Swing-jib lamp, 1940
Initially made by Jean Prouvé for his personal use, the tubing “lamp arm” held in place by a steel wire, attached to the wall, and pivoting on its axis was an improvement on the principle developed with Pierre Jeanneret and Charlotte Perriand for the equipping of the temporary SCAL pavilions at Issoire.1 Several successive versions appeared, but all reflected the concern with providing a mass-produced model suited to rooms of different sizes. The swing-jib lamps could also be adapted to existing buildings as a way of simplifying installation and concealing electrical wiring by using the racks of hanging furniture or the cover strips on paneling. The variations bore on the length of the arm (1–2 meters, and even 2.5 meters), its shape (straight, curving, or articulated at the end), the type of mounting, the type of fitting (with or without a switch), and the inclusion of accessories (deflector, directional handle). Included in the catalog since 1947, the Ateliers Jean Prouvé swing-jib lamp, fitted with a conical or cylindrical shade, appears in three sizes in the 1950 catalog, and 150 units were produced in the following year. Adaptable to all uses, this swing-jib lamp no. 602 was as equally well suited to the household, office, and school and university markets.2
1. See Sulzer, vol. 2, no. 854.l.
2. At the Cité Universitaire in Antony, the swing-jib lamps were used in the Bachelor dormitory rooms equipped by the Ateliers Jean Prouvé.