Chicago Lighting

NMC Special Sales Event

NMCadmin — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 17:09:14 +0000

European Style of Decorative Ornament

NMCadmin — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 22:07:02 +0000

Chinoiserie is exotic, stylish, often outlandish and, above all, fun. It piques the imagination. In a chinoiserie interior in 18th- and 19th-century Britain surfaces were adorned with fantastic mountainous landscapes, pagodas, fabulous birds, mandarins, dragons and phoenixes. This exhibition provides a context for Brighton’s magnificent pleasure palace, the Royal Pavilion - the creation of the Prince Regent (from 1810-20) and the future George IV (r. 1820-30). Completed in 1822, its extravagant interiors and imaginative furnishings represent the pre-eminent example of a late flowering of the chinoiserie style.

CHINOISERIE is a French word that means “in the Chinese taste”. It describes a European style of decorative ornament that was wildly popular in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, and still looks great today. Scenes of the Orient abound on textiles, wallpapers, pottery, porcelain, lighting, lamps, lacquered and painted furniture. The interesting thing about Chinoiserie is the tremendous range and variety of Oriental scenes and fantastical decorative details – Chinese people in elaborate robes with coolie hats, long pigtails and mustaches; intricately detailed pagodas with layer upon layer of fretwork, tassels, and bells; or monkeys, lions, and elephants in costume. Our endless fascination with exotic locales gives the designs relevance even today.

There is a resurgence in popularity of the Chinioserie style in fabric, handpainted wallpapers and furniture. At New Metal Crafts, you will find antique and reproduction Chinoiserie lighting to compliment your interior project.

Historic Lighting Restoration: Exterior Lantern

NMCadmin — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 21:43:56 +0000

The lantern pictured was one of two lanterns mounted to the facade of a historic building in downtown Chicago. Dating from the 1920’s, the exterior lanterns were in serious need of restoration. Decades of old paint was built up on the surface of the fixtures obscuring the details of the fine ornamental castings. Judging the size and weight of fixtures mounted outside two stories above the sidewalk can be difficult and we were somewhat suprised when the fixtures were delivered to our factory. The fixtures weighed in at about 350 lbs each.

The fixtures were disassembled and all of the old wiring and sockets were removed. The finished was stripped down to the base metal, in this case cast iron, and repainted with a high quality exterior grade paint. The existing globes were glass with extensive damage at the top where it locked to the fixture. The architect asked that we replace the glass with acrylic which was a safer option and not likely to break when relamping the fixture. The fixtures were rewired and redelivered to the building. With the help of a crane and several workers the lanterns were reattached to the facade.

Transitional Lighting @ NMC

NMCadmin — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 22:58:52 +0000

I have always been interested in the transitional styles of lighting. One area that produced many significant style variations is referred to as Art Deco. This seems to have been a reaction to traditional, more baroque styles. The simplification of style introduced some radical, but very tasteful items.

We have introduced several items that have been inspired by French Art Deco. Our numbers NMC 3212 is part of a series inspired by the French interior designer Jacques-Emile Ruhlmann.

I have also included a picture of Ruhlmann’s “antelopes” wall lamp. We tried to capture the shaded effect in our NMC 3214/PL which takes a PL-13 compact fluorescent lamp.

Unusual and Rare Lighting

NMCadmin — Mon, 05 Mar 2012 22:35:14 +0000

From our vast collection of unusual, hard-to-find light fixtures, we have a parir of fascinating automobile headlights. These are French with the words “Phares Paris” stamped on the top of the headlights. There is no date nor indication of the car model.

They are bronze and the light was fueled by some gas that passed through a nozzle into the headlight. The ignited flame was directly in front of small adjustable concave mirror reflector. In turn, this small reflector had a larger concave mirrored reflector that filled out the entire backside of the headlight.

There are holes behind the small reflector that probably allowed heat to be transferred. Also, holes at the bottom of the light and an oppening at the top of the light that allowed for air circulation.

The glass face lens is grooved, possibly to diffuse the light and, perhaps to magnify the intensity of the light. The head light has a cast device that was used to clamp onto a post on the car. There is also a handle in the back of the headlight to allow for adjustments. We have a pair of these. The could be used right and left. I am very impressed by the quality of the handcraftsmanship. All of the fine details are riveted. The headlights are in first class condition.

It would be possible to electrify these piece but you would lose the adjustability.

Besides its obvious historical value, the high quality of these pieces reflects the care and precision that went into building these fine, early automobiles.

Custom Lighting: Reproduction pendant

NMCadmin — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 22:51:49 +0000

Our custom department was recently asked to reproduce an antique French gas lantern for a client who felt the original fixture was perfect for their new home but they needed several fixtures. The original was part of our collection of antique lighting and was acquired in Paris. The original fixture was fitted for gas and dated from the late nineteenth century. The original was carefully documented and new cast parts were made from the original parts. The diffuser is not glass but carefully formed pieces of amber colored mica. The fixtures were electrified and wired for candelabra lamps. After all the parts were made and carefully fitted the fixture was finished in an oil rubbed bronze finish. Once completed everyone was amazed to find they could not pick out the original form the reproductions!

New Metal Crafts is the Exclusive Chicago Distributor for Preciosa USA

NMCadmin — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 19:25:11 +0000

Preciosa is a leading global manufacturer of crystal lighting fixtures, headquartered in the Czech Republic, specializing in traditional and contemporary designs. Preciosa recently launched their lighting line to the American residential market making it more affordable to import these fine crystal fixtures. While New Metal Crafts has been importing lighting fixtures from Preciosa since the 1950s, we are now their exclusive Chicago Distributor. Watch for upcoming product and national ads promoting this fine crystal brand, Preciosa available to purchase at New Metal Crafts.

Custom Sconce

NMCadmin — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 13:56:08 +0000

New Metal Crafts recently custom fabricated a pair of wall sconces for a private residence. The sconces were composed of an off white linen fabric shade held by a bronze clip at top and bottom. The sconces were wired for incandescent

Custom shade sconce made by New Metal Crafts.

lamps but are available with either compact fluorescent or LED lamping options. The 4″ extension means they meet ADA standards.

Vintage Chandeliers and Wall Fixtures

NMCadmin — Mon, 03 Oct 2011 21:55:13 +0000

Vintage chandeliers and wall fixtutres have always intrigued me. During the great growth o f the motion picture industry in the ’20’s. Large, opulent theatres were built all over the U.S. Some of the lighting fixtures were remarkable. Some of the great theatre designers developed masterpieces of imaginative design. Some of the existing theatres were remodeled and made into performing arts centers. We acquired a number of lighting fixture from theatres that were remodeled or destroyed. Through the years we have reproduced some of these pieces and they became a part of our general collection. Refer to our NMC 1439. We have custom made this in many sizes. Some are exactly the size of the original others were modified. The glass panels we have included have a beautiful curved, marbleized glass which is made in the U.S.. The individual castings are made abroad. The labor to bring all of this together is done in our factory. This includes various types of electrification including LED, incandescent, and flourescent. This model has a universal appeal and can be used in residential and commercial work.

New Metal Crafts gets a fresh look!

NMCadmin — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 14:46:58 +0000

We have been working away on our Wells Street Lighting Showroom! This year we have made several improvements to our River North showroom. We have opened our street windows so everyone can see inside our massive lighting showroom. We want to invite everyone to come in and explore our lighting treasures.

New Metal Crafts gets a fresh new look with black and gold awnings.

Only yesterday we installed new awnings to frame our showcase windows.

Let us know what you think!