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Thursday, January 22, 2009

eileen gray.

"designed in 1929, the "bibendum" was named by eileen gray after michelin’s bibendum man." how fun are these chairs and how comfy?


each "bonaparte" chair is available in a number of leather colors and is signed and numbered.

"the day bed is rightly counted among the most famous designs from eileen gray. The lounge “offers pleasant and comfortable seating and is, moreover, particularly suited to relaxing.”


eileen designed the "E 1027" table in 1927 and is now one of the most recognized occasional tables today.

in the market for a different kind of dressing table? “small dressing table”, designed in 1929 for gray's summerhouse E1027. the drawers in the small side box of the petite coiffeuse swivel out. Everything is reduced to the essentials, but it all is within easy reach."


eileen gray's signature lacquered screens.

the "monte carlo" bench seat with it's unsual back rest.

this is perhaps my favorite of eileen's designs. "eileen gray described her 1926 design by saying, “an armrest was omitted in order to leave the body more freedom in movement and to allow it to bend forward or to turn to the other side unrestricted.”


the "rivoli" table served as a tea table in the living room or eileen gray's summer house, named E 1027.

yesterday a friend of mine stopped by my shop and i happened to be playing with my design blog and he gave me a great inspire. eileen gray. a designer designing well before her time. "during the 1920s and 1930s she became one of the leading exponents of the revolutionary new theories of design and construction. she held her first exhibitions at this time and worked closely with many of the outstanding figures of the modern movement, including le corbusier and j j p oud. well to the fore of this group she exhibited chrome, steel tube and glass furniture in 1925, the same year as mies van der rohe and marcel breuer and well before le corbusier."

eileen gray also trained in the art of japanese lacquer working in the authentic way and quickly stood out as a leading designer of lacquered screens and panels. "her highly original and daring designs anticipated many of today's design trends." as you can see from her designs, and designing in the 20's and 30's that these pieces would have stood out as being on the forefront and edgy and wow! "one of eileen gray's last tasks in the early 1970s was to work with zeev aram on the introduction of her designs onto the world market. in 1973 eileen gray granted the worldwide rights to manufacture and distribute her designs to aram designs ltd, london." eileen gray originals today sell in the millions of dollars when purchased or uncovered. which is where we leave off today...scouring aram's site for the ability to obtain a reproduction eileen gray piece, which even admiring them today are simply timeless. enjoy!