Black Vademecum table lamp by Joe Colombo for Kartell, 1960s
By Kartell, Joe Colombo
Located in Rotterdam, NL
Black Vademecum (model 4034) table lamp, designed by Joe Colombo in 1968 and manufactured by Kartell.
Steel
Kartell Bourgie Lamp in Glossy Black by Ferruccio Laviani
By Ferruccio Laviani, Kartell
Located in Brooklyn, NY
A lamp with an inimitable style, Bourgie is one of Kartell’s best sellers, skillfully combining classic style, richness and tradition with innovation and irony. The baroque style bas...
Plastic
Kartell Taj Lamp in Glossy Black by Ferruccio Laviani
By Ferruccio Laviani, Kartell
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Taj, more than a lamp, is a three-dimensional manifestation, a luminous sculpture, a presence as much at home on our desk as on another piece of furniture. Although it is a table lam...
Resin
Kartell Mini Kabuki Desk Lamp in Black by Ferruccio Laviani
By Ferruccio Laviani, Kartell
Located in Brooklyn, NY
A mini version of the lamp in a complex thermoplastic polymer with a characteristic perforated surface, from which the light diffuses. Dimensions: Height: 27.56 in.; Width: 11.8 i...
Plastic
Kartell Bourgie Mat in Black by Ferruccio Laviani
By Kartell, Ferruccio Laviani
Located in Brooklyn, NY
A lamp with an inimitable style, Bourgie is one of Kartell’s best sellers, skillfully combining classic style, richness and tradition with innovation and irony. The baroque style bas...
Plastic
XL Sphere Table Lamp ‘Model 4043’ by Filippo Panseca for Kartell, Italy, 1960s
By Kartell
Located in Rotterdam, ZH
Table / floor lamp ‘Model 4043’ by Filippo Panseca for Kartell, Italy 1968. Two models were produced, this is the rare largest version. Interesting radical design consisting an acryl...
Stainless Steel
Kartell Planet Lamp in Fume by Tokujin Yoshioka
By Tokujin Yoshioka, Kartell
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Planet lamp in crystal. Its special feature that is the shape of its slightly elliptical diffuser. Its transparent surface, which is many-sided both inside and out, creates a rich ta...
Aluminum
Kartell Bourgie Lamp in Multicolored Titanium by Ferruccio Laviani
By Kartell, Ferruccio Laviani
Located in Brooklyn, NY
A lamp with an inimitable style, Bourgie is one of Kartell’s best sellers, skillfully combining classic style, richness and tradition with innovation and irony. The baroque style bas...
Plastic
Kartell Planet Stand Lamp in Fume by Tokujin Yoshioka
By Kartell, Tokujin Yoshioka
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Planet stand lamp in fume. Its special feature is the shape of its slightly elliptical diffuser. Its transparent surface, which is many-sided both inside and out, creates a rich tape...
Aluminum
Kartell Aledin Dec Desk Lamp in Fume by Alberto e Francesco Meda
By Francesco Meda, Alberto Meda, Kartell
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Aledin Dec is defined by the faceted decoration of its cone-shaped diffuser. The luminous beam throws a wider and more atmospheric light which well lends itself to residential applic...
Plastic
Kartell Aledin Tec Desk Lamp in Amber by Alberto E Francesco Meda
By Alberto Meda, Kartell, Francesco Meda
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Aledin Dec is defined by the faceted decoration of its cone-shaped diffuser. The luminous beam throws a wider and more atmospheric light which well lends itself to residential applic...
Plastic
Kartell Aledin Tec Desk Lamp in Fume by Alberto e Francesco Meda
By Alberto Meda, Kartell, Francesco Meda
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Aledin Dec is defined by the faceted decoration of its cone-shaped diffuser. The luminous beam throws a wider and more atmospheric light which well lends itself to residential applic...
Plastic
Kartell Aledin Tec Desk Lamp in Fume by Alberto e Francesco Meda
By Alberto Meda, Kartell, Francesco Meda
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Aledin Tec has a flat head which throws a direct luminous beam and is also adjustable thanks to the movement of the diffuser itself. These characteristics make it suitable for office...
Plastic
Black KD29 Table Lamp by Joe Colombo for Kartell, 1960s
By Kartell, Joe Colombo
Located in Ixelles, Bruxelles
Designer - Joe Colombo Producer - Kartell Model - KD 29 Design Period - Seventies Measurements - Width 25 cm x Depth 25 cm x Height 34 cm Materials - Plastic Color - Black, White Ele...
