Koch & Lowy Polished Chrome Articulating Desk Light
About the Item
- Creator:Koch & Lowy (Maker)
- Dimensions:Height: 12 in (30.48 cm)Width: 24 in (60.96 cm)Depth: 10 in (25.4 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (In the Style Of)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1970s
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. Minor structural damages.
- Seller Location:Los Angeles, CA
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU881216019072
Koch & Lowy
Collectors know Koch & Lowy for its eye-catching sold brass five-arm chandeliers, sleek chrome swing-arm floor lamps and clever table lamps with marble bases. With a wide range of sculptural mid-century modern and 1970s-era fixtures created by the likes of George Nelson, Karl Springer, Piotr Sierakowski and others, the American lighting manufacturer elevated the design of furniture and home decor from the postwar era onward.
Ernest Lowy founded Koch & Lowy in New York in 1946, initially running the firm with his son, Thomas. Over the years, collaborations with notable designers such as American artist Neal Small — known as the “Prince of Plastic” for his innovative use of Plexiglas and Lucite — yielded iconic pieces such as Koch & Lowy’s biomorphic, clear-glass pendant lights and wall sconces for German manufacturer Peill and Putzler as well as the rare Half Nelson table lamp.
Created by George Nelson — an architect, journalist and designer who brought a slew of legendary designers to Herman Miller while he was director of design at the company — the Half Nelson table lamp, with its striking form and shade of spun aluminum, was originally designed in 1950 as part of an architectural project of Nelson’s on Long Island. Koch & Lowy put it into production in the late 1970s.
Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, Koch & Lowy floor lamps gained wide acclaim. Neal Small’s architectural aluminum periscope Skyscraper floor lamp and their Pharmacy tent floor lamp, which Thomas Lowy admitted he copied unwittingly from Omaha architect Cedric Hartman, were particularly popular.
“I’d bought a tent [lamp] in Italy, but it had been made so badly that I decided to make a better one,” Lowy explained to the New York Times in 1976. “I didn’t know that the Italian one wasn’t original. I didn’t know it was a copy of Hartman’s design.”
Nevertheless, Koch & Lowy enjoyed success designing and producing innovative lighting fixtures and other furniture such as the brutalist Mirage coffee table, created by Polish designer and head of Koch & Lowy’s design department, Piotr Sierakowski.
While Thomas Lowy sold the company in the 1990s, the brand’s impact on modernist lighting design endures.
On 1stDibs, find a range of vintage Koch & Lowy lighting and tables.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Winston Salem, NC
- Return PolicyThis item cannot be returned.
- Vintage MCM Kock & Lowy Desk LampBy KocksLocated in Los Angeles, CARare vintage MCM Kock & Lowy articulating angel arm desk lamp, solid steel enamel rod arm, small switch on the base Size: Base 10" x 9.5" x 3" H / top 5" x 5".Category
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsSteel
- Vintage Lightolier Desk LampBy LightolierLocated in Los Angeles, CAAdjustable white metal shade and white metal base with brass arm, hi-lo dimmer switch on top of the shade, medium base socket.Category
Vintage 1970s American Table Lamps
MaterialsBrass
- Pair of Art Deco Woka Desk LampsBy Woka LampsLocated in Los Angeles, CAPair of handmade Classic Art Deco nickel plated Woka desk lamps with diffuser, On / Off Switch on the lamp base Max 1 x 60W.Category
Vintage 1930s Austrian Art Deco Table Lamps
MaterialsBrass
- Pair of Vintage Bronze Table Lamp Designed by Pepe MendozaBy Pepe MendozaLocated in Los Angeles, CAPair of vintage bronze table lamps designed by Pepe Mendoza, designed with Faux Bamboo Stalk Motif in bronze, inlaid with enameled Turquoise Cera...Category
Vintage 1950s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsMalachite, Bronze
- Art Deco Original Up Lamp Hi-Polish Chrome, Glass InsertsLocated in Los Angeles, CAReal deco luminaire up lamp. With cut out inserts of glass for great look. Has the glass discs stacked at the base. All original lamp.Category
Vintage 1920s European Art Deco Table Lamps
MaterialsMetal
- Pair of Architectural Element LampsLocated in Los Angeles, CAPair of architectural element lamps, black finish.Category
Mid-20th Century Unknown Medieval Table Lamps
MaterialsCement
- Koch & Lowy Chromed Articulating Desk LampBy Koch & LowyLocated in East Hampton, NYThis is a wonderful and original signed Koch & Lowy pivoting chromed desk lamp with tent shade diffuser. Single Edison socket.Category
Vintage 1960s German Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsChrome
- Pair of Koch & Lowy Chrome Swing Arm Adjustable Desk / LampsBy Koch & LowyLocated in Westport, CTMirror chrome Koch & Lowy swing arm adjustable desk / table lamps, vans adjust head to back light and area and appear more sculptural. when you adjust shade up towards wall for back...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsSteel, Chrome
- Midcentury Modern Koch & Lowy Style Chrome Articulating Desk LampBy Koch & LowyLocated in Chicago, ILAn elegant midcentury desk lamp in polished chrome in the style of Koch & Lowy; the tent shade articulates on a ball and socket and further adjusts on a swing-arm. Lovely true vinta...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsChrome
- Vintage Koch & Lowy Chrome Articulating Swing Arm Desk LampBy Koch & LowyLocated in Chula Vista, CAKoch & Lowy Chrome Articulating Swing Arm Desk Lamp 11.13 tall x 14.38 closed x 21 fully extended x 7.88 diameter base Unmarked Preowned original vintage condition Shade has faded ar...Category
Late 20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsChrome
- Koch & Lowy Chrome Desk LampBy Koch & LowyLocated in Asbury Park, NJAn elegant desk lamp in polished chrome by Koch & Lowy; the tent shade articulates on a ball and socket and further adjusts on a swing-arm.Category
Vintage 1970s Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
- Koch & Lowy for OMI Silver Chrome Reading Desk Lamp, In Working Order, 1960sBy Koch & Lowy, OMILocated in New York, NYStunning desk lamp/ reading lamp by Koch & Lowy, signed OMI. Features a pivoting chrome shade with dimmer knob. In good working condition. The voltage is 110, standard US plug. The ...Category
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
MaterialsChrome