The lamp base: As others have noted, is very HEAVY.  Put the base where you want the lamp to be, before you start assembling it.  It is very hard to pick up after it is assembled.  That said, the base is a beautiful white-grey marble.

The shade: Looks a bit cheap, particularly from the underside.  However, it's still very nice, just perhaps not when looking directly at it from below. 

The instructions: Are sparse, but you can figure it out from the pictures within a few minutes.  Tug and twist to get the lamp rod to extend.

The switch: is located on the lengthy wire, and is black and plastic.  I leave it on the floor and step on it.

Overall: Great modern lamp.  Pretty easy to assemble despite the instructions. Get a helper to move the base and to hold the rods in place when attaching.