Plastic
Unavailable
H 9.85 in W 7.49 in D 3.15 in
Vademecum table lamp mod 4034 Designer Joe Colombo for Kartell
By Kartell, Joe Colombo
Located in Torino, Piemonte
Table lamp model Vademecum 4034 designed by Joe Colombo in 1968 for Kartell Milano Italia. White-colored table lamp with stainless steel shade. The lampshade can be closed. The lam...
Metal
Unavailable
H 9.85 in W 7.49 in D 3.15 in
Vademecum table lamp mod 4034 Designer Joe Colombo for Kartell
By Kartell, Joe Colombo
Located in Torino, Piemonte
Table lamp model Vademecum 4034 designed by Joe Colombo in 1968 for Kartell Milano Italia. Black table lamp with stainless steel shade. The lampshade can be closed. The lamp has 2 ...
Metal
Ferruccio Laviani for Kartell Black "Bourgie" Table Lamp, Italy 2015
By Ferruccio Laviani, Kartell
Located in Naples, IT
Bourgie is a Table Lamp designed by Ferruccio Laviani and produced by the brand Kartell. The Bourgie lamp is a Baroque-style creation with a plissé-effect lampshade made of polycarb...
Plastic
Black Vademecum Table Lamp by Joe Colombo for Kartell, 1960s
By Joe Colombo, Kartell
Located in Rotterdam, NL
Black Vademecum (model 4034) table lamp designed by Joe Colombo in 1968 and manufactured by Kartell.
Steel
Sold
H 9.26 in Dm 9.85 in
Italian mid-century modern brown plastic table lamps KD27 Colombo Kartell, 1960s
By Kartell, Joe Colombo
Located in MIlano, IT
Italian mid-century modern brown plastic table lamps KD27 Colombo Kartell, 1960s Pair of table lamps mod. KD27 in brown plastic. The cylindrical structure has a rectangular hole with...
Plastic
Black 'Vademecum' Table Lamp by Joe Colombo for Kartell, 1969
By Joe Colombo
Located in Chicago, IL
A rare 'Vademecum' table lamp designed by Joe Colombo for Kartell in 1969.
Chrome
Joe Colombo KD8 Ebanil Production Kartell, 1964
By Joe Colombo
Located in Roosendaal, Noord Brabant
Here for a rare table lamp model 4008/5 KD8 designed by Joe Colombo, handmade for Kartell 1964. This is the very first pre production, or what they call prototype lamp of this lamp m...
Plastic
Table Lamp Kartell Bourgie Black by Ferruccio Laviani
By Kartell, Ferruccio Laviani
Located in Roma, IT
A lamp with an unmistakable style, a true best-seller by Kartell, Bourgie marvellously combines classicism, wealth and tradition with innovation and irony. The base, in Baroque style...
Acrylic
Joe Colombo ‘KD29’ Table Lamp for Kartell, Italy, 1967
By Joe Colombo, Kartell
Located in Antwerp, Antwerp
Iconic model KD29 table lamp designed by Joe Colombo for Kartell, Italy, 1967.
Plastic
Pair of Black Bourgie Lamps by Ferruccio Laviani for Kartell
By Kartell, Ferruccio Laviani
Located in Chicago, IL
These striking table lamps are the iconic Bourgie Lamp by Italian designer Ferruccio Laviani (b. 1960), manufactured by Milan-based furniture company Kartell.
Plastic
Black KD29 Table Lamp by Joe Colombo for Kartell, 1960s
By Joe Colombo, Kartell
Located in Ixelles, Bruxelles
Designer - Joe Colombo Producer - Kartell Model - KD 29 Design Period - Seventies Measurements - Width 25 cm x Depth 25 cm x Height 34 cm Materials - Plastic Color - Black, White Ele...
Plastic
Black KD27 Table Lamp by Joe Colombo for Kartell, 1960s
By Joe Colombo, Kartell
Located in Ixelles, Bruxelles
Designer - Joe Colombo Producer - Kartell Model - KD 27 Design Period - Seventies Measurements - Width 25 cm x Depth 25 cm x Height 26 cm Materials - Plastic Color - Black, White Ele...
Plastic
Two kd29 Table Lamp by Joe Colombo for Kartell
By Kartell, Joe Colombo
Located in Savona, IT
Two Kartell lamps produced in 1967 and designed by Joe Colombo. Abs central body and white methacrylate diffusers. Good general condition, one of the two lamps has a slightly defor...
