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08-040.
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While normally I do not post my antique store purchases, I've been finding so little lately that I'm making an exception. In fact I normally don't make many antique store purchases at all, but when I ran across this great Marshall Studios lamp I just couldn't resist. I have an innate weakness for lamps in general, and Martz designed lamps in particular. And when they have their original handmade shades I tend to lack self control.
I'm always amazed at how, even though Marshall Studios was an American company, these lamps feel so Scandinavian. Both their physical shapes and the materials Jane and Gordon used in their designs have a Danish Modern-ish feel to them. Scandinavian Modern was quite popular in middle America in the late 50's and through the 60's, and the Martz studio's location outside of Indianapolis, Indiana, probably played a role in their aesthetic. But I often wonder why this style pervades in their lamps, despite the Martz's education at Alfred University — the bastion of American modern ceramics in the mid twentieth century — and given the fact that their dinnerware and other ceramic designs are more American in style. I'd be interested in your insights on this. Are my perceptions skewed?
In any case, this shape is first pictured in Marshall Studios catalogs from the early 1960's with a suggested retail price of $41.50 (or $51.00 with a hand woven shade). Even though I don't really need another lamp, I just couldn't pass it up when the 2008 asking price was less than that from 1962. My home is overtaken by Martz designs, and I like it that way.
Found on October 05, 2008 in St. Joseph, IL.
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