Napako Light

With a vast inventory of beautiful furniture at 1stDibs, we’ve got just the napako light you’re looking for. Frequently made of metal, glass and chrome, every napako light was constructed with great care. Your living room may not be complete without a napako light — find older editions for sale from the 20th Century and newer versions made as recently as the 20th Century. When you’re browsing for the right napako light, those designed in Mid-Century Modern and Industrial styles are of considerable interest. Many designers have produced at least one well-made napako light over the years, but those crafted by Josef Hurka are often thought to be among the most beautiful.

A napako light can differ in price owing to various characteristics — the average selling price 1stDibs is $579, while the lowest priced sells for $230 and the highest can go for as much as $3,361.

Napako was initially established in 1919 in Prague with the purpose of helping private companies with metalworking solutions for building projects. The Czech manufacturer later pivoted to producing appliances and lighting, a change that yielded partnerships with esteemed designers such as electrician and furniture maker Josef Hurka and Miroslav Prokop between the 1930s and 1970s. 

Napako’s chrome-plated desk lamps and flush mounts were often characterized by the influence of the Bauhaus, a progressive German design school that promoted a union of art, craft and technology. Many of the brand’s interesting lighting fixtures incorporated milk glass and opaline glass and later featured venturesome forms and lacquered metal housings in lively Pop art colors. Today vintage Napako table lamps, floor lamps and chandeliers are rare and highly collectible works of Space Age and mid-century modernist ingenuity.

Hurka and Helena Frantová were the superstars on Napako’s roster of designers. Initially an electrical appliance designer, Hurka changed course to work on lighting design after Napako discontinued its production of appliances. 

For much of the 20th century, industrial and furniture designers in the Eastern Bloc created their work in near anonymity — including in the former Czechoslovakia, where communist ideologies ran counter to capitalist ideas like branding and acclaim.

Although for a brief and shining moment, in 1958, the country’s designers gained global renown when Czechoslovakia won best national pavilion at the Brussels World’s Fair, their artistry was soon shrouded again behind the Iron Curtain.

Hurka’s table lamps for Napako were presented as part of the prize-winning Czech Pavilion at the 1958 World Expo in Brussels, which was the first World’s Fair after World War II. Frantová frequently created torch-shaped table lamps with spindly bodies in chromed steel or brass for the likes of Okolo as well as Napako.

On 1stDibs, find a collection of Napako lighting.

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.