Plastic
Vademecum table lamp Designer Joe Colombo for Kartell
By Joe Colombo, Kartell
Located in Torino, Piemonte
Table lamp model Vademecum designed by Joe Colombo in 1968 for Kartell Milano Italia. Table lamp with orange plastic and stainless steel shade. The lampshade can be closed. Lamp wi...
Metal
Kartell Bourgie Lamp in Crystal by Ferruccio Laviani
By Kartell, Ferruccio Laviani
Located in Brooklyn, NY
A lamp with an inimitable style, Bourgie is one of Kartell’s best sellers, skillfully combining classic style, richness and tradition with innovation and irony. The baroque style bas...
Plastic
Kartell Bourgie Lamp in Gold by Ferruccio Laviani
By Kartell, Ferruccio Laviani
Located in Brooklyn, NY
A lamp with an inimitable style, Bourgie is one of Kartell’s best sellers, skillfully combining classic style, richness and tradition with innovation and irony. The baroque style bas...
Plastic
$1,565 / item
H 18.5 in Dm 22.83 in
FLOS Spun T1 Halogen Table Lamp in Glossy Black by Sebastian Wrong
By Flos, Sebastian Wrong
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Designed by Sebastian Wrong in 2003, the Spun Light-T table lamp reflects the best of modern manufacturing technology combined with elegance, craftsmanship, and dynamic fluid aesthet...
Aluminum, Steel
FLOS Miss K Table Lamp in Black by Philippe Starck
By Flos, Philippe Starck
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Created by innovative design master Philippe Starck, the miss K table lamp brings a delightful duality to its work. When unlit, its transparent PC (polycarbonate) outer diffuser—whic...
Plastic
$639
H 15.75 in W 31.89 in D 6.7 in
Anders Pherson for Atelje Lyktan, Black Tube Desk Lamp, 1970s, Sweden
By Ateljé Lyktan, Anders Pherson
Located in Den Haag, NL
Very nice black tube desk lamp Design by Anders Pehrson for Atelje Lykan,1960s, Sweden. signed. Good condition.
Plastic
$1,882
H 11.82 in W 6.3 in D 2.17 in
Black Scintilla Table Lamp by Piero Castiglioni for Fontana Arte, 1980s
By Fontana Arte
Located in Rotterdam, NL
Black Scintilla table lamp, designed in 1984 by Piero Castiglioni for Fontana Arte. The structure of this table lamp is made from grey die-cast anodized aluminium. In addition to ae...
Aluminum
$2,500 / item
H 27.17 in Dm 18.9 in
Ovale Carlo Moretti Contemporary Mouth Blown Black Murano Glass Table Lamp
By Carlo Moretti
Located in IT
Chosen as one of Architectural Digest "best new lights, 2015", Ovale is a table lamp of black mouth blown Murano glass and mouth blown Murano white opaline glass shade mounted on gil...
Chrome
$1,800 / item
H 18.5 in Dm 22.83 in
FLOS Spun T2 Halogen Table Lamp in Glossy Black by Sebastian Wrong
By Sebastian Wrong, Flos
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Designed by Sebastian Wrong in 2003, the Spun Light-T table lamp reflects the best of modern manufacturing technology combined with elegance, craftsmanship, and dynamic fluid aesthet...
Aluminum, Steel
$696 / item
H 7.4 in W 1.8 in D 7.7 in
Gae Aulenti & Piero Castiglioni 'Minibox' Table Lamp in Black for Stilnovo
By Stilnovo, Gae Aulenti
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Gae Aulenti & Piero Castiglioni 'Minibox' table lamp in black for Stilnovo Founded in 1946 in Milan, Stilnovo was one of the most innovative lighting companies in Italy during the M...
Metal
$8,714
H 16.54 in W 33.08 in D 7.88 in
Modern Vintage Black Glass Table Lamp by Lino Tagliapietra La Murrina 1972 Italy
By Lino Tagliapietra
Located in Vienna, AT
Modern vintage black glass table lamp designed designed and realized by Lino Tagliapietra for La Murrina, Murano Italy 1972, which shows a thick walled curved glass body. This high q...
Murano Glass
$4,510
H 30.7 in Dm 18.5 in
Max Ingrand Fontana Arte Fontana Total Black Table Lamp in Glass, 2014 Edition
By Max Ingrand, Fontana Arte
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Designed by Max Ingrand and manufactured by Fontana Arte, the Fontana total black table lamp, 2014 Edition, is an unusual Total Black produced in 2014 to mark the 60th anniversary of...
