Decorating
5 French Designers You Need to Know
Love classic design? Get your Francophile on with our introduction to five iconic 20th-century French designers
France’s reputation as the style capital of the world has endured for centuries, with the country being hailed as the taste-maker in Europe and around the globe. French designers and architects in the early 20th century were at the forefront of furniture design, including in the Art Deco and modernist periods, and in the mid-century they brought their own unique take to the global aesthetic.
Here’s a brief introduction to five French designers from the 20th century who made a lasting impression on the design world, and the classic pieces they’re famous for.
Here’s a brief introduction to five French designers from the 20th century who made a lasting impression on the design world, and the classic pieces they’re famous for.
Much of Prouvé’s furniture is characterised by his ambition to unite functional requirements with an honest use of materials, and economical concerns, as well as the requirements for mass production.
Standard chair, 1934/50
Prouvé recognised that traditional chairs take the most stress on their back legs, where they bear the weight of the user’s upper body, and he incorporated this simple insight into his design for the Standard chair. He made the back legs with voluminous hollow sections that transfer the primary weight to the floor, while steel tubing suffices for the front legs as they are subject to less stress.
Standard chair, 1934/50
Prouvé recognised that traditional chairs take the most stress on their back legs, where they bear the weight of the user’s upper body, and he incorporated this simple insight into his design for the Standard chair. He made the back legs with voluminous hollow sections that transfer the primary weight to the floor, while steel tubing suffices for the front legs as they are subject to less stress.
EM table, 1950
Prouvé designed the EM table for his Maison Tropicale prefabricated house project, and it too addresses the flow of forces in its construction. The dining table adheres to structural engineering principles and incorporates only what is absolutely necessary. The canted legs are connected by a crossbar, illustrating the structural forces and flow of stresses – something more typically seen in engineering structures.
Fauteuil Direction chair, 1951
Designed in 1951, the Fauteuil Direction chair exemplifies Prouvé’s constructive aesthetic, blending a sense of industry and machinery with comfortable, domestic forms.
Prouvé designed the EM table for his Maison Tropicale prefabricated house project, and it too addresses the flow of forces in its construction. The dining table adheres to structural engineering principles and incorporates only what is absolutely necessary. The canted legs are connected by a crossbar, illustrating the structural forces and flow of stresses – something more typically seen in engineering structures.
Fauteuil Direction chair, 1951
Designed in 1951, the Fauteuil Direction chair exemplifies Prouvé’s constructive aesthetic, blending a sense of industry and machinery with comfortable, domestic forms.
Cité chair, 1930
A true classic of modernist French design, the Cité chair is one of Prouvé’s earliest masterpieces. He designed the chair for a competition to furnish the student residence halls at Cité Universitaire in Nancy. He also used the armchair in the living room of his home. The dynamic-looking piece has distinctive runners made of extremely thin, powder-coated sheet steel that, at the time, were more commonly used in the automobile industry.
Browse home stylists and property stagers
A true classic of modernist French design, the Cité chair is one of Prouvé’s earliest masterpieces. He designed the chair for a competition to furnish the student residence halls at Cité Universitaire in Nancy. He also used the armchair in the living room of his home. The dynamic-looking piece has distinctive runners made of extremely thin, powder-coated sheet steel that, at the time, were more commonly used in the automobile industry.
Browse home stylists and property stagers
2. Charlotte Perriand (1903-1999)
Charlotte Perriand was part of the early European avant-garde coterie that gave birth to modern design. Working in furniture and interior design, and tired of the traditional Beaux-Arts designs around her, Perriand experimented with new materials and conceived fresh ways of living that remain at the heart of contemporary life today.
Perriand studied furniture design at l’École de L’Union Centrale des Arts Décoratifs. In 1925, her student projects were selected for the Paris Exposition design exhibition, and in 1927 she received critical acclaim for her furniture installation ‘Bar Under The Roof’ at Salon d’Automne. The collection was constructed entirely in nickel-plated copper and anodised aluminium.
