$1,900Sale Price / item|50% Off
Golden French 1960s Pendant Flush Light
Located in New York, NY
A stunning 1960s French polished solid brass round disc fixture with 16 solid glass orbs. Five-light sources which emit light downward through the glass as well as up toward the ceil...
Brass
Gaetano Sciolari Mid-Century Modern Italian Chrome and Glass Chandelier, 1970
By Gaetano Sciolari, Sciolari Lighting
Located in Puglia, Puglia
Chandelier designed by Gaetano Sciolari and produced by Sciolari Lighting in chromed metal and glass, ten E14 bulbs with 51 spheres of blown glass. Angelo Gaetano Sciolari (1927-1...
Chrome
Serge Mouille - Black or White Spider Ceiling Lamp with Three Arms
By Serge Mouille
Located in Stratford, CT
A slight angle at the end of each arm allows this classic design to be equally at home on the ceiling. With rotating heads on fixed arms, the versatility is only rivaled by its beaut...
Aluminum, Steel, Chrome
Large Venini Ceiling Lights Attributed to Carlo Scarpa for Venini, 1950s
By Venini
Located in Aachen, NRW
Large Venini ceiling lights attributed to Carlo Scarpa for Venini, 1960s. Wonderful light effect. The heavily textured and slightly iridescent glass dome is held in place by a brass ...
Brass
$716Sale Price|64% Off
Ceiling Lamp Ball Murano Glass Selenova Italian Design Chrome Silver White
By Selenova
Located in Palermo, Sicily
Ceiling lamp ball Murano glass Selenova Italian design chrome silver white. 3 light bulbs E14 max 40 Watt each.
Chrome
Pair of Amazing Murano Glass Multicolor Flowers Basket Ceiling Lights, 1960'
Located in Rome, IT
Pair of amazing Mid-Century Modern hand blown Italian flush mount chandelier featuring overlapping crystal flowers, gold with gold leaf fleck inclusions, mounted on a webbed painted ...
Blown Glass
Mid-Century Space Age frosted glass round flush mount J.T. Kalmar Austria 1960
By J.T. Kalmar
Located in Almelo, NL
Mid-Century Space Age clear and frosted glass round flush mount or wall lamp designed by J.T.
Metal
Midcentury Danish Ceiling Lamp in Smoke Glass from Vitrika, 1960s
By Vitrika
Located in Esbjerg, DK
This pendant light was designed and manufactured by Danish design trio Vitrika in the 1960s. The name Vitrika, or Vi-Tri-Ka means 'The three of us can do it'. The lamp features a gre...
Aluminum
Midcentury Modern Round Shape Glass Flush Mount / Ceiling Fixture with Teak Wood
Located in Lisse, NL
Beautifully decorated and stylish 3-light pendant light from the midcentury era.
Brass
Italian Midcentury Brass 3-Arm Sputnik Chandelier, 1950s
By Stilnovo
Located in Hagenbach, DE
This Italian Sputnik ceiling lamp from the 1950s is a captivating example of mid-century modern design in the style of Stilnovo.
Metal, Brass
Lampada plafoniera 2042/3 Gino Sarfatti, Arteluce, 1960
By Arteluce, Gino Sarfatti
Located in Milano, Lombardia
The 2042/3 ceiling lamp, designed by Gino Sarfatti for Arteluce in 1960, is an iconic piece of 20th-century Italian design. Characterized by a minimalist aesthetic and refined struct...
Metal
$1,270 / item
Poul Henningsen Ph 4/3 Table Lamp
By Louis Poulsen, Poul Henningsen
Located in Berkeley, CA
The fixture is designed based on the principle of a reflective three-shade system, which directs the majority of the light downwards. The shades are made of metal and painted white t...
Chrome
Art deco alabaster hanging dish light
Located in Debenham, Suffolk
Art deco alabaster hanging dish light circa 1930. Good quality art deco period pendant light. Natural alabaster worked to the form of a circular dish with ridged edge. Bowl suspen...
Alabaster
Large Acorn Italian Pendant Light circa. 1960
Located in London, GB
Large Acorn Italian Pendant Light circa. 1960 This large mid-century acorn light has a soft blue finish that casts a warm, inviting glow.
