Not currently on display at the V&A

Spotlight

Spotlight
1961 (designed), 1963 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

John and Sylvia Reid met whilst studying at the Regent Street Polytechnic School of Architecture in London at the beginning of the Second World War. There they formed a relationship which was to sustain them through a fruitful and prolific design partnership until John's death in 1992. In 1953, the British company called Rotaflex was founded by Bernard Stern, painter turned industrialist, who commissioned John and Sylvia Reid to design lamps which received several awards.

Three Milan Triennale medals and four Design Council awards testify to the virtuosity and breadth of range of their architectural and industrial designs.



Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleSpotlight (generic title)
Materials and techniques
Anodised aluminium and steel
Brief description
Adjustable pendant spotlight 4101, designed by John and Sylvia Reid, manufactured by Rotaflex Ltd, London, 1963. Winner of the Design Centre Award 1961.
Physical description
Adjustable spotlights, anodised aluminium lamp housing with vitreous enamelled base plate. The light bulb housed in an aluminium cylinder, supported between two metal strips attached to a circular base plate.
Dimensions
  • Length: 10.5 (Note: Taken from the register.)
Style
Production typeMass produced
Credit line
Gift of the manufacturer.
Object history
Historical significance: Winner of the Design Centre Award in 1961.
Summary
John and Sylvia Reid met whilst studying at the Regent Street Polytechnic School of Architecture in London at the beginning of the Second World War. There they formed a relationship which was to sustain them through a fruitful and prolific design partnership until John's death in 1992. In 1953, the British company called Rotaflex was founded by Bernard Stern, painter turned industrialist, who commissioned John and Sylvia Reid to design lamps which received several awards.

Three Milan Triennale medals and four Design Council awards testify to the virtuosity and breadth of range of their architectural and industrial designs.

Bibliographic reference
Crowther, Lily. Award Winning British Design 1957-1988. London: V&A Publishing, 2012. p.48
Collection
Accession number
CIRC.384-1963

About this object record

Explore the Collections contains over a million catalogue records, and over half a million images. It is a working database that includes information compiled over the life of the museum. Some of our records may contain offensive and discriminatory language, or reflect outdated ideas, practice and analysis. We are committed to addressing these issues, and to review and update our records accordingly.

You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.

Suggest feedback

Record createdApril 26, 2011
Record URL
Download as: JSON