Josef Frank
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a brass and leather "The three spirals" floor light, model 2431, Svenskt Tenn, Sweden, probably 1940's.
Three adjustable lights, white textile shades, stamped AJH 7 PAT. S. Height 105 cm (the stem), total maximum height ca 157 cm.
Wear, one switch damaged, later shades.
Exhibitions
The model was shown at the Golden Gate exhibition in San Francisco 1939.
Literature
Stig M H:son Björkman (ed), Svenska hem i ord och bilder, Estrid Erikson, "Vita väggar och färgrika textilier", see the model illustrated p 239.
Anita L. Du Rietz, "Skönhet till vardags, Estrid Ericson och Svenskt Tenn", Lorensvik förlag 2018, see the model illustrated from the San Francisco exhibition in 1939, p 166.
Bukowskis Moderna sale 555, autumn 2010, compare lot 837, a floor lamp of the same model with provenance Estrid Ericson's family.
More information
The model was designed by Josef Frank in 1938 and called "The three spirals". In 1939, the lamp was shown in the Golden Gate Exhibition in San Francisco, and since then it has been referred to as the "San Francisco" lamp.
Designer
Josef Frank was born in Austria and studied architecture in Vienna. As an architect, he worked with private home areas, villas and apartment buildings. In 1925 he started his own interior design firm Haus und Garten together with two architect colleagues. In connection with the advance of the Nazis, he emigrated to Sweden and was employed in 1934 at Svenskt Tenn. After the outbreak of World War II, Josef Frank, who came from a Jewish family, was forced into exile in New York. At Svenskt Tenn, he made an impact on the product range for four decades; especially when it comes to furniture and fabric prints.
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