Jolina - Fabulous Lighting

On October 4 1957, the Russians launched the world's first space satellite.

The satellite, named "Sputnik 1" was a metal sphere with a diameter of 58 cm, a weight of 83.6 kg and 4 protruding antenna. The news broke all around the world like a bombshell. It was "the beginning of the space age".

On April 17 1958, the World Exhibition opened in Brussels with the "Atomium", an enormous 102m high structure, as its central feature. The 9 metal spheres, each with a diameter of 18m, were linked by means of connecting tunnels 23m in length. The "Atomiun" represents a metal crystal

165 billion times its normal size. Once inside this gigantic model, visitors can use the connecting tunnels to move from one sphere to another.

Around the end of the 'fifties and the beginning of the sixties', the Sputnik and the Atomium proved to be a source of inspiration for dozens of light fitting designs from unknown developers. All models designed at that time (which were given the name "Sputnik") were variations on the same theme.

The designers of Jolina Products have drawn extensively on the many Sputnik models from the sixties and each produced an individual interpretation. The results are: the Sputniks, designed by Paul de Haan.