Metal
Joe Colombo Vademecum Table Lamp Kartell, 1969s
By Kartell, Joe Colombo
Located in Skokie, IL
Joe Colombo Vademecum table lamp Kartell Italy, 1969 Additional information: Materials:plastic, chrome-plated steel Dimensions: 7" W × 3" D × 10" H Condition: Very good. Tested and...
Steel
$3,300
H 24 in W 18 in D 10 in
Contemporary Carved Hua Design Table Lamp in Black Lacquer by Robert Kuo
By Robert Kuo
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Carved Hua design table lamp Black lacquer Hand carved Metal base Hand repoussé Limited edition Natural linen shade Repoussé is the traditional art of hand-hammering decorat...
Metal
$2,091
H 15.75 in W 18.12 in D 9.26 in
Accademia table lamp from Cini Boeri for Artemide, 1970s Italy.
By Cini Boeri, Artemide
Located in Landgraaf, NL
Accademia table lamp from Cini Boeri for Artemide, 1970s Italy. Elevate your interior with the minimalist elegance of the Accademia table lamp by renowned Italian designer Cini Boeri...
Metal
$348
H 28.75 in W 7.88 in D 20.48 in
Midcentury Table Lamp Vico Magistretti Black Plastic Italian Design 1970s
By Vico Magistretti
Located in Palermo, IT
Table lamp with 1 E27 light designed by Vico Magistretti and produced in Italy in the 70s. The lamp was made of black plastic and can be directed via its flexible arm. Please watch ...
Plastic
Silhouette Black Noir Table Lamp by Warm Nordic
Located in Geneve, CH
Silhouette Black Noir Table Lamp by Warm Nordic Dimensions: D40 x W36 x H59 cm Material: Lacquered steel, Solid brass Weight: 2 kg Also available in different colours. Please con...
Brass, Steel
$974 / item
H 31 in W 14.5 in D 14.5 in
Kartell Bourgie Lamp in Multicolored Fuchsia by Ferruccio Laviani
By Ferruccio Laviani, Kartell
Located in Brooklyn, NY
A lamp with an inimitable style, Bourgie is one of Kartell’s best sellers, skillfully combining classic style, richness and tradition with innovation and irony. The baroque style bas...
Plastic
$974 / item
H 31 in W 14.5 in D 14.5 in
Kartell Bourgie Lamp in Multicolored Blue by Ferruccio Laviani
By Ferruccio Laviani, Kartell
Located in Brooklyn, NY
A lamp with an inimitable style, Bourgie is one of Kartell’s best sellers, skillfully combining Classic style, richness and tradition with innovation and irony. The Baroque style bas...
Plastic
$4,500 / item
H 14 in W 8 in D 5 in
Series 03 Table Lamp, "Smoke" Patinated Brass, Stitched Goatskin Parchment Shade
By Adam Otlewski
Located in Ozone Park, NY
Sculpted solid brass in "smoke" acid patinated finish, machined and mechanically fastened. handstitched goatskin parchment shade, with hand-dyed braided cotton cord. All material fin...
Brass
$3,515 / item
H 12.63 in W 7 in D 5.5 in
Series03 Wall Sconce, "Smoke" Patinated Sculpted Brass, Goatskin Parchment Shade
By Adam Otlewski
Located in Ozone Park, NY
Sculpted solid brass in a "smoke" acid patinated finish, machined and mechanically fastened. Goatskin parchment shade with accordion-folded face and hand stitched edges. Hand-dyed br...
Brass
$4,900 / item
H 34 in W 86 in D 42 in
Custom Made Modern English Arm Sofa in Performance Linen Velvet - 86"
By Bloom Home Inc
Located in Old Town Orange, CA
This beautiful english arm sofa has a modern twist, with its single bench cushion, and beautiful curved apron sides. It’s upholstered in a Linen Velvet Performance fabric. Shown in...
Linen, Velvet
Custom Made Oak and Velvet Bench by Kai Kristiansen
Located in London, England
Bench designed by Danish master Kai Kristiansen in the 1950s and now produced under license by Dagmar. Hand-made to order, this upholstered bench has a fumed and oiled oak frame. Th...
