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Table Lamp

Designer Josef Hoffmann Austrian
1904
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 910
Hoffmann designed this lamp when artificial light sources were shifting from gas to electric, which challenged designers to innovate in accordance with the new technology. Rather than putting shades around the bulbs, Hoffmann left the light source exposed. The suspended glass spheres echo the bulbs’ shape and draw further attention to the new technology as they catch and reflect the electric light.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Table Lamp
  • Designer: Josef Hoffmann (Austrian, Pirnitz 1870–1956 Vienna)
  • Maker: Konrad Schindel
  • Date: 1904
  • Medium: Silvered alpaka, glass, copper
  • Dimensions: 16 1/2 × Diam. 10 1/2 in. (41.9 × 26.7 cm)
  • Classification: Lighting
  • Credit Line: Purchase, Lita Annenberg Hazen Charitable Trust Gift and The Cynthia Hazen Polsky Fund, 1997
  • Object Number: 1997.64
  • Curatorial Department: Modern and Contemporary Art

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