Header: Courtesy of Platek
Thaïs is a portable outdoor lamp designed by Marcello Ziliani for Platek, the Italian outdoor lighting company. The lamp, very slim throughout, was first presented at Euroluce, during Milan Design Week 2025, in a brass colour. Now, the brand presents it in SurfShield, a new surface finish in a colour named SilverMoon that gives its solid brass a cooler tone.
An outsider’s proposal
The project began with a proposition from the designer, who admits to having followed Platek’s work for a long time before reaching out. He brought forward a not-so-ordinary design, in line with his perspective on the brand’s preferences: a decorative, portable object of a kind Platek had not usually made.
“I was always intrigued by [Platek’s] ability to approach outdoor lighting in a way that is neither obvious nor standardised, something quite rare in this sector.”
Marcello Ziliani
A disc that carries everything
The luminous disc slides along its vertical stem and locks at whatever height is wanted. It can also be lifted off entirely, hung from a cable, or set down on a surface using a short rod supplied as an accessory, where it lights a book, a keyboard or a notepad.
That freedom was achieved through careful technical work in a very limited space: everything needed to produce light had to be inside the disc itself. This means the LED cluster, electronics, batteries, the switch and dimming control, and a USB socket for recharging are all contained within it, with no visible technical parts.
Ziliani recalls that the first concepts were jokingly described as “a hole with the light around it“. Making a heavy, solid brass head slide and lock smoothly along a slender stem was, he says, the achievement of Platek’s product development department.
Brass, washed like stone
Each lamp is made from solid brass finished with a stone-washed treatment that Platek had not previously applied to this kind of object. The technique leaves the metal with a slightly worn surface rather than being meant to oxidise over the years and develop a natural patina. The detailing and craftsmanship, Platek said, are inspired by the world of yachting.
The SilverMoon finish
SurfShield in SilverMoon is applied directly to the material and keeps the stone’s texture intact, changing only its colour: the warm brass takes on cool, lunar nuances, taking on a more neutral, calming look in a garden or on a terrace. The finish still allows patina to develop as the years go by.
Built for the outdoors
For all its delicacy, Thaïs is an outdoor product. It has an IP65 protection rating, meaning it is sealed against dust and can withstand jets of water, and its LED module was designed and developed by Platek itself. The lamp stands 380 millimetres tall and is available in portable table and suspended versions.
Project information
Lighting Design Company: Platek
Lead Designer: Marcello Ziliani
Date: 2025
