The best paper lanterns

When the late artist Isamu Noguchi visited the Japanese prefecture Gifu in 1951, he was entranced by the paper lanterns – chōchin – used by fishermen to illuminate their boats. A meeting with the mayor led to his help in revitalising the craft the town was once known for, creating the Akari light sculpture – a collapsible, split-bamboo frame wrapped in washi paper whose traditional candle was replaced by an electric bulb. 

Over the years Noguchi developed more than 100 versions of his lamp, and inspired other designers to create similarly iconic lights. German designer Ingo Maurer, nicknamed “the poet of light”, crinkled Japanese paper to conjure texture for his oversized Lampampe (€885) – a piece conceived in 1980 and still made in Munich today.

Ingo Maurer paper Lampampe, €885

Isamu Noguchi by Vitra Akari 9AD, £660

The weightless versatility and affordability of the paper lamp – in addition to its gentle diffused light – is key to its enduring popularity. Its utilitarian beauty is perhaps best exemplified via Ikea’s iteration, the Regolit, a simple globe pendant that became ubiquitous among nesters when introduced in 2006 and which is currently making a comeback in households around the world. 

Handmade examples can also be affordable. British homeware brand Sansho works with a family-run business in Nagoya, Japan, which produces elegant chōchin from resilient mulberry or hemp fibres to create an almost lace-like quality to the lamps, priced from £64.

In Kyoto, Japanese lantern makers Kojima Shōten, a firm established c1789 (during the Edo era), created a large, washi-paper light with Norm Architects for a private residence on the Swedish coast. The N-PL01 pendant is now produced by Japanese lifestyle brand Karimoku (from €2,300) with a construction that is similar to the bellows of an accordion and a triangular silhouette that mimics the pitched roof of the building it was originally created for.

The way light is diffused through paper is so comforting

Other twists on form range from Caravane’s luminous bell pendants (from €225) in recycled abaca paper, to Nicola Harding’s half-hexagonal, art deco-inspired Stitch In Time wall lights (£500), which are composed of coloured parchment paper with a contrasting stitch and trim. Spanish artist and designer Jaime Hayon, meanwhile, has lent his flamboyant signature style to the bulbous forms of his Formakami family of lights (from £180) for Danish brand &Tradition. The pieces represent the duality of Japandi style, highlighted by the use of ivory-coloured rice paper contrasted with contemporary, black-stained oak detailing. 

Nicola Harding paper Stitch In Time wall light, £500

Caravane recycled paper, bamboo and rattan Bell lamps, from €225 each

Boxier styles include the minimalist Preziosi table lamp (£1,600) by artist Nick Metzler and the Vessels for Light series (€1,641) by design studio Christian + Jade, which consist of two stacked columns that are subtly stitched and waxed to create a brushstroke effect. The Copenhagen-based couple are interested in changing the perception of everyday materials. “Paper and candle wax were some of the materials around us that we wanted to explore, elevate and give new value to,” says Christian Hammer Juhl. 

Multidisciplinary designer David Horan applies drops of water to the deckled shade of his lamp. When illuminated, it has the appearance of a sunlit window pane sprinkled with rain. Available exclusively through London gallery Béton Brut, Horan’s floor and table lamp are part of his inaugural furniture and lighting collection entitled Paper, which draws inspiration from découpage and the Japanese Mingei folk-art movement.

Horan’s shades have a quality that recalls vellum: in fact, he layers sheets sourced from a Unesco heritage paper mill to create a vegan take on the material. “I love the quality of the material used by Aldo Tura,” he says, referencing the Italian furniture designer who was known for his use of exotic finishes such as lacquered goatskin. “I had a hunch that a similar effect could be achieved without animal skin, using Japanese paper instead.”

Australian lighting designer Lana Launay, meanwhile, uses “an eco-resin or pure beeswax to seal and strengthen the paper” and give it a vellum-like effect. This helps her to create the totem-esque Modular Launay floor lamp ($5,500), a stack of four shades that can be configured in more than 20 ways. Her playful pieces are sculptural – some even spiral – but always soft and subdued thanks to the washi and shoji papers she uses. She remains entranced. “The way light is diffused through fibrous paper is so comforting,” she concludes. “It’s sheer magic…”