Due to the spectacularly bold marking of its fur, the zebra is an animal that’s hard to forget. Children are easily able to pick out a zebra amongst a group of African animals. The black and white prints on the equid are such a strong graphic that zebra print fabrics have never completely gone out of fashion. My maternal grandmother had a pair of peep-toe, sling-back heels with the animal print. My mother always avoided such excesses, but I revived the tradition with a zebra-patterned purse that I never left home without (many moons ago). When you name a lighting fixture Zebra, it has to command attention. Italian lighting company Masiero produces an entire Zebra collection of lamps: suspension, floor, table, and sconces. Their curved shapes and vertical stripes echo the twisting, turning lines of the animal’s signature markings.

Zebra. Designed by Masiero.

Animal Print Lighting: Bold, Graphic Stripes

Constructed of a chrome-plated frame and capped by handmade, blown triplex Murano glass, the Zebra lamps have a straight top and an arched bottom. Available in red or black, each incarnation of Zebra has its special charm. The suspension version gives you a hanging moon while the floor lamp resembles a top hat. The sconce appears like an alien spaceship hovering against the wall, and the table lamp like a robot wearing a military helmet. All Zebra lamps have glass shades with built-in color variations: the black has white, gray, and charcoal lines; the red has white, black, and raspberry lines. The truly amazing detail of the Zebra Collection by Masiero is the glass shade’s magic trick. From afar, the stripes appear to be an illusion, simply reflections of light dancing on a shiny surface.