1970s Pair of French All-Aluminum Modernist Sconces -- Four Lights, Four Glass Tubes

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If you don't mind a little "antique patina," and you're a Modernist buff (but a forgiving one), these sconces will … Read more If you don't mind a little "antique patina," and you're a Modernist buff (but a forgiving one), these sconces will be just the ticket.

Whereas they have certain traditional Art Deco/Modernist aspects (the glass tubes), they're probably post-WWII. With their sweeping curve and their unique "back plate" (one hesitates to employ the term), they're... beyond the beyond.

ALL ALUMINUM!! That is, with the exception of the tube seats, which are nickel-plated brass.
Seen any all-aluminum vintage sconces lately?!

My photoshopping skills are limited (to say the least). Regarding the right-hand, lit light in the photo which shows the pair... I didn't have two frosted bulbs (shown in the left-hand light of the sconce on the right), and the clear bulb I used on the right just looked... weird! So I tried to photoshop the right tube to look somewhat similar to the one on the left. The results, as you may have already noticed, are not exactly "professional!" Ha-ha, but you get it that the tube on the left will look exactly like the other once matching bulbs are in place. Frosted bulbs definitely look best! The old socket covers you see in the other photos are just there to hold up the sconces for the photos.

The sockets in the sconces are original and take bayonet bulbs, which are available in a variety of shapes and wattage on the Web. Or, you can use an adapter (bayonet-to-candelabra), four of which I will send along with the sconces; that conversion allows you to use American bulbs with a candelabra mount, which you can find in any hardware store. The wiring is intact and original but it was clipped fairly short, just in front of the mounting apparatus. I have extended those wires another 8 inches so you don't necessarily have to rewire the sconces. I've married the old wires to the new wires with small gray wire nuts, and these can be hidden behind the central mounting device. It's not particularly difficult to rewire these sconces and you might want to do that, but it's not necessary.

Regarding mounting the sconces: within each mounting apparatus there's a machined solid brass piece which comes out and which is screwed to the wall or fastened to the electrical box. The sconce is then placed over the brass strap and a tiny screw on the bottom of each sconce is screwed in to keep the two held together.

Measurements: With the tubes installed, the sconces are around 8 inches high, 11 and a half wide, and project from the wall about four and three-quarters inches. See less