French architect, sculptor and designer André Arbus was destined to become one of the 20th century’s finest furniture makers. According to him, the craft was in his blood. “I come from an old family of cabinetmakers,” he once said. “From father to son for a very long time. In other words, I was born in a cabinet-making workshop.”
Born in Toulouse in 1903, Arbus spent his childhood working in his father’s business which sold reproductions of 18th century French furniture. He later studied at the École des Beaux-Arts in Toulouse under sculptor Henry Parayre.
After graduating, Arbus returned to work with his father as the business’s artistic director. When his father retired, Arbus transformed the company from selling furniture reproductions to one that produced his own formidable designs, including cocktail tables, sofa tables and floor lamps that merged neoclassicism with Art Deco and featured alluring modernist characteristics.
In 1925, Arbus exhibited at several shows, including the Salon des Artistes Décorateurs, Exposition des Arts Décoratifs, Salon d’Automne, the Gallery L’Epoque and won a medal at the International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts, which brought the Art Deco style to the global stage.
Arbus moved to Paris in 1932, won the prestigious Premier Prix Blumenthal in 1934 and opened his own gallery in 1935. His sconces, chandeliers and dining room tables attracted a steady clientele of some of Paris’s wealthiest. Arbus exhibited at the 1939 World’s Fair in New York and, throughout the 1940s, received numerous notable commissions. The French government gave many of his pieces as gifts to visiting foreign heads of state. He furnished several luxury ocean liners, collaborated with Maison Veronese on a line of lighting fixtures and was tasked to build a jewel cabinet for Princess Elizabeth.
In 1946, Arbus participated in the refurbishment of the Élysée Palace and the Château de Rambouillet with fellow French architects and designers Louis Süe and Jean-Charles Moreux.
Arbus focused on sculpture throughout the 1950s until he died in 1969, drawing inspiration from eminent sculptors such as Vadim Androusov and Sylva Bernt. Today, Arbus’s works can be found in museums around the world.
On 1stDibs, find a range of vintage André Arbus lighting, tables and seating.
Andre Arbus French Art Deco Dining Table
By André Arbus
Located in Philadelphia, PA
French Art Deco dining table by Andre Arbus, circa 1938, in mahogany. This signed and documented model is featured in the book, Andre Arbus, by Yvonne Brunhammer (1996) and a variant...
Mahogany
André Arbus Oval Dining Table, French Mid-Century Sycamore & Brass
By André Arbus
Located in Queens, NY
French Mid-Century sycamore inlaid and veneered oval shaped dining table with brass sabot feet (ANDRE ARBUS
Brass
André Arbus, Conference Table, France, 1956
By André Arbus
Located in New York, NY
Unique piece (special commission). Signed. Made for the Palais des Consuls de Rouen in 1955, this piece is not merely remarkable for its size, but for its blend of contemporary and traditional elements. André Arbus, one of the foremost French designers of the early-to-mid twentieth century, was as deeply entrenched in traditional French furniture...
Bronze
French Mid-Century Modern Neoclassical Dining Table by Andre Arbus, Paris, 1949
By André Arbus
Located in New York, NY
An Elegant And Timeless French Late Art Deco / Modern Neoclassical dining room table in Cherry wood by Andre Arbus. The table without leaves is 72" ...
Brass
Side Table by Andre Arbus
By André Arbus
Located in Bridgewater, CT
Andre Arbus side table. Cream lacquer and parchment, signed twice. Measures: Height 19", width 22.5", depth 16".
Wood, Parchment Paper
$6,800Sale Price / item|20% Off
H 29.5 in W 42 in D 96 in
Contemporary Solid White Oak Dining or Conference Table
By Klein Agency
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Dinners are our favorite. We love having them, hosting them, laughing around during them, cleaning up after them. This is what our dining table is and means to us. The solid white oak...
Wood, Oak
French Art Deco Style Dining Table
Located in Westwood, NJ
A French Art Deco mahogany and cerejeira dining table, the circular crossbanded and molded edge top above a sphere and collar column with a turned and dished base. Inspired by a 1930...