Brass
Pair of A Fasce Verticale Ceiling Lamps, Model 4040 Venini
By Massimo Vignelli
Located in New York, NY
Pair of Massimo Vignelli hanging pendants. Model #4040 with affixed original stickers marked 9132. Additional information: Materials: Glass Documentation: Ample Provenance Notes: Ve...
Glass
Large Art Déco Pendant Light, 1930s - 1940s
Located in Schwerin, MV
This Art Deco ceiling lamp impresses with its nostalgic character and its extraordinary shape. The large, curved glass shade is in a warm yellow-beige and features a decorative, marb...
Metal
Modernist Copper Triple Drop Pendant Light
Located in London, GB
An idiosyncratic handcrafted Modernist Danish triple drop pendant light. Constructed from solid copper with a curved copper yoke which suspends 3 riveted copper cylinders - by moving...
Copper
$632Sale Price|20% Off
Vintage Ceiling Lamp Doria Leuchten with Ice Glass and Metal, Germany, 1960s
By Doria Leuchten Germany
Located in Oirlo, LI
Vintage ceiling lamp Doria leuchten with ice glass and metal, Germany 1960s Beautiful ceiling lamp made of 3 layers of metal, the rings are made of metal and the thick ice glass sha...
Metal
Antique Holophane Prismatic Glass Church Kitchen Island Pendant Light
By Holophane
Located in Stockbridge, GB
Antique 10″ Holophane Church Pendant 2 Part Reflector Refractor Light – F A classic original Holophane ‘Reflector Refractor’ glass pendant light retaining its original gallery and c...
Aluminum, Brass, Copper
$4,402 / item
Poul Henningsen Ph 4½-3½ Glass Floor Lamp
By Louis Poulsen, Poul Henningsen
Located in Berkeley, CA
The fixture is designed based on the principle of a reflective three-shade system, which directs the majority of the light downwards. The shades are made of handblown opal three-laye...
Chrome
‘Rituals 2’ Blown Opaline Glass Flush Mount Ceiling Lamp in White for Foscarini
By Foscarini, Ludovica + Roberto Palomba 1
Located in Los Angeles, CA
‘Rituals 2’ blown opaline glass flush mount ceiling lamp in white for Foscarini Designed by Ludovica + Roberto Palomba and produced by Foscarini, the Italian lighting firm founded i...
Metal
Antique Holophane Prismatic Glass Church Pendant Light
By Holophane
Located in Stockbridge, GB
Antique Glass Holophane Pendant Light – I A vintage bell shaped glass prismatic pendant light shade which looks great both lit and unlit. The light has retained its original brass g...
Aluminum, Brass, Copper
Ceiling Lamp in Brass and Glass by Hans-Agne Jakobsson, 1950s
By Hans-Agne Jakobsson
Located in Limhamn, Skåne län
The ceiling lamp model T 348/3, designed by Hans-Agne Jakobsson and produced by his company Hans-Agne Jakobsson AB in Markaryd, Sweden, during the 1950s, is a distinguished example o...
Brass
Antique Benjamin Grey 18" Industrial Pendant Light
By Benjamin
Located in Stockbridge, GB
18″ Antique Industrial Grey Factory Pendant Light By Benjamin -A A large iconic industrial factory light shade manufactured by Benjamin Crysteel. The light shade is a spun vitreous ...
Enamel, Steel
Florentine Gilt Flush Mount Light with Glass flowers
By Banci Firenze
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Beautiful and decorative 1960's Italian gold painted Florentine Lamp by Banci Firenze. In good and fully original condition, some signs of wear to be noticed on the leafs. Lamp offer...
Metal
Large Murano Swirl Glass Ceiling Lights or Sconces by VM-Vetri, Italy, 1970s
By Vetri
Located in Almelo, NL
Murano swirl glass ceiling lights or sconces by VM-Vetri, Italy, 1970s These are white Swirl Murano glass ceiling or wall lamps with a white painted metal fixture from the productio...
Metal
Set of Three Lumi Ceiling Pendants Black Satin Glass, Italy, circa 1960
By Stilnovo
Located in Vienna, AT
Set of three Lumi ceiling pendants black satin glass, Italy, circa 1960 Beautiful set of 3 Italian Stilnovo-ish black metal Cascade pendants with a diameter of 21.6", produced for...
