Incollect Magazine - Issue 13

Gunnar Nylund and Inger Persson for Rörstrand “Rörstrand happens to be one of my favorite sources for lamp bases, due to the skill and artistry of the designers working for them, such as Gunnar Nylund and Carl-Harry Stalhane, among others,” says Kerry Beauchemin, owner of B4 Decor in New York. “But Rörstrand did not, for the most part, produce lamp bodies; they are a renowned Swedish maker of porcelain and artist studio vases and did not have their own line of electric lamps until the 1950s, as lamps in Sweden were for the most part made by lighting companies. Rörstrand’s vases, because of their quality, were often adapted to lamps later by vintage design dealers. I have done this myself many times.” Among Beauchemin’s Rörstrand vase-to-lamp conversions using Swedish ceramics is a lamp base “with jade colored glaze over a raised surface pattern, newly fitted with a nickel-plated stem and double light cluster mounted on a nickel-plated base,” by Gunnar Nylund for Rörstrand, circa 1940s. “It is a very rare example,” Beauchemin says. He also has another lamp with a rare hand-thrown ceramic body, also designed by Gunnar Nylund for Rörstrand Studio, circa 1960s, fitted with a new brass base, mount, and double cluster sockets. “Nylund studied European classical art and design, however over time his work moved toward more abstracted forms. This lamp has a smoky gray-blue atmospheric surface quality which is in stark contrast to the polished brass lamp hardware.” Incollect Magazine 91 Left: Gunnar Nylund, Swedish Modern lamp with hand thrown ceramic body for Rorstrand Studio, circa 1920-1949. Courtesy B4 Decor. Right: Inger Persson for Rorstrand Studio, Sweden, circa 1960. Pair of hand-thrown vases, glazed and decorated with bold painterly strokes in the spirit of Abstract Expressionism. Courtesy B4 Decor. Gunnar Nylund, Swedish Art Deco lamp with jade glaze over a raised surface pattern, Rorstrand, 1940 Courtesy B4 Decor.