Charlotte Perriand was part of the early European avant-garde coterie that gave birth to modern design. Working in furniture and interior design, and tired of the traditional Beaux-Arts designs around her, Perriand experimented with new materials and conceived fresh ways of living that remain at the heart of contemporary life today.
Perriand studied furniture design at l’École de L’Union Centrale des Arts Décoratifs. In 1925, her student projects were selected for the Paris Exposition design exhibition, and in 1927 she received critical acclaim for her furniture installation ‘Bar Under The Roof’ at Salon d’Automne. The collection was constructed entirely in nickel-plated copper and anodised aluminium.
That same year, Perriand began a decade-long collaboration with Le Corbusier and Pierre Jeanneret. In 1928 the trio designed a series of chairs based around Corbusier’s principle that the chair was a ‘machine for sitting’. Each chair accommodated different positions for different tasks: sleeping, conversation and relaxation.
B306/LC4 chair, 1928
The B306 (or LC4) is one of the chairs Perriand, Le Corbusier and Jeanneret designed in 1928 with a particular position for a particular task. In this case, it was a chaise lounge for sleeping. With its relaxed curves and sleek, industrial materials, it remains one of the most famous and highly coveted pieces of mid-century furniture.
Read about Le Corbusier’s lasting influence on interiors
B306/LC4 chair, 1928
The B306 (or LC4) is one of the chairs Perriand, Le Corbusier and Jeanneret designed in 1928 with a particular position for a particular task. In this case, it was a chaise lounge for sleeping. With its relaxed curves and sleek, industrial materials, it remains one of the most famous and highly coveted pieces of mid-century furniture.
Read about Le Corbusier’s lasting influence on interiors
Perriand moved to Japan when the Germans occupied Paris in 1940 and the experience saw her switch from working with metal to wood, and embracing traditional techniques with straw, bamboo and cane.
Tabouret Méribel and Tabouret Berger, 1953/61
Perriand’s Tabouret Méribel stool takes its name from the Méribel mountain resort in France. Perriand had a house here and spent many years reinterpreting the local architecture. The Tabouret Berger stool draws inspiration from those used by shepherds. Made of solid wood, the stool is distinctive for its three ‘cut-finished’ turned legs.
Tabouret Méribel and Tabouret Berger, 1953/61
Perriand’s Tabouret Méribel stool takes its name from the Méribel mountain resort in France. Perriand had a house here and spent many years reinterpreting the local architecture. The Tabouret Berger stool draws inspiration from those used by shepherds. Made of solid wood, the stool is distinctive for its three ‘cut-finished’ turned legs.
Les Arcs stool, 1960s
Perriand designed this high stool for Les Arcs ski resort in France. With a metal structure and leather seat, the use of industrial materials harks back to her work of the late 1920s and ’30s.
Perriand designed this high stool for Les Arcs ski resort in France. With a metal structure and leather seat, the use of industrial materials harks back to her work of the late 1920s and ’30s.
3. Pierre Paulin (1927-2009)
As a young boy, Pierre Paulin was inspired by the creativity of his automobile-designing uncle Georges Paulin and the artistry of his sculptor great-uncle Fredy Balthazar Stoll. His creativity and artistry are evident throughout his work, and his playful, sculptural and three-dimensional forms have become icons of 20th-century European design.
After World War II, Paulin studied stone carving and clay modelling at the École Camondo in Paris, where he developed the ability to imagine objects in three dimensions. He joined the workshop of Marcel Gascoin, one of the creators of the Union des Artistes Modernes (UAM), where he soaked up Scandinavian aesthetics and gained an understanding of the role that design could play in society. He then joined the interior decoration service of the Galeries Lafayette department store, where he was introduced to the work of American designers such as Charles Eames, Harry Bertoia and George Nelson.
