Rare Art Deco Cabinet by Maurice and Léon Jallot, 1930

Léon Jallot and Maurice Jallot were creative French cabinetmakers known for their luxurious wood furniture as well as their work during the mid-1920s onward which saw an integration of the manmade materials associated with modern design.

Just as modernism was gaining steam, Léon preferred the pared-back elegance and traditional techniques associated with the design of French Provincial furniture and other styles that took shape prior to the 20th century. While decorative flourishes and ornamentation were prominent in the Art Nouveau style of Léon's time, he advocated for the simple merits of good craftsmanship. He was a true woodworker, creating striking armchairs, cocktail tables and cabinets in oak, ash and pearwood that have a stately, architectural quality.

Léon was born in Nantes in 1874 and started working with wood to create sculptural furniture when he was very young. He studied at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris and began working at the store of Parisian entrepreneur and art dealer Siegfried Bing in 1898. Léon soon assumed the role of Art Nouveau director at Bing’s storefront. He helped coordinate and oversaw Bing's exhibit at the Paris Universal Exposition in 1900. Maurice was born while the Exposition was taking place.

Léon left Siegfried Bing’s employ in 1901 to become a founding member of the inaugural Salon of Société des Artistes Décorateurs. The organization was established to sponsor annual salons and encourage an interest in the fine arts and design. In 1903, Léon also opened his own decorating workshop, where he worked on everything from furniture and decor to upholstery and textiles. He exhibited at the Salons of Societe Nationale des Beaux-Arts in 1908 and the Salon d'Automne in 1919.

Jallot introduced his son, Maurice, to the cabinetmaking business in 1921. Maurice took after his father in the impressive skills and passion that he developed for design, and the two became partners. They exhibited several of their commissioned pieces together at 1925’s International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts in Paris — the art fair that introduced the Art Deco style to the world. Their furniture of the mid-1920s and '30s — cabinets with mirrored panels, armchairs with chrome mounts — was demonstrative of the Jallots' efforts to introduce what were then revolutionary materials into their designs. 

Léon retired in the 1940s, and Maurice carried on the business until the end of the decade. 

Today, some of Léon Jallot's pieces are held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. His furniture was also showcased at an exhibit in 2017 called "The Jazz Age: American Style in the 1920s" at the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum.

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