Richard G. “Dick” Barr was an American sculptor and artist who designed for companies including Westinghouse Electric Co., Thomasville Furniture, J. Gordon Perlmutter & Associates, and the Laurel Lamp Company. From the mid 1960s to the late 1970s Barr was involved in the design of many Laurel Lamp Company pieces  and had several of his own lighting collections for Laurel. 

Barr was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and raised in nearby Bellevue. Barr graduated from Carnegie Mellon University in 1951 with BA in Industrial Design. Barr then enlisted in the U.S. Air Force to fight in the Korean War. 

Following the war, Barr began designing for Westinghouse Electric where he worked on television cabinets. 

In the late 1950s/early 1960s Barr moved his family to Watchung, New Jersey to begin working for J. Gordon Perlmuter & Associates in nearby Plainfield, New Jersey. In 1961 Barr was the head of the Industrial Design Division for J. Gordon Perlmutter. In the early 1960s the Laurel Lamp Company began working with J. Gordon Perlmutter where Barr was introduced to Laurel co-founder Harold Weiss. 

The first confirmed Laurel Lamp Company designs by Richard Barr are from a 1964 article in Arts & Architecture Magazine showcasing one of Barr’s most iconic designs from his “ Studio Collection”. 

That same year, Barr designed a series of “ac’cent” lamps that ultimately became Laurel’s legacy.

From 1964 until the late 1970s Barr continued to design for Laurel in various capacities and is credited as a primary Laurel designer during this time period. 

Additionally Barr worked independently for other furniture and homeware companies throughout his career including Thomasville Furniture, Whitney Brothers in Keene New Hampshire, Ethan Allen, and the Hager Lamp Company. 

Barr passed away in 2003 at the age of 73. His obituary can be found here.