The Type 75 is what happens when a designer who genuinely understands mechanisms revisits a problem. Sir Kenneth Grange drew on the Anglepoise Apex 90 — a lamp from the mid-1970s that never quite reached the public — and used modern tolerances to produce something that balances at any position without locking knobs, locking joints, or the creep you get with inferior tension springs.
The result is a lamp that works. The arm sweeps through a full range of motion, the shade tilts independently, and the matte-painted aluminium body holds its position with a satisfying firmness. There is a switch built into the shade; the power cable routes cleanly through the arm. Nothing is bolted on as an afterthought.
In jet black, the Type 75 is at its most architectural. It suits a working desk rather than a decorative one: the proportions are purposeful, the cast iron base is substantial without being overweight, and the shade is large enough to throw useful light across a full A3 sheet. Beside it on the desk, everything else looks like it is trying too hard.
£219 — anglepoise.com