Collectors know Koch & Lowy for its eye-catching sold brass five-arm chandeliers, sleek chrome swing-arm floor lamps and clever table lamps with marble bases. With a wide range of sculptural mid-century modern and 1970s-era fixtures created by the likes of George Nelson, Karl Springer, Piotr Sierakowski and others, the American lighting manufacturer elevated the design of furniture and home decor from the postwar era onward.
Ernest Lowy founded Koch & Lowy in New York in 1946, initially running the firm with his son, Thomas. Over the years, collaborations with notable designers such as American artist Neal Small — known as the “Prince of Plastic” for his innovative use of Plexiglas and Lucite — yielded iconic pieces such as Koch & Lowy’s biomorphic, clear-glass pendant lights and wall sconces for German manufacturer Peill and Putzler as well as the rare Half Nelson table lamp.
Created by George Nelson — an architect, journalist and designer who brought a slew of legendary designers to Herman Miller while he was director of design at the company — the Half Nelson table lamp, with its striking form and shade of spun aluminum, was originally designed in 1950 as part of an architectural project of Nelson’s on Long Island. Koch & Lowy put it into production in the late 1970s.
Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, Koch & Lowy floor lamps gained wide acclaim. Neal Small’s architectural aluminum periscope Skyscraper floor lamp and their Pharmacy tent floor lamp, which Thomas Lowy admitted he copied unwittingly from Omaha architect Cedric Hartman, were particularly popular.
“I’d bought a tent [lamp] in Italy, but it had been made so badly that I decided to make a better one,” Lowy explained to the New York Times in 1976. “I didn’t know that the Italian one wasn’t original. I didn’t know it was a copy of Hartman’s design.”
Nevertheless, Koch & Lowy enjoyed success designing and producing innovative lighting fixtures and other furniture such as the brutalist Mirage coffee table, created by Polish designer and head of Koch & Lowy’s design department, Piotr Sierakowski.
While Thomas Lowy sold the company in the 1990s, the brand’s impact on modernist lighting design endures.
On 1stDibs, find a range of vintage Koch & Lowy lighting and tables.
Pair of Brass Mid-Century Modern Articulating Table Lamps by Aneta Sweden
By Aneta
Located in Port Jervis, NY
Spectacular pair of Mid-Century Modern Sculptural and articulating brass table lamps by Aneta of Sweden. Pair are both signed and documented with serial numbers. Solid brass with hoo...
Metal, Brass
Mid-Century Modern Nessen Double Headed Desk Table Lamp
By Walter Von Nessen
Located in Port Jervis, NY
Fabulous Mid-Century Modern double headed desk lamp. Great style, brass stems with a painted base and shades. New wiring and 3way switch. In exce...
Brass, Steel
Mid-Century Modern Sculptural Double Cone Brass Desk Table Lamp C1965
By Paavo Tynell
Located in Port Jervis, NY
Fantastic double lamp desk lamp with pierced brass shades that have wooden cones on top that serve as the lamps light switches. Very unique feature. Fully adjustable and very stable....
Metal, Brass
Mid-Century Modern Unique Sculptural Brass & Black Metal Desk Table Lamp
Located in Port Jervis, NY
Simple and elegant cone shaped desk lamp with a copper shaft and black shade and base. Top of the cone is the light switch, a unique feature. A grid protects the bulb and user. In ex...
Copper, Steel
Pair of Mid-Century Modern Sculptural Glass with Brass Swedish Table Lamps
Located in Port Jervis, NY
Spectacular pair of Mid-Century Modern sculptural Scandinavian Art glass green lamps with brass accents. In excellent vintage condition with mini...
Brass
Mid-Century Modern Sculptural Floor Lamp Brass & Lucite Charles Hollis Jones
By Charles Hollis Jones
Located in Port Jervis, NY
Fabulous floor lamp by Charles Hollis Jones C1970. Brass and lucite with a cantilevered fabric shade that projects outward from the base to cast light into your desired space. Great ...
Brass
Mid-Century Modern Brass Table Lamp w Marble Base & Original Fabric Shade, Pair
Located in Plainview, NY
Mid-Century Modern Brass Table Lamp w Marble Base & Original Fabric Shade, Pair This elegant pair of Mid-Century Modern table lamps showcases a timeless balance of clean lines and r...
Marble, Brass
Vintage Neal Small for Koch & Lowy Marble and Brass Lamp
By Koch & Lowy
Located in Wichita, KS
Vintage 1970's Carrara marble and chrome table lamp by Neal Small for Koch & Lowy. This Mid-Century Modern lamp pairs well with all style...
Carrara Marble, Chrome
Brass and Marble Table Lamp, 1960s, Italy
Located in Hagenbach, DE
This exquisite table lamp from Italy, crafted in the 1960s, epitomizes mid-century modern elegance. It features a square marble base supporting a sleek brass stem and shade. The bras...
Marble, Brass
Italian Vintage Table Lamp in Brass and Marble
Located in Milano, IT
Vintage table lamp of fine Italian manufacture from the 1950s. The lamp has a very elegant cylindrical base made of light marble. The central body is made of black aluminium and bra...
Aluminum, Brass
Sleek Mid Century Brass Reading Lamps
By Koch & Lowy
Located in Atlanta, GA
Sleek Mid Century Brass Reading Lamps, American, circa 1970s. These adjustable floor lamps are probably manufactured by Koch & Lowy, unsigned. They adjust to a maximum height of 55.5...
Brass
Mid-Century Modern Italian Brass Table Lamps, Pair, 1960s
By Stilnovo
Located in Hagenbach, DE
Pair of Mid-Century Modern Italian brass table lamps, 1960s. This expressive vintage pair combines curved brass stems with sculptural black conical shades and organically shaped crea...
Metal, Brass
