20th Century Decorative Arts

Sale 25 november 2008

26 September 2008 — Updated 3 November 2008

Artcurial’s next prestige sale of Art Deco, directed by Maître François Tajan, will take place at the Hôtel Marcel Dassault on Tuesday 25 November 2008, starting at 7pm.

Charlotte Alix & Louis Sognot: Functionalism & Rationalism from the ’30s

Artcurial | Briest - Poulain - F. Tajan will offer an exceptional ensemble of over 40 works by Louis Sognot and Charlotte Alix. All come from the designers’ entourage: the estate of Charlotte Alix; the estate of Louis Sognot’s friend and publisher Julia Chevalier; the estate of Julia Chevalier’s brother; and Etablissements Wagner, Louis Sognot’s cabinet-makers.

Several works are prototypes, and thus unique pieces; others are in limited editions. All bear witness to the tremendous creativity of the two designers.

Connoisseurs and collectors can admire many of the splendid designs that resulted from the collaboration between Louis Sognot and Charlotte Alix, whose passion for straight lines and smooth surfaces can be seen in the prototype armchair designed for the UCLAF laboratory (estimate €20,000-25,000).

Louis Sognot was a determined innovator who used new materials, forms and techniques, whilst ensuring that his furniture lost neither beauty nor character. For instance, he called on the expert assistance of an aeronautical engineer when designing the metal sections of his pair of prototype chairs (est. €10,000-12,000).

Superb examples of Alix’s and Sognot’s individual designs show that Functionalism and Rationalism were guiding principles in their work, both before and after their joint collaboration. Their pursuit of balance, logic and purity is evident in Alix’s Silver Cabinet (est. €20,000-25,000) and Sognot’s Large Console Table (est. €20,000-25,000) and Boat Cabin (est. €25,000-30,000).

Jacques Quinet: ’50s Elegance

The sale also focuses on the work of Jacques Quinet, offering an exceptional ensemble by the great designer that comes fresh to the market with direct provenance from the lady who commissioned it.

In 1956 Jacques Quinet furnished the Paris apartment of Mademoiselle Fontaine-Berger, also overseeing its interior design. This ensemble, which has remained on the spot and intact until today, will be offered for sale at Artcurial | Briest - Poulain - F. Tajan.

Each item reflects Quinet’s love for beautiful, top-quality materials and his efforts to imbue his work with harmonious rhythm, volumes, tone and textures.

His black wooden secretaire (est. €80,000-100,000) is a perfect illustration of the harmonious coloured interplay in Jacques Quinet’s work: when the secretaire is opened, its black lacquer (which Quinet rarely used) contrasts with the interior’s light wood and rosewood-coloured blotter.

The pair of armchairs (est. €25,000-35,000) reveals Quinet’s love of elegance and sober forms – their decorative appeal comes from their striking materials and technical subtleties, rather than mere ornament.

As the sale catalogue points out, another constant feature of Jacques Quinet’s work is his love for metal – extensively represented in this ensemble.

Quinet used metal for many remarkable pieces, whether furniture or accessories, both for functional and decorative purposes. His lamps include a classical-style floor-lamp (est. €15,000-20,000), one of the fruits of Quinet’s formal research with a view to using metal to achieve understated elegance.

These works should not, however, overshadow the sale’s other prestigious names from the first half of the 20th century: superb works by such famous designers as Paul Dupré-Lafon, Pierre Chareau, Jacques le Chevallier, Anna Quinquaud and Gilbert Poillerat will all be offered in November.

Further highlights include a five-piece ensemble by Eugène Printz, revealing how, to this ultimate cabinet-making technician, furniture was a luxury item, warranting the finest materials and the utmost technical refinement.

As illustrated by his Gabon ebony sideboard (est. €180,000-220,000), Printz enjoyed working with rare materials and exotic woods, striving to achieve elegant volumes and present his works on sophisticated metal bases, like jewels in a casket.

Printz’s favourite rare material was palm-wood. Though beautiful, this is difficult to work with; yet Printz’s mastery can be admired in his rectangular console table (est. €120,000-150,000) combining magnificently worked palm-wood with patinated brass metal.

All these items reflect Printz’s passion for his craft. Like the exceptional, gold-lacquered small secretaire (est. €100,000-120,000), each of his designs is a source of wonder.

Another sale highlight is a rare Desk & Armchair by Jean Dunand (est. €120,000-150,000).

The multi-talented Dunand was sculptor, dinandier, goldsmith and interior designer all rolled into one. But he is best known for his work with lacquer: he was a true lacquer-work virtuoso, and this superb ensemble – with a prototype of the desk designed for Madame Agnès – is a magnificent illustration of his artistry.

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Sale Info

Sale: 1537

Location: Hôtel Marcel Dassault

Date: 25 November 2008

Exhibition

21 to 24 November 2008,
11am-7pm

Hôtel Marcel Dassault
7 rond-point des Champs-Élysées
75008 Paris

Expert

Félix Marcilhac

Contact

Sabrina Dolla, specialist

Phone +33 1 42 99 16 40