Chrome, Aluminum
‘Rituals XL’ Blown Opaline Glass Flush Mount Ceiling Lamp in White for Foscarini
By Foscarini, Ludovica + Roberto Palomba 1
Located in Los Angeles, CA
‘Rituals XL’ blown opaline glass flush mount ceiling lamp in white for Foscarini Designed by Ludovica + Roberto Palomba and produced by Foscarini, the Italian lighting firm founded ...
Metal
$2,228Sale Price|20% Off
Sunburst Eyelash Light Fixture in Gilt Wrought Iron
Located in Barcelona, ES
French midcentury gilt iron eyelash sunburst ceiling light fixture / wall sconce, 1950s. A hand-hammered large gilt iron sunburst light fixture with alternating eyelash ended rays a...
Metal, Iron, Wrought Iron, Gold Leaf
$4,195 / item
Poul Henningsen Ph 4½-3½ Glass Table Lamp
By Louis Poulsen, Poul Henningsen
Located in Berkeley, CA
"The fixture is designed based on the principle of a reflective three-shade system, which directs the majority of the light downwards. The shades are made of handblown opal three-lay...
Chrome
Finnish Vintage Chandelier Model 62-401/3, Stockmann Tukku 1950s
By Oy Stockmann AB
Located in Helsinki, FI
Finnish Mid-Century Modern ceiling pendant model 62-402/3 from the Stockmann catalogue.
Metal, Brass
Vintage Chandelier Model 62-004/3, Stockmann Tukku, Finland 1950s
By Oy Stockmann AB
Located in Helsinki, FI
A Finnish mid-century modern ceiling pendant, model 62-004/3 from the Stockmann catalogue, featuring a graceful brass body and three beautifully shaped and hand painted glass shades.
Metal, Brass
Large Elegant German Wall Sconce or Ceiling Lamp, Ice Glass, by Fischer, 1970s
By Fischer Leuchten
Located in Berlin, BE
Large wall lamp from the late 1970s or 1980s. Can also be used as a celing light. By Fischer Leuchten. Brass frame with elegant Ice Glass There is a hole in the middle of the fram...
Brass
$1,541 / item
Poul Henningsen Ph 3/2 Glass Table Lamp
By Louis Poulsen, Poul Henningsen
Located in Berkeley, CA
The fixture is designed based on the principle of a reflective three-shade system, which directs the majority of the light downwards. The shades are made of handblown opal three-laye...
Chrome
‘Rituals 1’ Blown Opaline Glass Flush Mount Ceiling Lamp in White for Foscarini
By Ludovica + Roberto Palomba 1, Foscarini
Located in Los Angeles, CA
‘Rituals 1’ blown opaline glass flush mount ceiling lamp in white for Foscarini Designed by Ludovica + Roberto Palomba and produced by Foscarini, the Italian lighting firm founded i...
Metal
$1,336Sale Price / set|58% Off
Round Pair of Ceiling Lamp Venini Ice Glass 1960 Triangolar Tubes Italian Design
By Venini
Located in Palermo, Sicily
Round pair of ceiling lamp Venini ice glass 1960 Triangolar tubes Italian design. Each of them with 3-light bulb E14 max 40 watt each.
Chrome
Pendant light by Verner Schou wood Denmark. 1960s.
Located in Paris, IDF
A set of three ceiling lamps, Verner Schou pendant light in wood made In by Coronell Denmark. 1970s. 3 pendants available price for 1
Wood
Finnish Vintage Chandelier Model 62-004/3, Stockmann Tukku 1950s
By Oy Stockmann AB
Located in Helsinki, FI
Finnish Mid-Century Modern ceiling pendant model 62-004/3 from the Stockmann catalogue.
Metal, Brass
Dome Design Grey Glass Wall or Ceiling Lamp by Peill Putzler, 1970s, Germany
By Peill & Putzler
Located in Hagenbach, DE
Dome Design divided grey glass wall or ceiling lamp by Peill Putzler, 1970s, Germany Sculptural very elegant rare design flush mount. It is very ideal and suitable for all living ...