As a young boy, Pierre Paulin was inspired by the creativity of his automobile-designing uncle Georges Paulin and the artistry of his sculptor great-uncle Fredy Balthazar Stoll. His creativity and artistry are evident throughout his work, and his playful, sculptural and three-dimensional forms have become icons of 20th-century European design.
After World War II, Paulin studied stone carving and clay modelling at the École Camondo in Paris, where he developed the ability to imagine objects in three dimensions. He joined the workshop of Marcel Gascoin, one of the creators of the Union des Artistes Modernes (UAM), where he soaked up Scandinavian aesthetics and gained an understanding of the role that design could play in society. He then joined the interior decoration service of the Galeries Lafayette department store, where he was introduced to the work of American designers such as Charles Eames, Harry Bertoia and George Nelson.
In 1953 Paulin began producing and showing his own furniture, which drew considerable attention and led to a collaboration with Thonet France. In 1958, Kho Liang Ie, creative director of designer furniture manufacturer Artifort, offered Paulin the opportunity to develop his research on the relationship between the body and furniture, and experiment with his designs. Over two decades Paulin created a series of chairs for Artifort that exemplified his approach to furniture: “A chair should be more than simply functional,” he said. “It should be friendly, fun and colourful.”
Orange Slice chair, 1959
Paulin’s Orange Slice chair comprises two completely identical forms (pressed beech shells covered with foam) that are angled in such a way as to invite users to sink in.
Orange Slice chair, 1959
Paulin’s Orange Slice chair comprises two completely identical forms (pressed beech shells covered with foam) that are angled in such a way as to invite users to sink in.
Concorde chair, 1960
Originally designed for the waiting room of the French Concorde aircraft, the Concorde chair has slim, retro styling. With no arms and a wing-like form, the lounge chair has since migrated into fashionable living rooms around the world.
Originally designed for the waiting room of the French Concorde aircraft, the Concorde chair has slim, retro styling. With no arms and a wing-like form, the lounge chair has since migrated into fashionable living rooms around the world.
Ribbon chair, 1966
One of Paulin’s most famous designs, the Ribbon chair, is a bold, contoured seat that allows the user to assume a variety of positions while retaining the necessary support. Covered in colourful upholstery or psychedelic patterns by Jack Lenor Larsen, the curving, looping chair has a futuristic appeal.
One of Paulin’s most famous designs, the Ribbon chair, is a bold, contoured seat that allows the user to assume a variety of positions while retaining the necessary support. Covered in colourful upholstery or psychedelic patterns by Jack Lenor Larsen, the curving, looping chair has a futuristic appeal.
Pumpkin chair, 1971
Paulin originally designed the Pumpkin range of seating for President Georges Pompidou’s residence in the Elysée Palace. Like much of Paulin’s work from the 1960s onwards, it does away with traditional legged design. Rather, it has a voluptuous form that almost appears to be carved from a solid block of foam. The collection includes an armchair with or without headrest, a love seat, a sofa and an ottoman.
Paulin originally designed the Pumpkin range of seating for President Georges Pompidou’s residence in the Elysée Palace. Like much of Paulin’s work from the 1960s onwards, it does away with traditional legged design. Rather, it has a voluptuous form that almost appears to be carved from a solid block of foam. The collection includes an armchair with or without headrest, a love seat, a sofa and an ottoman.
4. Yves Klein (1928-1962)
Yves Klein was an influential and controversial French artist who emerged in the 1950s. As a young artist, Klein’s work evolved into a combination of conceptual art, performance art, and environmental art. He challenged ideas around postwar abstract painting and he created his own expressionist works using the body as a paintbrush.
The artist was perhaps most notable for his use of a single colour: International Klein Blue. Klein trademarked the rich shade of ultramarine in 1961, making it all his own.
Klein believed space could be experienced through colour, and that blue had qualities close to pure space. “Blue … is beyond dimensions, whereas the other colours are not,” he said. “All colours arouse specific ideas, while blue suggests at most the sea and the sky; and they, after all, are in actual, visible nature what is most abstract.”
