Bernard-Albin Gras

Born on 5 December 1886 in Saint Raphaël to a draughtsman father and a housewife, Bernard-Albin GRAS trained as an engineer.
In 1921, Bernard-Albin Gras created a range of lamps for industry and design offices in Paris.
This range of lamps broke the codes of the essential models of the time (stem system, single arm, etc.).
The GRAS lamp, whose patent was bought by the RAVEL company in 1927, is astonishing for its ergonomics and the simplicity of its mechanics – no screws, no welding – which makes it extremely robust.
Bernard-Albin GRAS thus became one of the first lighting designers of the 20th century: not content with innovating on all fronts, he added an original functional aesthetic to his creations, particularly in the design of the cast iron and connecting rods.
The Gras lamp quickly attracted the interest of many French architects and decorators, including Le Corbusier, who was one of the first to distribute these lights, first in his architectural practice, then on most of his building sites.
This is an astonishing destiny for a lamp that won a gold medal at the Lépine competition but was initially intended for offices, workshops and laboratories.