Pierre Chareau's Functional Decoration

We were captivated by this gueridon-bobliothque “MB 960” by Pierre Chareau circa 1930 at Artcurial last week. It is one of the top lots in the upcoming Art Deco sale on March 28th.

This sumptuous solid mahogany table is supported by a metal pedestal with a rolling ball foot. This foot and the hinged arm attached to the bookshelf allows it to rotate out into the room or be tucked into the bookcase. His design process incorporated the functional elements into the overall concept and lifted up these otherwise mundane elements to a new level of intrigue.

Chareau also turned functional elements such as pipes and beams into decorative ones in his iconic  Maison de Verre (1928-1932) in Paris,( 31 Rue Saint Guillaume 75007). This is the first house built exclusively of steel and glass, and one of the first loft spaces!

Another version of his adaptable furniture is the expanding ‘fan-effect’ table. There are two examples of this work in the interior image above - just in front and to either side of the painting on the easel. 

His work while very luxurious and inline with the tenets of art deco also blurred the lines between the functional and decorative elements by treating them all with the same respect.

Aldo Chale

We viewed the Artcurial Design Sale today, and found some treasures, in particular the work of the Belgian designer, Aldo Chale (b.1928)

He developed his passion for minerals in the late 1950s, while travelling in Germany. In 1966 he opened a small shop in Brussels, selling rare and beautiful mineral specimens and began to design furniture and objects incorprating specimens from his extensive collection. Some minerals were worked into mosaics, and others were used in their entirety.

This rare low table, inlaid with cornaline has a neon light just underneath encased within the frame of the table. The result is a stunningly luminous effect as the table is lit from within and the cornaline mosaic pattern glows with an unearthly light.

Estimate  €30,000-40,000, Artcurial 30 November 2012

Aldo Chale also inlaid slices of petrified wood, agates and other colorful hard stones, such as lapis lazuli and malachite into black-lacquered low tables. He designed a table for the Dior showroom in Brussels, with the witty idea of inlaying mother-of-pearl buttons into the black lacquer. Each of his mineral pieces is unique, as no two mineral specimens are exactly the same. He has however also designed pieces that are cast in bronze and other materials and some of these pieces exist in editions of unknown quantities.

This low ‘Arizona’ table (1965) is in black resin inlaid with a petrified trunk of Arizona wood. It is signed on the table edge. We love the way the tree trunk is placed off centre and its jagged edges contrast sharply with the smooth, sleek form of the table itself.

Estimate €18,000-22,000, Artcurial 20 November 2012

Coming from a family of craftspeople, it is not surprising that Aldo Chale began designing furniture and lamps and he incorporated specimens from his extensive collection of minerals. He used some stones and minerals in their entirety as in this spectacular lamp (circa 1970) mounted with cabonchons of Agathe.

Estimate €12,000-18,000, Artcurial 20 November 2012

Aldo Chale’s works have been displayed in several museums - the World Exhibition in Montreal; Musee des Beaux Arts in Nancy, France; Musee Galliera in Paris. His pieces can be found in several important private collections, among them Liliane Bettencourt, British Royalty, and King Saud of Saudi Arabia.

We also loved this original ‘pigeon’ lamp by Francois-Xavier Lalanne (circa 1990)with the body of the bird forming the light. It is in bronze and copper with smoked glass and would look beautiful on a desk.

Estimate €15,000-20,000, Artcurial 20 November 2012 

The Bar

Here is another statement piece: the bar! We have had several requests for bars lately—often the requests are for Modern bars but this one in tonight’s Artcurial sale caught our eye. It creates a counter balance in a Paris client’s Haussmanian apartment, which is filled with Modern design. This ‘bar’ is actually a counter from the Magasin Lefèvre-Utile in Nantes. The initials ‘LU’ are visible in the center of each cartouche. LU is a famous brand of biscuits here in France.