Pair of Modernist Twisted Lucite and Silver-Plated Candlesticks, French circa 1970

A refined pair of modernist candlesticks in which the interplay of materials is the central design statement. The shaft of each piece is formed from a solid rod of clear Lucite — the proprietary name for cast acrylic — machined into a tight spiral twist along its entire length. The twist catches and refracts the light in shifting prismatic patterns, transforming what might otherwise be a simple column into a kinetic optical element that changes its appearance with every shift of illumination. When candles are lit, the Lucite shafts glow from within, scattering warm light along each helical ridge.

The silver-plated fittings — a circular candle cup and drip tray at the top and a square plinth base below, each connected to the shaft by a small turned collar — are precisely finished and lend a note of classical restraint to what is otherwise a thoroughly contemporary design. The juxtaposition of the transparent, optically animated shaft with the cool, reflective metal of the fittings is characteristic of the best French decorative design of the 1970s, when the newly available range of synthetic materials was being explored with considerable ingenuity.

At 24.5 centimetres tall, the pair are ideally proportioned for a dining table or sideboard, tall enough to have presence without interrupting sight lines across a table setting. The square base gives each candlestick a firm footprint, and the overall silhouette — slender, vertical, luminous — suits both period and contemporary interiors.

French craftwork, circa 1970. Sold as a pair.