Transat Ecart
Vintage 1920s French Art Deco Chaise Longues
Leather, Wood, Lacquer
21st Century and Contemporary French Art Deco Armchairs
Brass
Vintage 1920s French Modern Lounge Chairs
Wood, Lacquer, Leather, Foam
Vintage 1970s French Modern Lounge Chairs
Chrome
21st Century and Contemporary French Armchairs
Leather, Wood
People Also Browsed
21st Century and Contemporary Swedish Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Textile
2010s Austrian Jugendstil Chandeliers and Pendants
Silk
21st Century and Contemporary Mexican Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Textile, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Mexican Mid-Century Modern Floor Lamps
Textile, Wood
Vintage 1950s French Mid-Century Modern Desks and Writing Tables
Oak, Plywood
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Mid-Century Modern Wall Mirrors
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary German Modern Floor Lamps
Steel
2010s French Wall Lights and Sconces
Steel
Vintage 1930s French Art Deco Table Lamps
Brass, Chrome, Metal, Aluminum
Vintage 1970s Italian Post-Modern Armchairs
Fabric, Wood, Velvet
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Sectional Sofas
Chrome
Late 20th Century French Sofas
Leather, Foam
21st Century and Contemporary German Modern Side Tables
Steel
Vintage 1920s European Art Deco Beds and Bed Frames
Nickel
Vintage 1970s French Stools
Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Brass
Recent Sales
20th Century French Bauhaus Lounge Chairs
Metal
Vintage 1980s Club Chairs
Wood
Vintage 1920s Chaise Longues
Leather, Wood, Lacquer
1990s American Chairs
Steel
Late 20th Century European Lounge Chairs
Brass
Vintage 1980s French Modern Armchairs
Metal
Vintage 1980s French Post-Modern Chaise Longues
Metal
Vintage 1980s French Art Deco Lounge Chairs
Beech
Vintage 1980s French Post-Modern Chaise Longues
Metal
Vintage 1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Armchairs
Leather, Wood
21st Century and Contemporary French Armchairs
Wood, Leather
Late 20th Century French Art Deco Armchairs
Nickel
21st Century and Contemporary French Bauhaus Lounge Chairs
Chrome
21st Century and Contemporary French Bauhaus Lounge Chairs
Chrome
21st Century and Contemporary French Bauhaus Lounge Chairs
Chrome
Vintage 1980s French Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
Metal
Transat Ecart For Sale on 1stDibs
How Much is a Transat Ecart?
Eileen Gray for sale on 1stDibs
Designer, artist and architect Eileen Gray was one of the most fascinating creative figures of the 20th century. Her body of work includes lustrous lacquered pieces — her Dragons chair set an auction record for modern furniture ($28 million) at the 2009 sale of the Yves Saint Laurent estate — and sleek chrome furnishings that rival the work of Le Corbusier and the members of the Bauhaus as exemplars of pure, modernist design.
The independent and unconventional daughter of Irish landed gentry, Gray studied painting at London’s Slade School of Fine Art in her early twenties before moving to Paris in 1906 to pursue her artistic dreams. Gray had become captivated by lacquerware after seeing an exhibit in the Victoria & Albert Museum, and in Paris persuaded an expatriate Japanese master of the painstaking process, Seizo Sugawara, to teach her. Within a few years, Gray had become known among the cognoscenti for her sculptural lacquered furnishings, which she incorporated into the homes of interior design clients.
Gray was ever evolving as a designer. By the early 1920s she was creating geometric works that embodied the essence of Art Deco and the nascent modernist design movement. Some pieces — such as her Bricks screen, an assemblage of pivoting rectangular panels — employ the planar forms favored by Gerrit Rietveld and other De Stijl architects of the Netherlands. Others feature the tubular chrome framing used by Marcel Breuer and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. These include the Bibendum chair — named for the resemblance of its semicircular back and armrest to the character known in English as the Michelin Man — and the adjustable E 1027 side table, conceived in 1927 for the interiors of a stark white villa she designed for herself in the South of France.
Never a self-promoter, Gray drifted out of the limelight in the 1930s. Interest in her work was revived in the early ’70s, however, when the estates of her early clients came to auction. Her original lacquer pieces are the most coveted, but, as the sale of the Dragons chair shows, are rare and extremely expensive.
None of Gray’s designs were made in large numbers until, a few years before her death, she granted a production license. These pieces range in price from $1,000 to $2,500, depending on furniture type and condition. Gray’s work has become iconic of practical and elegant modernist design. Yet, as you will see on 1stDibs, many of her creations have a simplicity that makes them welcome even in a traditional setting.
Finding the Right seating for You
With entire areas of our homes reserved for “sitting rooms,” the value of quality antique and vintage seating cannot be overstated.
Fortunately, the design of side chairs, armchairs and other lounge furniture — since what were, quite literally, the early perches of our ancestors — has evolved considerably.
Among the earliest standard seating furniture were stools. Egyptian stools, for example, designed for one person with no seat back, were x-shaped and typically folded to be tucked away. These rudimentary chairs informed the design of Greek and Roman stools, all of which were a long way from Sori Yanagi's Butterfly stool or Alvar Aalto's Stool 60. In the 18th century and earlier, seats with backs and armrests were largely reserved for high nobility.
The seating of today is more inclusive but the style and placement of chairs can still make a statement. Antique desk chairs and armchairs designed in the style of Louis XV, which eventually included painted furniture and were often made of rare woods, feature prominently curved legs as well as Chinese themes and varied ornaments. Much like the thrones of fairy tales and the regency, elegant lounges crafted in the Louis XV style convey wealth and prestige. In the kitchen, the dining chair placed at the head of the table is typically reserved for the head of the household or a revered guest.
Of course, with luxurious vintage or antique furnishings, every chair can seem like the best seat in the house. Whether your preference is stretching out on a plush sofa, such as the Serpentine, designed by Vladimir Kagan, or cozying up in a vintage wingback chair, there is likely to be a comfy classic or contemporary gem for you on 1stDibs.
With respect to the latest obsessions in design, cane seating has been cropping up everywhere, from sleek armchairs to lounge chairs, while bouclé fabric, a staple of modern furniture design, can be seen in mid-century modern, Scandinavian modern and Hollywood Regency furniture styles.
Admirers of the sophisticated craftsmanship and dark woods frequently associated with mid-century modern seating can find timeless furnishings in our expansive collection of lounge chairs, dining chairs and other items — whether they’re vintage editions or alluring official reproductions of iconic designs from the likes of Hans Wegner or from Charles and Ray Eames. Shop our inventory of Egg chairs, designed in 1958 by Arne Jacobsen, the Florence Knoll lounge chair and more.
No matter your style, the collection of unique chairs, sofas and other seating on 1stDibs is surely worthy of a standing ovation.