Mohair, Oak
$6,855 / set
H 24.01 in Dm 13.78 in
Pair of Constant Night Stands in Iroko Wood by Master Studio for Lemon
By Lemon
Located in Amsterdam, NL
Neatly proportioned with exceptional detailing, the constant nightstand is your perfect bedside partner. In our furniture making, the IDEA is to create special pieces that you can bu...
Hardwood
$2,160 / item
H 10 in W 16 in D 16 in
Collectible Modern Fabric Sculptural Table Lamp by Mirei Monticelli, Aphrodite
By Costantini
Located in New York, NY
The Aphrodite lamp takes form from the godess Venus born of sea-spray, depicted by the revered painter Sandro Boticelli. The lampshade is made from banaca fabric, and the lamp base i...
Cement
LUfo Ceiling Light
By Lumfardo Luminaires
Located in Los Angeles, CA
LUFO perforated brass dome ceiling light by Lumfardo Luminaires. Part of our contemporary collection the LUFO ceiling light is in a darkened patina finish. Hand perforations frame ar...
Brass
$944Sale Price / item|20% Off
H 14.97 in Dm 35.44 in
Boo Bed • Hand-Carved Dog Bed in Teak with Sheepskin Upholstery, by Odditi
By Odditi
Located in CAROOL, NSW, AU
The Boo Bed is a contemporary architectural throne for your doggo. Upholstered in luxurious long haired sheepskin for your fur baby’s comfort. Featuring hand-carved details and made ...
Sheepskin, Teak
Pair of Tulips Murano Glass and Brass Sconces
Located in Puglia, Puglia
Pair of wall lamps, entirely handmade in Murano, Italy, that bring the energy of Nature and Feng Shui into your interior. This pair of modern organic wall lamps is composed of a hand...
Brass
$7,320 / item
H 19.69 in W 16.15 in D 10.63 in
Josef Hoffmann & Wiener Werkstätte Brass & Silk Desk Lamp, Re-Edition
By Woka Lamps, Josef Hoffmann, Wiener Werkstätte
Located in Vienna, AT
A Josef Hoffmann table lamp with a fabric-shade - different Colors are available Originally manufactured at the Wiener Werkstätte Atelier, now custom-made production at the Woka Lamp...
Brass
Antique 19th Century French Set of Four Copper Pans
Located in Suffolk, GB
Antique Victorian French set of four copper pans of circular form having a tempered copper base, iron handles with copper rivets and hanging holes. They are heavier than the average...
Copper
Luigi Massoni ‘Dilly Dally’ Vanity Set in Cognac Leatherette
By Poltrona Frau, Luigi Massoni
Located in Waalwijk, NL
Luigi Massoni for Poltrona Frau, ‘Dilly Dally’ vanity set, leatherette, mirrored glass, plastic, brass, lacquered wood, metal, Italy, 1968 Outstanding Italian dressing table designe...
Metal, Brass
Fabric Pende Woka Chandelier
By Woka Lamps
Located in Vienna, AT
Handsewn fabric shade, dessin by Josef Frank for Svenskt Tenn, hanging on a fabric-covered wire, brass-parts in the requested finish. Total drop custom made 2 x Edison screw sockets ...
Brass
$1,650 / item
H 16.1 in Dm 11.5 in
'Plissé Pale Blue Edition' Pleated Textile Table Lamp by Folkform for Örsjö
By Örsjö Industri AB
Located in Los Angeles, CA
'Plissé Pale Blue Edition' pleated textile table lamp by Folkform for Örsjö. This unique table lamp was awarded “Lighting of the Year 2022” by Residence Magazine Sweden, who called ...
Textile
The Italian design giant Kartell transformed plastic from the stuff of humble household goods into a staple of luxury design in the 1960s. Founded in Milan by Italian chemical engineer Giulio Castelli (1920–2006) and his wife Anna Ferrieri (1918–2006), Kartell began as an industrial design firm, producing useful items like ski racks for automobiles and laboratory equipment designed to replace breakable glass with sturdy plastic. Even as companies like Olivetti and Vespa were making Italian design popular in the 1950s, typewriters and scooters were relatively costly, and Castelli and Ferrieri wanted to provide Italian consumers with affordable, stylish goods.
They launched a housewares division of Kartell in 1953, making lighting fixtures and kitchen tools and accessories from colorful molded plastic. Consumers in the postwar era were initially skeptical of plastic goods, but their affordability and infinite range of styles and hues eventually won devotees. Tupperware parties in the United States made plastic storage containers ubiquitous in postwar homes, and Kartell’s ingenious designs for juicers, dustpans, and dish racks conquered Europe. Kartell designer Gino Colombini was responsible for many of these early products, and his design for the KS 1146 Bucket won the Compasso d’Oro prize in 1955.
