Brand Republic - 31 October 2007

Branding: Design choice - Super Archimoon Lamp

During the 90s - pre-kids - I spent time with my lovely wife and on business trips staying in awesome joints including the Royalton in New York, the Delano in Miami and the Clift in San Francisco.

There, I discovered the inspirational world of Philippe Starck, who, along with Raymond Loewy and Ron Arad, is surely one of the great product designers of all time. From lemon squeezers to grands salons, Starck plays with light, scale and materials to sprinkle the fantastic on the ordinary.

Now Starck has again worked his magic, taking a fabulous classic - the Anglepoise lamp, invented by George Carwardine in 1933 - and injecting it with steroids. The resulting design is at once a spectacular sculpture for your garden and a practical way to illuminate your late-summer alfresco dinner parties.

This outdoor sculpture, known as the Super Archimoon Lamp, from Italian lighting specialist Flos, is an innovative concept which brings the inside to the outside.

With its three-jointed aluminium-painted body, steel springs, plisse fabric shade, opal glass diffuser and luxurious direct and diffused lighting, Starck's lamp is a dream come true for any creative.

I'm sure that you are far more likely to see a planet-killing patio heater than a Super Archimoon Lamp in your neighbour's garden, though. It's not cheap (think thousands rather than hundreds of pounds), but I am saving up for mine.