There Is a Light That Never Goes Out: American Fixture Co. Lamp, ca. 1920s

Hunting for and acquiring unusual industrial lighting is the name of the game at Dorset Finds. After unearthing models by several manufacturers, the discovery of a new player in this arena is always thrilling and… illuminating.

The American Fixture Co. of Milwaukee produced a staggering array of arms for its patented lamps, each incrementally longer than the last. The company believed that making innumerable variations of its lighting gave clients the greatest opportunity to create customized fixtures based on their exact requirements.

The pressed-steel arms are joined by what is perhaps this design’s most interesting characteristic: double-jointed knuckles — backed with wing nuts — that allow for maneuvering each segment forward, backward and side to side. This range of movement, along with the primitive materials used, gives this piece a Metropolis-esque quality. The pictured example has four sections and 10 knuckles, affording the lamp enormous flexibility and reach.