1930's Adjustable Desk lamp

This is an modernist desk lamp believed to be produced by franta anýž company and designed by his son jaroslav anýž in the late 1930’s. Franta anyz was a leading czech designer and jeweller. He was also a founder of a large metalworking factory in prague at the beginning of the 20th century. There he produced many famous design in the art nouveau style and collaborated on projects with renown artists and architects. The company was known for their brilliant technical and artistic quality. Later in the 1920’s with the massive development of electrification, anyz work shifted from metalwork more towards lighting design. At the beginning of the 1930’s his son jaroslav was appointed as the head lighting designer and was responsible for introducing a move from the decorative art nouveau style to the cleaner and more simple form of the modernist design. Unfortunately the franta anýž lighting company was closed down in 1948 by the communists. It became part of the state run zukov company which sadly brought a long history of a family tradition of designing unique lighting to an end. This particular piece is a nice example of the company’s shift to a clean and functional aesthetics of the modernist movement. The lamp can be safely fixed to the edge of the table. This gives the light extra stability and the lamp can be adjusted in many directions and angles by moving the two large steel rods. This makes the lamp a perfect light for either drawing, manual work or reading. Its wonderfully organic shaped lampshade (anyz’s trademark form) is made of chrome steel with a matt steel finish inside. The on/off switch is located on the back top part of the the lampshade. This rare functionalist table lamp shows patina pretty much on all parts, but mainly on the lampshade, gained over the years from use. This patina adds a layer of unique charm, character and originality to the whole piece. The cable and the switch button were most likely replaced in the 1970’s.