Lighting designer Lisa Johansson-Pape was a pioneer of elegant lamp design—but she always put functionality first

Lisa Johansson-Pape’s career as a designer was long and diverse. Whenever she designed lamps, her top priorities were the light they produced and their functionality. Only then did she turn her attention to their form. Still, people have admired the shapes of Johansson-Pape’s lamps to this day. She combined crisp lines with delicate details, like perforations, and explored a wide range of materials.

The ‘Sipuli’ (“Onion”) lamps, which won a gold medal at the 1954 Milan Triennial, are now part of Innojok’s collection. The ‘64-403’ pendant lamp (second from the right) received a silver medal in Milan in 1951, and it, too, has returned to production. This photo shows the original brass version. The lamp on the right is a rare angular model from the early 1950s, made of plastic and brass.

Johansson-Pape had studied to become a furniture draftsman, and her first jobs were in the furniture industry. When World War II halted nearly all furniture production, she moved on to become a designer at Orno lighting factory, which was owned by the Stockmann department store, at first only temporarily. However, she ended up staying there until she retired.

Brass was a popular material in the 1940s and 1950s, and Lisa Johansson-Pape used it as well. On the foreground: bell-shaped ‘61-314’ lamp (1947) by Orno, manufactured with different perforation patterns. Behind it, you can see the ‘61-100’ model, designed in the same year. Both are now produced by Innojok. In the background: burgundy ‘61-334’ lamp from 1952.

These brass lamps hanging above the dining table are reissues.

At the beginning of her career, Johansson-Pape faced a big challenge: materials were scarce because they were in short supply after the war. As production eventually returned to normal in the 1950s, she gracefully combined glass, brass, plastic, hardwood, fabrics, leather, and even wooden slats in her lamps.

This Orno floor lamp has a brass base and stem, with imitation leather on the stem. The shade is made of aluminum.

Lisa Johansson-Pape’s 'Sipuli' ceiling lamp reflects the shape of the hallway mirror.

The glass base of this table lamp (1961) was produced by Iittala, and the yellow shade is an original design by Stockmann’s sewing department. Johansson-Pape created the ‘Senaattori’ (“Senator”) lamp in 1947, and it stayed in production until the 2000s. The golden pendant lamp is from the early 1960s.

In addition to everyday lamps designed for homes, Johansson-Pape designed impressive chandeliers for churches and anonymous lamps for hospitals. She also made lamps for ships. Beside her design work, Johansson-Pape served as the artistic director of the Friends of Finnish Handicraft from 1951 to 1985. She also worked on textiles, wall rugs, and carpets. Her lamps continue to be admired, and many of them have been brought back into production. Innojok is a Finnish brand and offers numerous floor, table, and pendant lamps designed by Johansson-Pape.

Sources: Anna-Kaisa Huusko’s article on Lisa Johansson-Pape in Avotakka magazine 12/2013, and the Innolux website.