Serge Mouille trained as a goldsmith and silversmith in Paris before turning to lighting in the early 1950s, when the designer Jacques Adnet commissioned a large light fixture from him. He also worked with the architect Louis Sognot. Most of his lighting dates from the 1950s, and he taught metalwork alongside it and afterwards.
What he produced in that window has an instantly recognisable vocabulary: radiating spider arms in slender black rod, elongated eye-shaped shades, and a black finish that reads as industrial and sculptural at once.
Mouille described the work as a reaction against the Italian lighting then reaching the market, which he found too complicated. The MFL-1 floor lamp and the single-arm wall lamp, both from 1953, show the thinking clearly: a tapered form, one arm, and a silhouette that makes an ordinary object strange again. The six-arm MCL-R6 of 1954 was Mouille's answer to the chandelier, and the three-arm MCL R3 of 1958 applied the same logic at a size that suits a dining room.
If you are choosing lighting by room rather than by designer, the ceiling lights, wall lamps and floor lamps collections cover these pieces alongside other mid-century designs.
The collection divides by mounting point, and that is the first decision.
Three configurations, and the difference is reach rather than brightness.
Each shade takes its own bulb, so more arms means a wider spread rather than a brighter light. Measure the span before ordering: at 279 cm the six-arm piece is wider than most rooms expect.
Four wall pieces, and they differ more than the photographs suggest.
The single-arm wall lamp's 34 cm projection matters beside a bed or a reading chair, because it determines whether the light falls on the page or on the wall behind you. The two-arm sconce, at 182 cm, needs almost as much wall as the three-arm ceiling lamp needs ceiling.
The MFL-1 stands 160 cm high on a tripod base, 46 cm deep, and weighs 6 kg. It is the only piece in the collection that plugs straight in with no installation, which makes it the simplest way into the range.
The interior of its shade is finished in white to improve reflection, a detail the ceiling pieces do not share.
All eight pieces, verified against their product pages. Prices are the current From price including the active sale.
Piece | From | Arms | Width or height | Weight | Bulbs | Lead time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Wall Lamp | GBP 99.50 | 1 | 70 cm wide, 34 cm projection | 4 kg | 1 × E14, 60 W | 12 to 16 weeks |
Sconce 1 Rotating Arm | GBP 129.50 | 1 | Up to 99 cm wide, 40 cm high | 2.6 kg | 1 × E14, 60 W | 12 to 16 weeks |
MCL R2 pendant | GBP 169.50 | 2 | 105 cm wide, 55 cm deep | 5 kg | 2 × E14, 60 W | 12 to 16 weeks |
MFL-1 floor lamp | GBP 204.50 | 1 | 160 cm high, 46 cm deep | 6 kg | 1 × E14, 60 W | 12 to 16 weeks |
Sconce Wall Light 2 Arms | GBP 229.50 | 2 | 182 cm wide, 70 cm high | 5.5 kg | 2 × E14, 60 W | 12 to 16 weeks |
Two-Arm Wall Lamp | GBP 244.50 | 2 | 134 cm wide, 75 cm high | 5.65 kg | 2 × E14, 60 W | 12 to 16 weeks |
MCL R3 ceiling lamp | GBP 334.50 | 3 | 210 cm wide, 60 cm deep | 11 kg | 3 × E14, 60 W | 12 to 16 weeks |
MCL-R6 pendant | GBP 559.50 | 6 | 279 cm wide, 70 cm deep | 17 kg | 6 × E14, 60 W | 12 to 16 weeks |
Width, not arm count, is the number to check. The two-arm sconce is 182 cm wide, wider than the two-arm pendant by 77 cm and not far short of the three-arm ceiling lamp. Two pieces with the same number of arms can need very different amounts of wall or ceiling.
Doubling the arms does not double the span. The three-arm piece reaches 210 cm and the six-arm reaches 279 cm, a third wider rather than twice. The arms are staggered at two lengths, 58 cm and 30 cm, which is what lets six of them sit in a room without a 4-metre fixture.
Nothing here is in stock. All eight pieces run to 12 to 16 weeks, so there is no fast option. If you need light by a date, this is not the collection to leave late.
The specification is the same across all eight pieces, which makes this simple.
For the wider range beyond Mouille, the lighting collection has everything in one place.
Serge Mouille was a French designer who trained as a goldsmith and silversmith in Paris before turning to lighting in the early 1950s, when the designer Jacques Adnet commissioned a large light fixture from him. He also worked with the architect Louis Sognot. Most of his lighting dates from the 1950s, and he taught metalwork alongside it and afterwards.
Spider is the informal name for the multi-arm ceiling lamps, taken from the way the arms radiate from a single central point. In this collection the six-arm MCL-R6 is the piece most often meant. It spans 279 cm and was Mouille's answer to the chandelier. The two-arm and three-arm pendants share the same vocabulary at smaller sizes.
The MCL R3 is a three-arm ceiling lamp designed in 1958, with each arm ending in a rotating shade. The Mobelaris reproduction spans 210 cm, hangs 60 cm deep, weighs 11 kg and takes three E14 bulbs at 60 W maximum each. It is dimmable, though the dimmer device is not supplied.
The two-arm MCL R2 spans 105 cm, the three-arm MCL R3 210 cm and the six-arm MCL-R6 279 cm. The larger two are wider than most people expect, and the arm length is fixed, so the span cannot be reduced to fit a smaller room. Measure the space before ordering rather than after.
The MFL-1 is a single-arm floor lamp on a tripod base, designed in 1953. The Mobelaris reproduction stands 160 cm high and 46 cm deep, weighs 6 kg and takes one E14 bulb at 60 W maximum. The shade rotates, the arm length is fixed, and the inside of the shade is finished in white to improve reflection.
The single-arm wall lamp projects 34 cm from the wall, across a 70 cm width and 40 cm height, and weighs 4 kg. That projection is worth checking beside a bed or a reading chair, because it decides whether the light lands on the page or on the wall behind you.
Black powder-coated metal rods with moulded aluminium shades, on every piece in the collection. The wall lamp adds brass detailing. Each shade swivels on its joint and holds position, which is how the light is aimed. Every piece also ships with a cord and a UK or Euro plug fitted. Each piece is sold as a reproduction, and every Mobelaris product page states that the item is not manufactured by or affiliated with the original designer.
Shades rotate and hold position on every piece. Arms do not extend or retract on any of them, though on three wall pieces the arms swing sideways. This matters most on the ceiling lamps, because the span shown in the dimensions is exactly what you get and cannot be adjusted to fit a smaller room.
Every piece takes E14 at a maximum of 60 W, and bulbs are not included. That means one bulb for the single-arm pieces, two for the two-arm pieces, three for the MCL R3 and six for the MCL-R6. All are dimmable with a compatible dimmer, which is not supplied.
Twelve to sixteen weeks on all eight pieces, and none is held in UK stock. Each product page shows its own estimate under the Add to Cart button, and the timing is confirmed by email once the order is placed.
