Two Gerald Thurston Table Lamps for Lightolier, 1960s
About the Item
- Creator:Gerald Thurston (Designer),Lightolier (Manufacturer)
- Dimensions:Height: 36.42 in (92.5 cm)Diameter: 17.72 in (45 cm)
- Sold As:Set of 2
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:circa 1968
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:Den Haag, NL
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU278337963913
Gerald Thurston
As the leading designer at Lightolier during the postwar building and design boom, Gerald Thurston created his clever lighting — sleek floor lamps, table lamps and desk lamps— to suit the American lifestyles of 1950s and 1960s. His designs were at the forefront of the mid-century modern lighting revolution — like much of the visionary work being done at the time in furniture and interiors, Thurston’s fixtures are both elegant and totally innovative, reflecting the exploration of new ideas and new technology that consumed designers of the era.
Thurston eventually led a stellar team of international lighting designers at Lightolier. He was important to the pioneering East Coast-based electric lighting company, and rumor has it that because he sketched every design on craft paper, the manufacturer insured his right hand for one million American dollars.
While enrolled in the School of the Art Institute of Chicago during the 1930s, where he earned his degree in industrial design, Thurston worked as a freelance designer for the Zenith Radio Corporation. Once he graduated, he found a position at the New Metal Craft Company. There he designed custom lighting fixtures and decorative objects for architects and interior designers.
Lightolier enticed Thurston to join them in approximately 1950. That same year, New York’s Museum of Modern Art featured a green floor lamp of his in their Good Design Exhibition of 1950. The sculptural lamps that Thurston created for Lightolier are representative of his interest in Scandinavian modernist lighting as well as the revolutionary designs produced by postwar Italian companies such as Arredoluce and Arteluce. (Lightolier partnered with the latter, and Thurston found inspiration in the work of Arteluce founder Gino Sarfatti.)
During Thurston’s decades-long tenure with Lightolier, he became internationally known for his many designs. His modernist fixtures are characterized by clean lines, vibrant colors and an appealing meld of metals and rich woods. His slender-legged Lightolier Tripod floor lamp, introduced in the 1960s, garnered widespread acclaim, while his whimsical Cricket lamp, with its arthropodan shade and slim brass frame, is wholly versatile — it can be hung as a sconce or positioned on a desk and offers direct or diffused light.
On 1stDibs, find vintage Gerald Thurston lighting, decorative objects and more.
Lightolier
Founded in 1904 in New York and family-operated through most of its history, Lightolier was one of the pioneering American electric lighting companies, best known for its embrace of stylistic and technical innovations.
Collectors focus on vintage Lightolier lighting fixtures produced from the 1950s and into the 1970s, when an in-house design team led by Gerald Thurston — and a stellar cast of international design contributors — created an array of practical yet aesthetically lively table lamps, floor lamps, sconces and chandeliers.
Amidst the post-World War II building boom, Lightolier — the name combines “light” and “chandelier” — aggressively boosted its residential lighting division. Thurston, who was strongly influenced by the sleek designs of Gino Sarfatti and his Italian lighting firm Arteluce, towards simpler lamp designs that offered flexibility of function. His best-known designs include the Cricket task light — a lamp with an adjustable enameled metal hood that toggles on a slender bent-metal base — and the three-legged Tripod floor lamp. At the same time, Thurston had a wonderful eye for talent and sought work from some of the lesser-known greats of the era, such as Paavo Tynell, the Finnish lighting designer, who designed several brass chandeliers for Lightolier with his trademark elegant flamboyance.
And more, Thurston recognized abilities in designers not known for their work in lighting.
Edward Wormley, head of furniture design for Dunbar, produced several noteworthy chandeliers employing canisters and reflective hoods. Alvin Lustig was famed as a graphic designer. His ca. 1953 Ring ceiling fixture for Lightolier had a minimalist techno look some 30 years ahead of its time. But this was par. Designed by Michael Lax in 1964, the Lytegem high-intensity lamp — included in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art — features a ball-shaped shade attached with a chromed armature to a cubic base, a form that would be widely copied in the following decade. Chandeliers designed in the early 1970s by Gaetano Sciolari, with details such as acrylic diffusers and vertical, two-bulb arms, would define the look of lighting in their day.