11 ways with ‘Yves Klein Blue’
Yves Klein was an influential and controversial French artist who emerged in the 1950s. As a young artist, Klein’s work evolved into a combination of conceptual art, performance art, and environmental art. He challenged ideas around postwar abstract painting and he created his own expressionist works using the body as a paintbrush.
The artist was perhaps most notable for his use of a single colour: International Klein Blue. Klein trademarked the rich shade of ultramarine in 1961, making it all his own.
Klein believed space could be experienced through colour, and that blue had qualities close to pure space. “Blue … is beyond dimensions, whereas the other colours are not,” he said. “All colours arouse specific ideas, while blue suggests at most the sea and the sky; and they, after all, are in actual, visible nature what is most abstract.”
11 ways with ‘Yves Klein Blue’
Klein ventured into furniture design in the early 1960s with the creation of a brilliant trio of low tables. Each table consisted of a plexiglas box filled with pigment or material: Table Bleue (filled with International Klein Blue pigment); Table Or (with 3,000 sheets of crumpled gold leaf); and Table Rose (featuring rose pigment). Klein perceived gold as sun, wealth and fire.
While each of the blue and rose tables contains the same type of pigment, no two are alike as the dry powder creates a unique variety of textures and patterns with subtle surface variations.
While each of the blue and rose tables contains the same type of pigment, no two are alike as the dry powder creates a unique variety of textures and patterns with subtle surface variations.
The Yves Klein Estate has continued to oversee the production of the coffee table editions from 1963 to the present, manufacturing a limited number each year.
5. Jacques Adnet (1901-1984)
Hanging circular mirrors is a hugely popular decorative trend these days, but its origins can be traced back to Art Deco designer Jacques Adnet.
Hanging circular mirrors is a hugely popular decorative trend these days, but its origins can be traced back to Art Deco designer Jacques Adnet.
Adnet Round Mirror, 1946
One of the first to integrate metal and glass into their designs, Adnet’s pieces epitomise simplicity and luxury. In 1950, Adnet formed a partnership with French fashion house Hermès, where he developed a collection of leather-covered furniture and interior accessories. This included the iconic Adnet Round Mirror.
One of the first to integrate metal and glass into their designs, Adnet’s pieces epitomise simplicity and luxury. In 1950, Adnet formed a partnership with French fashion house Hermès, where he developed a collection of leather-covered furniture and interior accessories. This included the iconic Adnet Round Mirror.
The round mirror is wrapped in a luxurious hand-stitched, full-grain aniline leather strap with brass hinges, which is in direct proportion to the dimensions of the mirror. Striking in its simplicity and attention to detail, the much-loved design looks as fashionable today as when it was first released.
Voilà, c’est tout.
Tell us
Do you have a favourite mid-century French designer? Tell us in the Comments below. And don’t forget to like, bookmark or share this article.
More
Browse more mid-century living spaces
Voilà, c’est tout.
Tell us
Do you have a favourite mid-century French designer? Tell us in the Comments below. And don’t forget to like, bookmark or share this article.
More
Browse more mid-century living spaces
Trained as a metal artisan, Jean Prouvé always considered himself an engineer and constructor. As a furniture designer he believed there was no difference in construction between a piece of furniture and a house, and he developed a ‘constructional philosophy’ based on functionality and rational fabrication. The self-taught architect and designer transferred manufacturing technology from industry to architecture, maintaining a constructionist aesthetic.
Prouvé opened his own manufacturing firm, Les Ateliers Jean Prouvé, in Nancy, France, and produced numerous furniture designs in the 1930s and 1940s. In 1947 he also built the Maxéville factory, where he and 200 employees made furnishings, prefabricated homes and schools. In later years he worked as head of the construction office of CIMT, which built railways, tramlines and metro lines, and also ran his own architectural consulting firm in Paris from 1968 to 1984.