Piet Hein designed Ra 400 D Table Lamp Black back in 1931, at the age of 25. It’s the perfect example of the theme of Hein’s work then – and in the years that followed – which can be summarised in one sentence: the art of making complicated things simple.
Piet Hein himself phrased it like this: ‘There is one art, no more, no less: to do all things with artlessness.’
In connection with the production of the Ra lamp, the young Piet Hein discovered what he calls isolux surfaces. These are exact mathematical shapes, which means that the construction of the shade of the Ra lamp offers the closest possible thing to glare-free light without compromising on the high yield of the light source. When you look into the Ra lamp, it appears as though the light is weak, but if you look at your surroundings, you’ll find it isn’t weak at all. The lamp makes a surprisingly big difference.
The fact that the Ra lamp is a lovely and harmonic product in and of itself doesn’t hurt either.