Buoyed by its success in the home goods market, Kartell introduced its Habitat division in 1963. Designers Marco Zanuso and Richard Sapper created the K1340 (later called the K 4999) children’s chair that year, and families enjoyed their bright colors and light weight, which made them easy for kids to pick up and move. In 1965, Joe Colombo (1924–78) created one of Kartell’s few pieces of non-plastic furniture, the 4801 chair, which sits low to the ground and comprised of just three curved pieces of plywood. (In 2012, Kartell reissued the chair in plastic.) Colombo followed up on the success of the 4801 with the iconic 4867 Universal Chair in 1967, which, like Verner Panton’s S chair, is made from a single piece of plastic. The colorful, stackable injection-molded chair was an instant classic. That same year, Kartell introduced Colombo’s KD27 table lamp. Ferrierei’s cylindrical 4966 Componibili storage module debuted in 1969.
Kartell achieved international recognition for its innovative work in 1972, when a landmark exhibition curated by Emilio Ambasz called “Italy: The New Domestic Landscape” opened at New York’s Museum of Modern Art. That show introduced American audiences to the work of designers such as Gaetano Pesce; Ettore Sottsass, founder of the Memphis Group; and the firms Archizoom and Superstudio (both firms were among Italy's Radical design groups) — all of whom were using wit, humor and unorthodox materials to create a bracingly original interior aesthetic.
Castelli and Ferrieri sold Kartell to Claudio Luti, their son-in-law, in 1988, and since then, Luti has expanded the company’s roster of designers.
Kartell produced Ron Arad’s Bookworm wall shelf in 1994, and Philippe Starck’s La Marie chair in 1998. More recently, Kartell has collaborated with the Japanese collective Nendo, Spanish architect Patricia Urquiola and glass designer Tokujin Yoshioka, among many others. Kartell classics can be found in museums around the world, including MoMA, the Victoria and Albert Museum and the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum. In 1999, Claudio Luti established the Museo Kartell to tell the company’s story, through key objects from its innovative and colorful history.
Find vintage Kartell tables, seating, table lamps and other furniture on 1stDibs.
Arguably the world’s most ubiquitous man-made material, plastic has impacted nearly every industry. In contemporary spaces, new and vintage plastic furniture is quite popular and its use pairs well with a range of design styles.
From the Italian lighting artisans at Fontana Arte to venturesome Scandinavian modernists such as Verner Panton, who created groundbreaking interiors as much as he did seating — see his revolutionary Panton chair — to contemporary multidisciplinary artists like Faye Toogood, furniture designers have been pushing the boundaries of plastic forever.
When The Graduate's Mr. McGuire proclaimed, “There’s a great future in plastics,” it was more than a laugh line. The iconic quote is an allusion both to society’s reliance on and its love affair with plastic. Before the material became an integral part of our lives — used in everything from clothing to storage to beauty and beyond — people relied on earthly elements for manufacturing, a process as time-consuming as it was costly.
Soon after American inventor John Wesley Hyatt created celluloid, which could mimic luxury products like tortoiseshell and ivory, production hit fever pitch, and the floodgates opened for others to explore plastic’s full potential. The material altered the history of design — mid-century modern legends Charles and Ray Eames, Joe Colombo and Eero Saarinen regularly experimented with plastics in the development of tables and chairs, and today plastic furnishings and decorative objects are seen as often indoors as they are outside.
Find vintage plastic lounge chairs, outdoor furniture, lighting and more on 1stDibs.
Antique table lamps became a category of their own once electricity moved light off the wall and onto furniture. The form split quickly: task-driven designs like the Anglepoise on one side, decorative ceramic and glass on the other.
Styles to Know
Base material shapes the light as much as the shade does: ceramic and glass diffuse a softer glow, while brass and metal read more directional. Layer the look with a mid-century modern floor lamp for ambient light, or set a pair on a mid-century modern nightstand for a bedroom.
How to Choose the Right Vintage Table Lamp
Buying individually rather than as a pair allows more flexibility when mixing eras across a room. For those shopping by name rather than by shape, the history of the Anglepoise lamp is worth a read. Each piece comes from a vetted 1stDibs seller, with era, designer and condition detailed, and the 1stDibs Promise stands behind every purchase.