Ateljé Glas & Trä - Table lamp - Glass and Teak

Ateljé Glas & Trä, Hovmantorp – rare pair of tall Swedish table lamps – teak veneer & solid structure glass – 1960s

Special and highly decorative original pair of tall Swedish Mid-Century Modern table lamps, attributed to Ateljé / AB Glas & Trä from Hovmantorp, Sweden, manufactured around the 1960s.

A pronounced Scandinavian design in which two materials inherently linked to Swedish modernism – teak wood and glass – are combined in an almost architectural manner.

Sculptural construction of glass and teak

The tall lamp bases are built as geometric sculptures. Square elements with warm teak veneer alternate with heavy, transparent blocks of pressed structure glass.

It is precisely these glass elements that make the design special. The thick blocks have a strong relief and ribbed, irregular texture, causing light to be refracted and reflected in different ways.

Because the glass is transparent, the brass-colored metal connection elements inside remain visible. This creates a beautiful layering of teak, glass, and metal.

The square wooden base and the repeating geometric form give the lamps a pronounced Scandinavian Modern / Mid-Century Modern character.

Even without lampshades they are therefore striking sculptural objects.

Ateljé Glas & Trä – Hovmantorp

The lamps are attributed to Ateljé / AB Glas & Trä from Hovmantorp, located in the famous Swedish glass district Småland.

AB Glas & Trä was founded in 1943 in Hovmantorp. As the name Glas & Trä – literally Glass & Wood – already indicates, the combination of these materials played an important role in production.

During the 1950s and 1960s the company developed further and produced various modernist interior and design objects.

For collectors of Swedish design, the construction of these lamps is particularly interesting. Nearly identical tall table lamps are also attributed to Ateljé Glas & Trä, Hovmantorp and are likewise built from pressed square glass elements with ribbed sides, alternating with blocks of teak.

Interesting connection with Orrefors

An additional interesting aspect for collectors is that a nearly identical table lamp in the Swedish design trade has also been documented as a production of Orrefors.

This is notable because Orrefors is one of the most important names in Swedish glass history and during this period also produced glass for lighting.

A possible explanation is that the glass components were supplied by a specialized glass producer and subsequently processed into the lamps by Glas & Trä in Hovmantorp. Such collaborations between Swedish glass factories and lighting manufacturers occurred during this period.

For these specific lamps, however, an official collaboration with Orrefors has not been confirmed by primary documentation. To avoid an unproven attribution, the lamps are offered as attributed to Ateljé / AB Glas & Trä, Hovmantorp.

An individual designer or specific model number is not reliably documented for this design at present.

Original Swedish SEMKO S mark

At the bottom there is the characteristic blue SEMKO – Svenska Elektriska Materielkontrollanstalten – S mark.

This historic Swedish safety mark was affixed to electrical products approved for the Swedish market.

A beautiful original detail that further supports the Swedish provenance and vintage origin of the lamps.

Particularly as a genuine pair

The big plus is that here you are offered not one, but two matching specimens.

Both lamps share the same construction, materials, dimensions, and appearance. This makes them beautifully symmetrical when placed, for example, on either side of a sideboard or console, next to a sofa, or as statement lighting in a modern interior.

The combination of warm teak veneer with heavy transparent glass makes them particularly suitable for lovers and collectors of Scandinavian Modern, Swedish Modern, Mid-Century Modern, and 20th-century Scandinavian glass and lighting.

Attribution: Ateljé / AB Glas & Trä, Hovmantorp
Origin: Sweden
Period: approx. 1960s
Style: Scandinavian Modern / Mid-Century Modern
Materials: teak veneer, heavy pressed structure glass and metal
Quantity: 2 matching table lamps
Marking: original blue SEMKO S mark
Model: not documented
Designer: not documented

Dimensions per lamp: H 43.5 cm × approx. 12.5 cm

Total weight: 5,472 grams

The lamps are in beautiful authentic vintage pre-owned condition, with appropriate light signs of use and aging. On the underside there are also signs of wear. Please carefully review the photos; they form an important part of the condition description.

The lamp shades shown in some mood photos are for display purposes only and are not included.

A special and decorative original Swedish pair from the 1960s, interesting for the characteristic combination of teak veneer and heavy structure glass, the attribution to Ateljé Glas & Trä Hovmantorp, the original SEMKO mark, and the interesting but not yet definitively proven connection of this design with Orrefors.

A fine find for the collector of Swedish Mid-Century design and Scandinavian vintage lighting.

Both vintage table lamps are originally wired with plug and are shipped securely with careful packaging, registered and insured, with track and trace.