Metal
Antique GEC Holophane Church Glass Kitchen Pendant Light
By General Electric Company (GEC) 1
Located in Stockbridge, GB
Antique GEC GECoRay Pendant Mercury Glass Light – A An early silver backed glass wall light by British manufacturer ‘GEC’ entitled the ‘GECoRAY’.It retains a cast aluminium and stee...
Aluminum, Brass, Copper
Large Brass Suspension Light by Boréns, 1960s
By Boréns Borås
Located in Vienna, AT
Rare large Swedish brass suspension chandelier by Boréns Borås from the 1960s. Minimalist ceiling unit with four oversize brass cylinders (circa two gallons of volume each) with larg...
Brass
Extra Large 1970's Glass Dome lights By Limburg ( 3 Available )
Located in New York, NY
Extra large 1970's Dome shaped glass and Brass ceiling fixture / wall sconce by Doria lighting company. The polished brass frame supports the beautiful blown glass shade with delicat...
Brass
Antique Copper French Parisian Metro Station Bulkhead Wall Sconce Light
By Holophane
Located in Stockbridge, GB
Antique Copper Holophane French Metro Wall Bulkhead Light – Angled Originally found lighting the French Parisian Metro system, this scarcely found bulkhead wall light has a copper o...
Copper
Sergio Mazza Clio Flush Mount, Set of 3
Located in New York, NY
The Clio Flush Mount, Set of 5 by Sergio Mazza is an exceptional example of Italian mid-century lighting design, showcasing the designer’s mastery of both form and function. Sergio M...
Brass, Nickel
French Toleware Bouquet Chandelier with Pink Flowers and Green Leaves, 3 Lights
Located in Lisse, NL
Handcrafted in France, this small toleware chandelier takes the form of a tied bouquet, with softly painted metal flowers and long, curling leaves arranged around three curved lighti...
Metal, Iron
Large 1970s Alabaster Flush Mount with Sculptural Branch Decoration, 3 Lights
Located in Lisse, NL
This distinctive 1970s ceiling light combines a generously sized alabaster shade with dark metal decoration in the form of spreading branches. Measuring 21.85 inches in diameter, the...
Alabaster, Iron
Italian Florentine Banci Firenze Murano Glass Flush Light
By Banci Firenze
Located in Hastings, GB
A stunning and rare 1950's Murano Glass and Gilt Floral ceiling or wall light (could be used either way) by the leading Italian design house Banci Firenze, large 3 dimensional Veneti...
Metal
Set of 3 Italian Floral Sputnik Ball Formed Murano Chandeliers
By Fulvio Bianconi & Paolo Venini
Located in Bromma, SE
Set of three Bold Eclectic Elegant Italian Floral Space Age Murano Chandeliers. Cute Ball Formed Eclectic Sputnik Murano Glass Chandeliers. Perfect Hallway Pendants. The fixture cons...
Glass
$1,819Sale Price|20% Off
German Vintage Glass and Brass Lantern Pendant Light Chandelier 1960s
Located in Berlin, DE
A beautiful glass and brass lantern/ceiling light. Germany, 1960s. Measures: (min.) Height of the body: 14.8 in (37,5 cm). The total height of the light can be customized by us to su...
Crystal, Metal, Brass
1 of 3 Vistosi Smoked Glass Disc Chandelier, Italy, 1960s
By Gino Vistosi
Located in Aachen, NRW
A stunning five-tier chandelier by Vistosi, Italy, manufactured in, circa 1960-1969 High quality and in very good condition. Cleaned, well-wired and ready to use. The fixture requir...
Brass
Mid-Century Finnish Design Chandelier in Brass and Hand Painted Glass, 1950s
Located in Helsinki, FI
A 1950s Finnish design ceiling lamp with three light sources. This lamp has some similarities to Paavo Tynell lighting fixtures, but as not everyone could afford Tynells, even back t...
Brass, Metal
2 x Elegant German Wall Sconce or Ceiling Lamp, Ice Glass, by Fischer, 1970s
By Fischer Leuchten
Located in Berlin, BE
Set of two wall lamps from the late 1970s or 1980s. Can also be used as a celing light. By Fischer Leuchten. Brass frame with elegant Ice Glass There is a hole in the middle of th...