A look through these pages reveals just how astonishingly wide a range of lighting pieces Lightolier produced. The company never flicked off its stylistic switch.
Find a collection of vintage Lightolier lamps and other lighting fixtures on 1stDibs.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Den Haag, Netherlands
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 7 days of delivery.
- Two Classic Colum Table Lamps, 1960s, FranceLocated in Den Haag, NLTwo almost identical classic Colum table lamps. The Marble is on one lamp bigger. The Hight is the same. Comes with there original shades. 1960s.Category
Vintage 1960s French Empire Revival Table Lamps
MaterialsMarble
- Flavio Poli Murano Glass Table Lamp for Seguso, 1960sBy Flavio Poli, Seguso Vetri d'ArteLocated in Den Haag, NLGraceful 1960s Murano glass table lamp by Flavio Poli for Seguso. The translucent forest green base produces a subtle lighting effect when the bulb is lit.Category
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsMurano Glass
- Anvia Almelo Table Lamp 1960s HollandBy AnviaLocated in Den Haag, NLVery nice rare Anvia Almelo, desk lamp. Aluminum shade. Small dent. Switch on the base. 1 large E27 bulb needed.Category
Vintage 1960s Dutch Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsMetal
- Mid Century Brass Table lamp 1960s SwitzerlandBy Cedric HartmanLocated in Den Haag, NLVery nice Solid Brass table lamp .Love this model . One large E27 bulb needed . 1960s . normal wear and tear .Category
Vintage 1970s Swiss Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsBrass
- Black Belgian Marble Table Lamp 1960s HollandLocated in Den Haag, NLVery nice Table lamp. Brass base comes with a round black marble center 1960s One large E27 bulb. Shade included.Category
Vintage 1960s Dutch Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsBelgian Black Marble
- Vintage Domus Teak Table lamp 1960s GermanyBy DomusLocated in Den Haag, NLVery nice solid Teak Table lamp .Warm honey color . Comes with the original Wool lampshade . Very good condition . One Large E27 bulb neededCategory
Vintage 1960s German Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsTeak
- Gerald Thurston for Lightolier Style Adjustable Brass Desk Lamp, 1960sBy Gerald Thurston, LightolierLocated in Bainbridge, NYAmerican Mid-Century Modern Gerald Thurston for Lightolier style brass desk lamp. Featuring a slender, sturdy Brass plated tubular stem, round balanced, weighted 6D base, turn switch to base, adjusting Black enameled interior Brass shade head (8.25 W x 3W) extending to 10W with Cast Iron handle...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsMetal, Brass
- Gerald Thurston "Cricket" Lamp for LightolierBy Gerald Thurston, LightolierLocated in Brooklyn, NYGreat modernist design, can sit on table or be hung on the wall as a sconce. Pierced pivoting shade allows for direct or diffused light and brightness control.Category
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsEnamel
- Gerald Thurston for Lightolier Ceramic Table Lamp, ca. 1950/ 1960'sBy Gerald Thurston, LightolierLocated in New York, NYChic and stylish ceramic and brass table lamp, attributed to Gerald Thurston for Lightolier. The lamp is in excellent, clean, and working condition, and comes complete with its origi...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsBrass
- Vintage Gerald Thurston Porcelain Table Lamps for LightolierBy Gerald Thurston, LightolierLocated in Chicago, ILGerald Thurston porcelain table lamps for Lightolier.Category
Mid-20th Century Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsPorcelain
- Gerald Thurston for Lightolier Black & Brass Table LampBy Tommi Parzinger, Lightolier, Gerald ThurstonLocated in Bainbridge, NYSleek American midcentury Gerald Thurston for Lightolier black enameled table lamp with brass details. Featuring a slender all black enameled metal hourglass stem, elevated above a round 7.5D Black enameled balanced base supported by a weighted Cast Iron underside. With lacquered Brass accents throughout. Original triple Ceramic sockets and finial. 23H to top of socket. Black Mesh Lamp...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsIron, Brass, Metal
- Vintage Louvered Metal Lamp Attributed to Gerald Thurston for Lightolier, 1960sBy Gerald Thurston, LightolierLocated in Long Island City, NYVintage Louvered Metal Lantern Lamp Attributed to Gerald Thurston for Lightolier, Circa 1960s. Cylindrical body with louvered aluminum fins alternating between gold-tone and cream, a...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsMetal