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Harald, Peter, and Stefan Rath
history
1968–2000
Harald, Peter, and Stefan Rath
After the untimely death of their father, sons Harald, Peter, and Stefan Rath took on the company in 1968. This generation, too, placed value on preserving tradition, while continuing to seek out and maintain contact with contemporary designers. Viennese chandelier manufacturer Jos. Zahn & Co. was incorporated in 1972, and a studio for artistic glassmaking was founded in Franzensbad in 1975. In 1987, renovations of the flagship store on Kärntner Straße began.
Expansion of Competency
After Hans Harald’s death, management of the Kärntner Straße flagship store was passed on to his son Harald. A branch was opened in Salzburg and, at the same time, the Austrian distributorship for the internationally renowned Herend porcelain brand was established. Peter took on management of chandelier production. Some of his greatest achievements were deliveries to the Kremlin in Moscow, the Kennedy Center Opera House in Washington, and the royal palaces of Saudi Arabia. In 1987, Lobmeyr also supplied more than 140 chandeliers for the burial mosque of the Prophet in Medina under Harald’s direction— probably the largest chandelier order of the twentieth century.
Old Crafts, New Forms
In 1972, Lobmeyr bought the Jos. Zahn & Co. chandelier company, subsequently managed by Stefan. The incorporation brought the company additional expertise from 200 years of chandelier manufacturing and preservation of traditional lighting fixtures. At the same time, Lobmeyr continued to seek contact with contemporary designers, realising projects with Anton Lehmden, Matteo Thun, Monika Flood, Paul Wieser, and Carl Auböck, among others. Lobmeyr dedicated itself to artistic studio glass with the foundation of the Franzensbad Glass Studio in Baden, where around 80 glass artists created pieces from 1975 to 1990, presented to the public at “Treffpunkt L” on Kärntner Straße.
Tradition to Build Upon
In 1987, the renovation of the main store on Kärntner Straße began with the aim of restoring it to its original 1895 condition. The historic sample collection was made accessible to the public on the second floor. In 1990, a subsidiary branch was established in Tokyo to help fulfil important projects in the Far East, including, for example, supplying the concert halls of Hamamatsu and Fukuoka. In 1993, Peter founded his own glass publishing company, the “Glasatelier Steinschönau” in both Vienna and Steinschönau, and left the Lobmeyr company though continuing to supply to them. A true glass and chandelier expert, he still heads the Lobmeyr archives today. His chandelier reference book Möbel der Lüfte – Der Kristallluster in Europa (Furniture of the Air—Crystal Chandeliers in Europe) was published in 2019.
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