Panto vs VP Globe: Two Panton Acrylic Spheres Compared

Verner Panton designed two pendants that look, at first glance, like the same idea: a clear acrylic sphere with reflectors hanging inside it on steel chains. The Panto and the VP Globe share that construction, but they light a room in different ways and suit different spaces. This comparison sets out where they differ, so you can decide which sphere belongs over your table.

One idea, two lamps

Both lamps are built the same way. An acrylic outer shell, made as a top and a bottom half, encloses a set of reflectors suspended on steel chains. The bulb sits hidden among those reflectors, so what you see from across the room is not a light source but a small arrangement of shapes floating inside a transparent ball. Panton treated the inner workings as the design itself: you look into these lamps as much as at them.

That approach says a good deal about Panton (1926–1998). Trained as an architect at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts and an early collaborator in Arne Jacobsen's studio, he broke away from the restrained Nordic mainstream. He embraced acrylic when most Danish designers still worked in wood and brass, and these two pendants are among the clearest results of that choice. Both are produced today by VERPAN, the Danish company founded in 2003 to manufacture Panton's designs to his original drawings.

The difference lies almost entirely inside the sphere: what the reflectors are made of, how many there are, what colour they show and which canopy finishes the lamp at the ceiling.

The Panto: white reflectors and a hidden flash of red

The Panto is the quieter of the two. Inside its sphere hang four white lacquered aluminium reflectors on three steel chains. From the side it reads as a calm stack of white discs, almost invisible until the lamp is switched on. The white is interrupted by a splash of red that you only see from below, a private detail revealed to whoever sits underneath. It is a very Panton joke: the colour is there, but you have to be in the right seat to find it.

The layered white reflectors shield the bulb and spread a soft, even glow across the table without harsh shadows. The canopy is lacquered metal, which keeps the ceiling fitting low-key. The Panto Pendant Ø40 takes one E14 bulb and weighs 5 kg; the Panto Pendant Ø50 weighs 10 kg, which is worth knowing before you plan the ceiling fixing.

Because the outer sphere is transparent, the Panto brings presence without visual weight. The Ø40 suits a dining table or kitchen island in a smaller apartment, where a solid shade of the same diameter could crowd the room; a pair works well over a longer counter. The Ø50 is a statement piece for a round dining table, an open-plan living space or a double-height stairwell.

The VP Globe: a family of reflector materials

The VP Globe dates from 1969, the height of Panton's space-age period, when he was staging his Visiona environments and rethinking what a lamp could be. Where the Panto keeps to one look, the VP Globe is a family. Its reflectors come in polished metal, opal glass, coloured glass, brushed aluminium and brass versions, and each one changes the character of the lamp.

The VP Globe Pendant Ø40 with polished aluminium reflectors is the most graphic version. Its curved shades carry red and blue lacquered accents, they appear to hover in mid-air, and they bounce light up and down without exposing the bare bulb. The metallic surfaces pick up reflections from the room, so the lamp looks slightly different from every angle.

The VP Globe Pendant Opal Glass Ø40 is the gentlest voice in the family. Five opal-white glass reflectors hang on three steel chains, so the light is softened twice: first diffused through the milky glass, then floated inside the clear acrylic sphere. It reads like a group of small moons in a bubble and is the version to choose if you want the sculpture without the metallic shine.

Every VP Globe has a chrome plated metal canopy, a brighter finish at the ceiling than the Panto's lacquered one. Weights are 5 kg for the Ø40 and 9 kg for the Ø50.

Panto and VP Globe side by side

How to choose between them

Start with the room around the lamp. If your interior already carries strong colour, pattern or a lot of furniture, the Panto is the easier fit: from most angles it is white and transparent, and its red accent stays hidden until someone looks up from the table. It works equally well with mid-century pieces and with a plain modern kitchen.

If the pendant is meant to be the focal point, the VP Globe gives you more to work with. Choose polished aluminium for a crisp, graphic look with a touch of colour, opal glass for the softest and calmest light, or brass where you want warmth against wood and stone. Because the reflector material sets the mood, it helps to decide on that first and the size second.

Weight matters at the larger size. Both lamps weigh 5 kg at Ø 40 cm, but at Ø 50 cm the Panto is 10 kg and the VP Globe 9 kg, so check that your ceiling fixing is rated accordingly. For more on choosing between the two VP Globe sizes, read our guide VP Globe Ø40 vs Ø50: Which Panton Sphere to Hang.

Finally, think about where people will sit. The Panto rewards a table: hang it low enough that diners see the red underneath. The VP Globe rewards distance: its reflectors are meant to be seen from across a room, through the clear sphere. To compare these two with other sculptural designs, browse the full Pendant Lamps collection.