TIMBERLINE FLOOR LAMP
BY MADS CAPRANI
AHEAD OF THE CURVE: HEAD-TURNING 1970S LIGHTING REDISCOVERED
THE RETURN OF AN ICON
After decades out of production, the Timberline Floor Lamp by Mads Caprani is at last returning to the homes of design lovers worldwide. First created by the Danish lighting designer in the 1970s, the Timberline rapidly became Caprani’s flagship product – a playfully curving, swan-necked floor lamp that both captures the Scandinavian design language of the 1970s and also transcends it, becoming one of those rare pieces that can slip effortlessly into any space, of any style.
THE NOTION OF A NATURAL BOUNDARY
The lamp takes its name from Caprani’s fascination with the tree line – nature’s inherent limit on the altitude at which trees can grow, the point of transition on the landscape between wood and rock. In the lamp, he translated the notion of a natural boundary into an abrupt material juxtaposition between wood and iron.
“My father’s ambition was always to build a company that had a major impact on the international design scene, and the Timberline Floor Lamp is the product that ensured he achieved it. For me, it is a huge honor to be able to give my father’s design a new life. It’s fantastic to see my father’s lamp back in production again, thanks to GUBI, and to be able to share his creativity and vision with a new generation.“
Mikkel Caprani, Mads Caprani’s son
WHIMSICAL AND ELEGANT
The Timberline is formed from three distinctive elements, each in a different natural material. A pleated canvas lampshade is fitted to a sinuous formed-veneer spine, supported, and stabilized by a crescent-shaped cast-iron base. Both whimsical and elegant, Caprani’s lamp embodies a number of juxtapositions in form and material. The sharp, clean lines of the shade contrast with the curves of the spine, while its light, natural color finds an answer in the black of the base. The appearance of the lamp is lightweight, almost as though it might tip over or take off at any time, but the cast-iron base is perfectly weighted to ensure stability.
A PRECISE LINE OF CURVATURE
To create what is perhaps the Timberline’s most distinctive feature, its sinuous stem, GUBI’s team employed a reverse-engineering method that enabled a precise line of curvature. The spine itself is formed from several layers of oak and birch, which are visible in the lamp's profile, elevating a complex construction technique into a design element in its own right.
Another signature of the design, a groove running up the center of the spine, contains the cord, preserving the lamp’s sleek curved silhouette and demonstrating Caprani’s exceptional understanding of his chosen materials.
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ON TREND AND IN DEMAND
More recently what had become known worldwide as ‘the Caprani lamp’ has erupted into the consciousness of a new generation, thanks to platforms such as Instagram, where its unique looks have made it a coveted feature of countless shots from interiors aficionados. Almost 50 years after their first appearance, the smooth, organic curves and playful charm of Caprani’s legacy design have caught the eye of the modern design audience and, thanks to a unique collaboration with the designer’s family, GUBI is in a perfect position to make this extraordinary lamp available once more.
MADS CAPRANI
Danish lighting designer Mads Caprani's distinctive and disruptive vision of what a lamp could look like has echoed through the ages. Although he did not initially set out to become a designer, Caprani’s curiosity, ambition, natural talent, and determination to seize any opportunities that came his way, ensured that he was destined to make a permanent mark on the story of 20th-century design.