Ado Chale Sculptures
Known to some as “the alchemist of high minerals,” Ado Chale uses semi-precious stones, metals and organic materials like fossilized sequoia and redwoods in his marvelous tables and decorative objects. Over the course of his long career, the prolific Belgian designer, sculptor and decorator turned a passion for mineralogy and love for the natural world into elegant, sculptural furniture.
Born Adolphe Pelsener in Brussels in 1928, the designer learned cabinetry from his woodworker father and trained in ironwork at a young age under local blacksmiths. During a trip to Germany in the late 1950s, he became enamored with minerals, and turned his attention to creating seating, tables and other furnishings with a range of unconventional materials.
At the beginning of the 1960s, Pelsener changed his name to Ado Chale and opened a gallery in Brussels with his wife, a gemologist named Huguette Schaal. He began to create sophisticated mosaic inlays for tabletops using pyrite fragments. He worked with malachite and turquoise and also worked in metal, producing decorative objects and furniture like his iconic aluminum goutte d’eau coffee tables. Chale used epoxy resin to lend his tables an opulent sheen. His incorporation of exquisite natural materials like agate and petrified wood rendered his furniture unlike anything else. Chale’s work was soon in high demand — his clientele included the Belgian royal family and notable architects and designers like Alberto Pinto, Peter Marino and Jacques Grange.
In 1967, Chale’s designs were included in the Universal Exhibition in Montreal. In the decades since, he has continued to exhibit his work, including at the Bozar Centre for Fine Arts in Brussels in 2017.
On 1stDibs, find a range of vintage Ado Chale tables, lighting and more.
Mid-20th Century Belgian Mid-Century Modern Ado Chale Sculptures
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Ado Chale Sculptures
Rose Quartz
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Ado Chale Sculptures
Burl
21st Century and Contemporary Ado Chale Sculptures
Rock Crystal
2010s Danish Modern Ado Chale Sculptures
Ceramic
20th Century Ado Chale Sculptures
Copper
1980s Vintage Ado Chale Sculptures
Glass
Late 20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Ado Chale Sculptures
Cast Stone
21st Century and Contemporary Brazilian Ado Chale Sculptures
Agate
Late 20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Ado Chale Sculptures
Glass
Early 20th Century European Ado Chale Sculptures
Concrete, Metal
2010s Ado Chale Sculptures
Metal
1960s Mid-Century Modern Vintage Ado Chale Sculptures
Ceramic
1980s Belgian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Ado Chale Sculptures
Bronze
1980s Belgian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Ado Chale Sculptures
Bronze
1980s Belgian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Ado Chale Sculptures
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Belgian Modern Ado Chale Sculptures
Bronze
1980s Belgian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Ado Chale Sculptures
Bronze
1980s Belgian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Ado Chale Sculptures
Jade
1980s Belgian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Ado Chale Sculptures
Precious Stone