As we move deeper into the Spring, the weather gets blessedly warmer and we enjoy increasingly longer days. More light! With this thought in mind, we'd like to share some of our newly-acquired light fixtures, currently available in the LEO Design on-line store.
One of the finest lamp manufacturers in America is the Stiffel Lamp Company. Each of their (very heavy!) lamps is a work of art and precision craftsmanship. The company was founded in Chicago in 1932. Ted Stiffel—a fine artist and an accomplished craftsman—started the company to create superb, high-quality metal light fixtures. Stiffel is still in business today; they operate a 40,000 square foot workshop in Linden, New Jersey. They have continued to produce fine merchandise in the United States since 1932 with the exception of during World War Two, at which time Stiffel re-worked its production lines to make screws and bolts for the war effort.
I have loved this pair of Stiffel lamps, shown above, from the moment I discovered them. They are designed in the form of stylized "faux bamboo" shafts. They were made in the Mid-Twentieth Century, perhaps in the Fifties or Sixties. Though they are boldly-designed, they are remarkably adaptable to almost any interior design scheme. They would look elegant in a Traditional setting. They would look fabulous in a Victorian Aesthetic Movement home. Art Deco? Check. And they would look right-at-home in a Mid-Century Modernist room—whether in a ranch house or a converted industrial loft.
They were cast in brass, then finished with a classic bronze patina. After that finishing process, the "knuckles" of the bamboo joints were polished-bright—revealing the shiny metal below. Click on one of the photos above to learn more about this very handsome pair of very high-quality lamps.
More handsome lighting tomorrow and in the days to come.
Though our Greenwich Village store is now permanently closed, LEO Design is still alive and well! Please visit our on-line store where we continue to sell Handsome Gifts (www.LEOdesignNYC.com).
To arrange a visit our Pittsburgh showroom (by private appointment only), please call 917-446-4248.