Philips 'Infraphil 7529' Infrared Heat Lamp Attrib. Charlotte Perriand

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A 1950s-era InfraPhil 7529 heat lamp designed in the mid to late 1940s for PHILIPS & CO. and often wrongly … Read more A 1950s-era InfraPhil 7529 heat lamp designed in the mid to late 1940s for PHILIPS & CO. and often wrongly attributed to Charlotte Perriand (see bio). InfraPhil light bulbs were designed to emit a maximum yield of short-wave infrared radiation as a substitute for natural sunlight. They were intended to be used therapeutically to relieve muscular pain. This lamp is complete and comes with its original 150w, 3-pin bayonet-style infrared bulb, which is still in working order. An enduring icon of 20th Century Modern industrial design.

This model also has a built-in hanger that allows it to be mounted as a sconce. If use as a standard light fixture is preferred, the infrared bulb may be swapped out for any other bulb that has a matching 3-pin bayonet fitting. The lamp housing is made from ivory-enameled metal and can be rotated 360 degrees on its base and tilted up and down using the red anodized aluminum ring. It retains its original European cord and plug (free adapter available upon request) and the PHILIPS & CO. decal on the base.

CHARLOTTE PERRIAND (1903-1999) was a renowned French architect and designer who burst onto the French design scene in her early 20s, seemingly undeterred by obstacles in an era when even the progressive Bauhaus school barred women from architecture and furniture design courses. She studied under Maurice Dufrêne (1876-1955) at the École de l’Union Centrale des art Décoratifs, entering into a competition at the 1925 Expo des Arts Décoratifs and gaining critical acclaim for her exhibition at the Salon d'Automne in 1927. In the same year, inspired by his architectural treatises, Perriand persuaded Charles-Édouard Jeanneret (1887-1965), known as Le Corbusier, to employ her. He put her in charge of prototype production and public presentations of the studio’s work. In collaboration with Charles-Édouard’s cousin Pierre Jeanneret (1896-1967), Perriand developed a series of tubular steel chairs, which are still hailed as icons of the machine age.

From 1927 until 1937, Perriand worked with Le Corbusier, designing furniture and domestic interiors. During this period, she helped found the Union des Artistes Modernes (UAM), a movement made up of decorative artists and architects who tried to make their work more accessible by using low-cost materials. In 1937 she left Le Corbusier to start a successful career of her own with work aimed at creating functional living spaces in the belief that better design helps to create a better society.

Perriand traveled to Japan in 1940 as an official advisor on industrial design. When Japan joined the war, she found herself trapped in Vietnam until 1946. During this exile, she studied local techniques of woodwork and weaving. She returned to France, intent on introducing straw and bamboo to modern design.

Back in France, Perriand continued her work with Le Corbusier and Jean Prouvé (1901-1984). She was integral to the design of Le Corbusier’s Unité d’Habitation in Marseille. In 1949, she participated in the inaugural exhibition of the Formes Utiles movement, a French design group that evolved out of the UAM. It took place in the Museé des Arts Décoratifs (Museum of Decorative Arts), and Perriand curated the artwork and display objects, among which was a Philips InfraPhil heat lamp model 7525.

Perriand remained an influential figure in the modern movement until her death in 1999 in Paris at the age of 96. A retrospective exhibition was held in her honor in the Centre Pompidou in Paris in 2005 that included a compilation from the 1949 Formes Utiles show. However, at the 2005 exhibition and in the book published for the event, the objects Perriand had previously curated in 1949 were mistakenly identified as her designs. Ever since then, the Philips InfraPhil heat lamp model 7525 and its successors are commonly attributed to her. The actual designer of the early Philips InfraPhil heat lamps is unknown but was most likely an employee of Philips. See less