Brass
Mid-Century Finnish Chandelier in Brass, Hand Painted Glass and Crystals, 1950s
Located in Helsinki, FI
A 1950s Finnish design ceiling lamp. This lamp has some similarities to Paavo Tynell lighting fixtures. These were the so called affordable Tynells, as not everyone could buy a Tynel...
Crystal, Brass
$554Sale Price|20% Off
Pull Down Pendent Lamp with 3 Eyeball Lights Goffredo Reggiani, 1960s
By Goffredo Reggiani
Located in Verviers, BE
Ceiling lamp with 3 Eyeball Lights Goffredo Reggiani, 1970s Pull Down Maxs 95 cm Ceiling Light Fixture Chandelier Lift Pendant Lifter Solid, sturdy construction with great attenti...
Chrome
Vintage Finnish Design Chandelier Model 62-102/3, Stockmann Tukku 1950s
By Oy Stockmann AB
Located in Helsinki, FI
A Finnish mid-century modern ceiling pendant, model 62-102/3 from the Stockmann catalogue, featuring a graceful brass body and three beautifully shaped glass shades.
Metal, Brass
Antique Holophane Sanctuary Prismatic Glass Church Kitchen Brass Pendant Light
By Holophane
Located in Stockbridge, GB
Antique Brass Arts & Crafts Church Sanctuary Holophane Pendant Light A stunning brass church sanctuary pendant light with a cut glass shade it retains its hanging chains and cei...
Brass
Antique GEC GECoray Mercury Glass Church Kitchen Island Brass Pendant Light
By General Electric Company (GEC) 1
Located in Stockbridge, GB
Antique GEC GECoRay Mirrored Mercury Glass Pendant Light – L An early silver backed glass wall light by British manufacturer ‘GEC’ entitled the ‘GECoRAY’.The brass metal wall galler...
Brass
Large Midcentury 3-drop Cascade Opaline Cased Glass Bowling Pin Lights Denmark
Located in Sherborne, Dorset
This large 1960s Danish pendant light has three beautiful cased white/frosted glass ‘bowling pin’ drops, hung from a triangular teak frame. The three drops cascade from tapered teak ...
Milk Glass, Teak
Murano Grey Brown and Rose Glass Pendant Light, 1960s
By Doria Leuchten Germany
Located in Rijssen, NL
A ceiling mount light fixture with 3 Doria Leuchten globes (in collaboration with Murano) in the style of Venini, manufactured, circa 1960.
Brass, Chrome
Antique French Empire Basket Chandelier Cut Glass Brass Pendant Light
By French House & Garden
Located in Stockbridge, GB
Antique French Crystal Beaded Basket Chandelier A beautiful antique empire French brass crystal beaded basket chandelier. The light has fabulous graduating cut glass crystal beading...
Brass
Organically shaped, clean-lined and elegantly simple are three terms that well describe vintage mid-century modern furniture. The style, which emerged primarily in the years following World War II, is characterized by pieces that were conceived and made in an energetic, optimistic spirit by creators who believed that good design was an essential part of good living.
ORIGINS OF MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGN
CHARACTERISTICS OF MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGN
MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGNERS TO KNOW
ICONIC MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGNS
VINTAGE MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE ON 1STDIBS
The mid-century modern era saw leagues of postwar American architects and designers animated by new ideas and new technology. The lean, functionalist International-style architecture of Le Corbusier and Bauhaus eminences Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Walter Gropius had been promoted in the United States during the 1930s by Philip Johnson and others. New building techniques, such as “post-and-beam” construction, allowed the International-style schemes to be realized on a small scale in open-plan houses with long walls of glass.
Materials developed for wartime use became available for domestic goods and were incorporated into mid-century modern furniture designs. Charles and Ray Eames and Eero Saarinen, who had experimented extensively with molded plywood, eagerly embraced fiberglass for pieces such as the La Chaise and the Womb chair, respectively.
Architect, writer and designer George Nelson created with his team shades for the Bubble lamp using a new translucent polymer skin and, as design director at Herman Miller, recruited the Eameses, Alexander Girard and others for projects at the legendary Michigan furniture manufacturer.
Harry Bertoia and Isamu Noguchi devised chairs and tables built of wire mesh and wire struts. Materials were repurposed too: The Danish-born designer Jens Risom created a line of chairs using surplus parachute straps for webbed seats and backrests.
