Rare 'Semi-metal' chair, mod. 305
Designer
Jean Prouvé
Manufacturer/Maker/Editor
Les Ateliers Jean Prouvé
Origin
France
Year
1950s
Design Museum Section
French Design Icons
Designed by Architects
Categories
Meeting, Conference chairs
Designheroes ID
52524
Auction House
Phillips
Headquarter
New York, United States
Availability
sold
Condition
pre-owned/vintage
Sale name
Design
Sale Location
New York, United States
Rare 'Semi-metal' chair, mod. 305
Rare “Semi-metal” chair, mod. 305, with desk
1950s
Molded plywood, oak, painted metal.
32 1/8 x 19 3/4 x 26 3/4 in. (81.6 x 50.2 x 67.9 cm)
Manufactured by Les Ateliers Jean Prouvé, France.
Catalog essay
Jean Prouvé believed in design as a vehicle for improvement. His manufactory Les Ateliers Jean Prouvé, located in Nancy, France, produced furniture for schools, factories and municipal projects, both within France and in locations as far flung as the Congo. Though he designed for the masses, pieces such as his "Potence" lamps and "Standard" chairs are among the most iconic fixtures in sophisticated, high-design interiors today. Collectors connect with his utilitarian, austere designs that strip materials down to the bare minimum without compromising on proportion or style.
Prouvé grew up in Nancy, France, the son of Victor Prouvé, an artist and co-founder of the École de Nancy, and Marie Duhamel, a pianist. He apprenticed to master blacksmiths in Paris and opened a small wrought iron forge in Nancy. However it was sheet steel that ultimately captured Prouvé's imagination, and he ingeniously adapted it to furniture, lighting and even pre-fabricated houses, often collaborating with other design luminaries of the period, such as Robert Mallet-Stevens, Le Corbusier and Charlotte Perriand.
Prouvé grew up in Nancy, France, the son of Victor Prouvé, an artist and co-founder of the École de Nancy, and Marie Duhamel, a pianist. He apprenticed to master blacksmiths in Paris and opened a small wrought iron forge in Nancy. However it was sheet steel that ultimately captured Prouvé's imagination, and he ingeniously adapted it to furniture, lighting and even pre-fabricated houses, often collaborating with other design luminaries of the period, such as Robert Mallet-Stevens, Le Corbusier and Charlotte Perriand.
Literature
Peter Sulzer, Jean Prouvé: Œuvre complète / Complete Works, Volume 3: 1944-1954, Basel, 2005, pp. 208-11, figs. 1207.1-3, p. 268, figs. 1242.3,4 for the model without the desk
Galerie Patrick Seguin, Jean Prouvé, Volume 2, Paris, 2007, pp. 234, 266-69 for the model without the desk
Galerie Patrick Seguin, Jean Prouvé, Volume 2, Paris, 2007, pp. 234, 266-69 for the model without the desk
Object
Rare 'Semi-metal' chair, mod. 305
Designer
Jean Prouvé
Manufacturer/Maker/Editor
Les Ateliers Jean Prouvé
Origin
France
Year
1950s
Design Museum Section
French Design Icons
Designed by Architects
Categories
Meeting, Conference chairs
Designheroes ID
52524
Auction House
Phillips
Headquarter
New York, United States
Availability
sold
Condition
pre-owned/vintage
Sale name
Design
Sale Location
New York, United States