Wood
$12,550
H 28.75 in Dm 35.75 in
Andre Arbus Gueridon or Lamp Table 36" Diameter Art Deco Style Neoclassical
By André Arbus
Located in Atlanta, GA
Elegant Gueridon Table, originally designed by Andre Arbus circa 1965, this example is a re edition by Arbus' family, France, circa 1990s. It is executed in oak and a blackened bronz...
Metal
Mid-Century Modern Macassar Dining Table, Brass Feet, France, 1950
Located in Austin, TX
Dining table from period mid-century modern France. This table is made of a beautiful Macassar of ebony parquetry top in a cubist pattern. The tapered legs are capped with brass feet...
Brass
$4,500
H 29.5 in W 97.63 in D 49.25 in
Fine French Art Deco Mahogany Dining Table in the Manner of Arbus
By André Arbus
Located in Long Island City, NY
A fine French Art Deco mahogany dining table in the manner of Arbus. A set of 12 matching chairs and a console are also available (not included in pric...
Mahogany
$1,456Sale Price|19% Off
H 31.5 in W 76.78 in D 38.19 in
Elegant Oval Dining Table Mid-Century Italian Design
By Gio Ponti
Located in Palermo, Sicily
Elegant oval dining table mid-century Italian design, note the special design of the feet with brass ferrule. The style is very similar to th...
Brass
Mid-Century Modern Round Dining Table, Gold Glass Top, Walnut Legs
By Augusto Romano
Located in Albano Laziale, Rome/Lazio
Fabulous round dining table with an organic design and with a gold colored glass top. Produced in Italy in the 1950s in the manner of Augusto Romano. The legs have supreme craftsmans...
Glass, Walnut
French Mid-Century Modern 1950's Macassar Dining Table
Located in Carmine, TX
Mid-Century Modern Dining Table featuring a striking geometric parquet-style rosewood veneer top with rich, dramatic grain. Elegant tapered legs with brass-capped feet complete the t...
Brass, Bronze
$10,470 / set
H 38.19 in W 21.66 in D 106.3 in
French Art Deco Sideboard in Sycamore, Style of André Arbus, c. 1940
By Jules Leleu, André Arbus
Located in Alcoy, Alicante
A Rare and Impeccable Masterpiece of French Modernism Please note that this sideboard is part of a rare matching dining suite. A complementary dining table from the same workshop is...
Brass, Bronze
Art Deco French Round Macassar Dining Table
Located in Houston, TX
Round Macassar Table The table is made out of Macassar wood. The table top presents a nice juxtaposition of light and dark wood patterns. From the middle point, lines are descendin...
Macassar
$5,200Sale Price|20% Off
H 30.5 in W 20 in D 48 in
Ginormous Burl Top Conference Dining Table after Baughman
By Milo Baughman
Located in New York, NY
Extraordinary large burl top dining / conference table having a rectangular top, supported by rectangular plinth base, base upholstered in faux suede, base shows some discoloration. ...
Upholstery, Burl
Andre Arbus French Art Deco Mahogany Center Table
By André Arbus
Located in Astoria, NY
Andre Arbus French Art Deco mahogany center table or dining table with large octagonal base and glass top, circa 1931. Exhibited at the Paris Salon d'Automne in 1931. Referenced in:...
Glass, Mahogany
Sold
H 29.14 in W 141.74 in D 51.19 in
André Arbus, France Large Dining Table in Limed Oak with Two Extensions
By André Arbus
Located in Uccle, BE
This very large dining room has been designed by André Arbus for a project commissioned by "Chambre de Commerce et d'Industrie d'Orléans, Pays de la Loire" (France), circa 1950. T...
Wood
Large Console by Andre Arbus, Paris, France, 1954
By André Arbus
Located in New York City, NY
Large console table from the boardroom of the Chambre Syndicale de la Siderurdie in Paris, France. Cherry veneered wood, steel-plated bronze.