Essentially dubbed the Frank Llyoyd Wright of Europe by Wright himself, Adolf Loos possessed a talent for architecture and interior design as potent as his outspoken criticism of Art Nouveau and excessive ornamentation. A forerunner of the International Style, Loos exercised immense restraint in his building projects as well as his designs for chairs, tables, storage pieces and other furniture, and wrote prolifically on his disdain for taking a decorative approach to architecture.
The son of a stonemason and sculptor, Loos was born in 1870 in what is now Brno in the Czech Republic. He studied architecture in Dresden in 1889, completed a year of military service and moved to the United States by 1893. He visited the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago and came to appreciate the American approach to design over his three-year stay before returning to Vienna.
An avid proponent of simplicity, Loos hated fluff above all else. In his best known essay, “Ornament and Crime,” he states “the evolution of culture is synonymous with the removal of ornamentation from objects of everyday use” — a principle evident in both his architectural work and furniture. His writing was profoundly influential for practitioners of the International Style that would emerge later as well as the likes of prolific Swiss-born French architect and modernist prophet Le Corbusier.
Loos challenged the prevailing architecture and decorating styles of his time, and disliked the ornate work associated with the Vienna Secession and Gesamtkunstwerk — the concept of a house as total work of art — an ideal pursued by a collective born from the Secession called the Wiener Werkstätte. To Loos, design should prioritize function, and any ornamentation devoid of a structural purpose was childish and unnecessary.
Loos’s furniture — alongside the work of fellow Austrian architect Josef Hoffman — was the subject of an exhibition at the Museum of Applied Arts in 2014. His architecture projects, including the Viennese Goldman and Salatsch building, the Austrian Steiner House and the Villa Müller in Prague, are celebrated by design enthusiasts all over the world.
Find vintage Adolf Loos seating, lighting and other furniture on 1stDibs.
Adolf Loos Jugendstil Floor Lamp Brass Opaline Glass, Re-Edition
By Woka Lamps, Adolf Loos
Located in Vienna, AT
Floor-lamp with opaline glass shade, designed for Villa Steiner, a famous house by Adolf Loos Most components according to the UL regulations, with an additional charge we will UL-l...
Brass
$17,503 / set
Pair of art nouveau floor lamps by Adolf Loos
By Woka Lamps, Adolf Loos
Located in Hronská Breznica, Banskobystrický kraj
Pair of art nouveau floor lamps by Adolf Loos, looks like Woka lamps production from around 1960-70s.
Brass
Finnish Mid-Century Three Arm Brass & Opaline Glass Floor Lamp
Located in Karis, Nyland
Elegant Finnish mid-century floor lamp crafted in polished brass, featuring three gracefully curved arms with opaline glass shades. The sculptural form and warm brass finish give the...
Brass
Austrian Art Nouveau Brass and Glass Dodekaeder Lamp by Adolf Loos
By Friedrich Otto Schmidt, Adolf Loos
Located in Vienna, AT
Original and rare Viennese Art Nouveau brass Dodekaeder pendant light designed by Adolf Loos, produced ca 1900 by Friedrich Otto Schmidt. It features beautiful facetted cut pentagon ...
Brass
$13,419 / item
H 39.38 in Dm 21.66 in
Adolf Loos Knize Jugendstil Chandelier Pentagondodekaeder Re-Edition
By Adolf Loos, Woka Lamps
Located in Vienna, AT
A so called "Pentagondodekaeder" a ball made from 12 flat pentagons, made for the famous taylor-shop Knize in Vienna, Paris and Berlin", we do other dimensions as well, please look a...
Brass
$560Sale Price|20% Off
H 66.15 in W 19.69 in D 19.69 in
Stilnovo Mid Century Floor Lamp Brass & Opaline Glass
By Stilnovo
Located in Conversano, IT
tunning three-arm floor lamp designed and produced by the renowned Italian company Stilnovo in the mid-1950s. The lamp is in excellent condition, standing on three iron legs enriched...
Brass, Iron
$1,232Sale Price|20% Off
H 17.33 in Dm 10.24 in
Nickel Table Lamp with Opal Screen by Adolf Loos for Villa Steiner, 1950s
By Adolf Loos
Located in Purkersdorf, AT
Alte Tischlampe aus Messing vernickelt und Opalglas. Entwurf Adolf Loos für Villa Steiner 1910. Ausführung um 1960 1 Sockel E27
Brass
6 Light Adolf Loos Ring Hanging Chandelier
By Adolf Loos
Located in North Miami, FL
This chandelier is a vintage rendition of the original, first used in 1899 at the Café Museum, later for the apartment of Leopold Goldman, the builder of the iconic "Looshaus, Goldma...
Brass
French Polished Brass & Opaline Glass Floral Candelabra Floor Light
By Pierre Guariche, Joseph-André Motte
Located in Bensalem, PA
Restored 19th century solid brass French altar lamp please look at pictures for overall detail. Feel free to reach out with any questions.
Brass
$6,884 / item
H 39.38 in Dm 19.69 in
Adolf Loos Jugendstil Swivel-Mounted Silk Brass Wall-Lamp, Re-Edition
By Woka Lamps, Adolf Loos
Located in Vienna, AT
Swivel-mounted wall-lamp, measures as desired either with a wall-plate for direct-wiring, or with the cable going down to plug in - in that case a weight can be mounted on the cable ...
Brass
Adolf Loos Silk and Brass Pulley-Chandelier, Re-Edition
By Adolf Loos, Woka Lamps
Located in Vienna, AT
Chandelier in several versions used by both of the architects, the height of the chandelier is to extend with a pulley. The displayed version was used by Adolf Loos for the Stoessel ...
Brass
Adolf Loos Cafe Museum Jugendstil Chandelier, Re Edtion
By Woka Lamps, Adolf Loos
Located in Vienna, AT
Chandelier first used in 1899 at the Cafe Museum, later for the apartment of Leopold Goldman, the builder of the famous "Looshaus, Goldman & Salatsch" "in Vienna. This chandelier has...
Brass
$5,017 / item
H 39.38 in Dm 19.69 in
Adolf Loos Jugendstil Opaline Glass and Brass Pendant, Re Edition
By Adolf Loos, Woka Lamps
Located in Vienna, AT
Ceiling light with opaline glass shade, different sizes, comes as well as a downlight Total drop custom made All components according to the UL regulations, with an additional char...
Brass
Rare Opaline Glass & Brass Floor Lamp by Stilnovo, 1950s Italy
By Stilnovo
Located in Tel Aviv-Yafo, Tel Aviv District
A rare floor lamp produced by Stilnovo in Italy during the 1950s, showcasing the refined elegance of mid-century Italian lighting design. The lamp features multiple softly tapered op...
Metal, Brass, Chrome
Sold
H 57.09 in W 11.03 in D 11.03 in
Vienna Secession Floor Lamp Adolf Loos Designed 1910, Patinated Brass Opal Glass
By Adolf Loos, J.L Lobmeyr
Located in Hausmannstätten, AT
A brass floor lamp with a Palina glass globe shade, designed by Adolf Loos around 1910 and later manufactured, probably by Lobmeyr in the 1960s or 1970s. Lovely patina on brass. The ...
Brass
Vienna Secession Floor Lamp by Adolf Loos Manufactured by Lobmeyr
By J.L Lobmeyr, Adolf Loos
Located in Vienna, AT
Brass foot with opaline glass globe shade fitted with one E27 socket Designed about 1910 by Adolf Loos made by Lobmeyr, about 1970s. Patina on brass food.
Brass