Chandelier Julius Theodor Kalmar circa 50 Austria

The designer-entrepreneur Austrian Julius Theodor (J.T.) Kalmar was born in 1884 in Vienna. He is the son of Julius August Kalmar, the founder of the eponymous brand specialist in luster and other bronze objects. Julius Theodor Kalmar is enriched by the expertise of design during his formative years. Julius Theodor Kalmar studied at the Birmingham School of Art as well as the Vienna's University of Applied Arts under the supervision of the architect of the secession, Viennese Josef Hoffmann (1870-1956). Julius Theodor Kalmar joined the company from his father in 1906, to finally resume in 1913. As a strong supporter of the Arts & Crafts movement, he steers the company away from the eclecticism of the end of the 19th century. The Julius Theodor Kalmar design aesthetic is characterized by the integration of forms and functions, and a mixture of classical tradition and future-oriented innovation. In the middle of the 1920s, his designs dominate the important furniture store avant-garde Haus & Garten, founded by major architects Josef Frank (1885-1967) and Oskar Wlach (1881-1963). In the 1930s, Julius Theodor Kalmar begins to work with the Austrian Werkbund, an association founded by architects, manufacturers and craftsmen gathered by the modernist design principles. For the Werkbund, Julius Theodor Kalmar creates a series of glass chandeliers and attachments which allow us to see a construction and meticulous know-how. Using traditional materials like glass, bronze and brass, these designs of ornaments promote a refined aesthetic. During his career Julius Theodor Kalmar designed fasteners of lamps for many renowned architects including Josef Frank and Oskar Wlach, Oskar Riker, Clemens Holzmeister, Oswald Haerdtl, Carl Appel, Erich Boltenstern and Ernst Plischke and for important institutions like the Vienna Opera, the Burg Theater and Vienna Stock Exchange. In the last decade of his life, Julius Theodor Kalmar develops a very popular collection of luminaries including Tulipan (CA. 1960), Ice Glass (1960's) and Atomic (1969). Julius Theodor Kalmar died in 1968, but the company continues to exist under the direction of his son-in-law Rudols chalice. Today is Thomas Calice, a member of the fourth generation of the family that runs it. The Kalmar lighting brand is present in some of the most important places in the world such as the RMS Queen Mary 2, the Kremlin's Presidential Palace in Moscow and the Burj Tower in Dubai.

Ref. : Z9iOjpp