Christian Dell

Christian Dell was a German silversmith and designer, best known for his desk lamps. He studied silversmithing at the Saxon College of Arts and Crafts in Weimar where he graduated in 1913, before working at the Bauhaus in 1922 as a foreman in their metal workshop until 1925, when the Nazi party took control of the area. His career really took off inn 1926, when Dell began sketching lamps for Gebr Kaiser & Co - they launched their first catalogue in 1936. Featured in this catalogue was the table lamp Lexus 6631, which since has become the symbol of German design. Dell became well known for his exquisite choice of materials, as an early industrial designer he used bakelite and amino plastics in his designs. Following the end of World War II, Dell moved to Wiesbaden and from 1948 to 1955, he owned a jewellery shop and led a quiet life until his death in 1974.