The Risom lounge chair was among the first pieces of furniture commissioned and produced by celebrated manufacturer Knoll, a chief influencer in the rise of modern design in the United States, thanks to the work of Florence Knoll, the pioneering architect and designer who made the firm a leader in its field. The seating that Knoll created for office spaces — as well as pieces designed by Florence initially for commercial clients — soon became desirable for the home.
As the demand for casual, uncluttered furnishings grew, more mid-century furniture designers caught the spirit.
Classically oriented creators such as Edward Wormley, house designer for Dunbar Inc., offered such pieces as the sinuous Listen to Me chaise; the British expatriate T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings switched gears, creating items such as the tiered, biomorphic Mesa table. There were Young Turks such as Paul McCobb, who designed holistic groups of sleek, blond wood furniture, and Milo Baughman, who espoused a West Coast aesthetic in minimalist teak dining tables and lushly upholstered chairs and sofas with angular steel frames.
Generations turn over, and mid-century modern remains arguably the most popular style going. As the collection of vintage mid-century modern chairs, dressers, coffee tables and other furniture for the living room, dining room, bedroom and elsewhere on 1stDibs demonstrates, this period saw one of the most delightful and dramatic flowerings of creativity in design history.
The right table lamp, outwardly sculptural chandelier or understated wall pendant can work wonders for your home. While we’re indebted to thinkers like Thomas Edison for critically important advancements in lighting and electricity, we’re still finding new ways to customize illumination to fit our personal spaces all these years later. A wide range of antique and vintage lighting can be found on 1stDibs.
Today, lighting designers like the self-taught Bec Brittain have used the flexible structure of LEDs to craft glamorous solutions by working with what is typically considered a harsh lighting source. By integrating glass and mirrors, reflection can be used to soften the glow from LEDs and warmly welcome light into any space.
Although contemporary innovators continue to impress, some of the classics can’t be beat.
Just as gazing at the stars allows you to glimpse the universe’s past, vintage chandeliers like those designed by Gino Sarfatti and J. & L. Lobmeyr, for example, put on a similarly stunning show, each with a rich story to tell.
As dazzling as it is, the Arco lamp, on the other hand, prioritizes functionality — it’s wholly mobile, no drilling required. Designed in 1962 by architect-product designers Achille & Pier Giacomo Castiglioni, the piece takes the traditional form of a streetlamp and creates an elegant, arching floor fixture for at-home use.
There is no shortage of modernist lighting similarly prized by collectors and casual enthusiasts alike — there are Art Deco table lamps created in a universally appreciated style, the Tripod floor lamp by T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings, Greta Magnusson Grossman's sleek and minimalist Grasshopper lamps and, of course, the wealth of mid-century experimental lighting that emerged from Italian artisans at Arredoluce, FLOS and many more are hallmarks in illumination innovation.
With decades of design evolution behind it, home lighting is no longer just practical. Crystalline shaping by designers like Gabriel Scott turns every lighting apparatus into a luxury accessory. A new installation doesn’t merely showcase a space; carefully chosen ceiling lights, table lamps and floor lamps can create a mood, spotlight a favorite piece or highlight your unique personality.
The sparkle that your space has been missing is waiting for you amid the growing collection of antique, vintage and contemporary lighting for sale on 1stDibs.
The alluring pendant light exemplifies the designer’s winsome mid-career work.
Patrizio Chiarparini of Brooklyn’s Duplex gallery sheds light on the lasting legacy of Italy’s postwar furniture boom.
There are many lessons to be learned from the lofts, apartments and townhouses of architects and decorators in Manhattan and beyond.
Having created extravagant homes for reality TV’s biggest stars, the designer is stepping into the spotlight with his first book.
The Louisiana-born and -bred architect talks to 1stdibs about the art of making timeless places that matter.
The Palm Springs interior decorator developed a mid-century style that defined the vacation homes of celebrities and other notables, including Bob Hope and Lucille Ball.
The houses from this New York studio cloak modernist tendencies within what are often more traditional trappings.
In the market for a fantastic fixture from the 1940s, ’50s or ’60s? Here are some names to know.