The French engineer
Bernard Albin-Gras designed the revolutionary desk lamp with an adjustable arm and ball joint in the early 1920s. In the years that followed, his invention was widespread in offices, labs, workrooms, and other places in need of flexible work light. The lamp became a hit with architects, and it spread like wildfire in their community—hence the name. Bernard Gras sold the rights to his lamp, and that was when the first Gras lamp went into production.
In 1932, another engineer, by the name of
George Carwadine, swapped the adjustable ball joints out for a spring system consisting of four springs that could be moved around without losing their position. The lampshade focused the light on a workspace while the heavy base created stability—even when using the full range of the lamp. A few years later, the lamp went into production as the ”Anglepoise 1208”, later joined by the more elegant ”
Anglepoise 1227”, which is still made and sold today.
The architect lamp is no longer the orange retro lamp that was a staple on desks for many years. Our range of architect lamps boasts a range of incredible interpretations—some are more faithful to the classic retro design than others, while some offer a Scandinavian expression in a selection of colours. What they all have in common is their flexible arm and concentrated light, fit for use all over the home.
Find the range on Lampmaster.gb