shop"Rather than the single ‘eureka’ inspiration, I believe in the consistency of research—the challenge is to diversify the outcomes," explains Poletti. "It was six years from the moment I created the detail for the table to the To-Tie lighting collection. That long process allowed the lamp to achieve a conceptual purity and incorporate several layers of meaning."
To-Tie celebrates a minimal construction that appears simple but is complex in its refined detailing. The light source is concealed in the bottom of the solid aluminum bar, which doubles as a handle, while the glass body of the lamp captures the light in a playful yet minimal way.
Photo by Bea De Giacomo
One of Poletti’s aims is to make "self-explanatory" design—and few design pieces have the clarity of expression in both construction and materiality as the To-Tie lamp. The lamp comprises three distinct parts: a solid aluminum bar that contains the LED light source, a borosilicate glass body, and a textile-wrapped cable that ties everything together through mechanical tension alone.
At 19 centimeters tall and with a diameter of 20 centimeters, the T1 is the smallest of the To-Tie lamps.
Courtesy of Flos
Measuring 34 centimeters height, the T2 is a taller version of the T1 lamp that is suited to more atmospheric applications or use as a floor lamp.
Courtesy of Flos
The T3 is a shorter, wider lamp with a diameter of 30 centimeters and a height of 22 centimeters.
Courtesy of Flos
The aluminum bar doubles as a handle to move the lamp around the room, while the cable is both power source and crucial construction detail. Nothing is superfluous and every piece serves a function. "The lack of arbitrary elements is what makes the projects strong and more mature," says Poletti.
Initially, Poletti proposed a large suspension lamp but, after discarding the first prototypes, the direction shifted to become a floor or table lamp with a handle. It is this openness to possibilities that attracts Poletti to lighting design.
Photo by Bea De Giacomo
While Poletti had initially proposed a large suspension lamp to the Flos development team, the first prototypes were not successful. "You need to see the real light to understand the value of an idea," he says. "That’s one of the things I like about lighting design." While discussing the prototypes with the Flos research and development team, the designer noticed a classic Aoy table lamp designed by Achille Castiglioni in 1975 sitting on a nearby table.
It took countless prototypes to arrive at the final form of the To-Tie collection. Cardboard models helped to determine the format for the glass body for each of the three models.
Photo by Bea De Giacomo
A few days later in his studio, Poletti recalled the glass body of the Castiglioni lamp and realized that if he simply removed the top from his table designs from years earlier he would have all the ingredients for a new lamp. So, he created a rudimentary prototype. "I immediately understood it was the object I was looking for," he says.
The textile-wrapped cable literally ties the entire lamp structure together. "To-Tie is made in a way that can be easily assembled and disassembled for repair and recycling by hand," says Poletti. "This is one of the pillars of Flos—and as a designer it can be challenging but very interesting."
Courtesy of Flos
While the reductive format of the lamp might appear simple, the refined detailing and finishing was a complex process that took more than 18 months. "When something is so naked, its success is in the difference of a millimeter," the designer explains. "It’s where you hide an element or create a finish that is pleasing to the touch."
The anodised finish and the lined texture of the aluminum bar originate from finishes often used in automobile design. The texture not only offers grip but also helps to hide fingerprints on the surface.
Courtesy of Flos
The aluminum bar, for example, has been worked with diamond dresser to obtain a texture that invites touch and offers grip when it is used as a handle; while the edge of the borosilicate glass is hand-finished to maintain a smooth 90-degree edge that complements the purity of the geometry. And the cable is covered in a premium textile that elevates a utilitarian element that is most often hidden away or disguised.
When the To-Tie lamp launched at Milan Design Week, Poletti was pleased to see that people immediately connected with and understood the lamp. "The configuration is unusual but, at the same time, people understand it," he says. "At the exhibition, people started to touch and lift it. It becomes a playful object—which is something I don’t always incorporate in my work—so I was surprised and happy to see people moving it around. There was a bond between object and person that is very beautiful."
Photo by Francesco Caredda
Thanks to its peculiar configuration, the To-Tie collection is impactful in an interior space when it is off and not in use as it is when it is turned on. There are three models each with different proportions.
The smaller T1 is designed for more direct use, such as a night table in a bedroom. The larger models are more architectural in their scale—the T2 is tall and narrow, while the T3 is wider and more open. With a 180cm-long electrical cable, both can be moved freely around a living space for either functional or atmospheric lighting. The ephemeral circular projection of light trapped within the glass is particularly effective at illuminating a specific scene or corner of the room.
The To-Tie T1 lamp is a smaller model that creates a cozy environment as a bedside lamp or a reading lamp.
Photo by Bea De Giacomo
The To-Tie T2 is a tall, slim model that can be used to illuminate corners of the room. The glass seemingly traps a circle of light within the body of the lamp, so that the light itself becomes a part of the sculptural yet functional arrangement.
Photo by Bea De Giacomo
"My background is in furniture design, but I love lighting as it is more abstract and less constricted by fixed typological forms," says Poletti. "You open up so many different worlds in lighting design. The form can be reimagined and the materiality and construction can really push the boundaries of a technique used for the first time for that purpose—and this is what Flos has always done."
Explore the To-Tie collection at flos.com.
Project Credits:
Designer: Guglielmo Poletti
Photography: Bea De Giacomo & Francesco Caredda
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