A favorite among Art Deco furniture collectors and enthusiasts, the work of Charles Dudouyt is known for its rustic and modernist sensibilities rather than the classicist design associated with the French designer and decorator's native country in the early 20th century.
Born in 1885, Dudouyt nurtured his artistic passions while studying at the Germain Pilon school. Upon graduating, he painted and earned a living as an illustrator at French publishing houses such as Calmann-Lévy and a weekly satirical magazine called L’Assiette au Beurre.
In 1918, after he returned from fighting in World War I, Dudouyt left his career as a painter and illustrator and turned to design interior furnishings instead. With his wife, he created and produced lighting fixtures and decorative objects, and in 1920, he founded a rustic furniture factory in Pontoise called L’Abeillée.
Over the next decade, Dudouyt expanded into larger-scale furniture design. In 1933, he moved to Paris and established a manufacturing company called La Gentilhommière, in which he had a store and a workshop. There, he produced a range of furniture, including chairs, cabinets, armchairs and credenzas. Dudouyt worked with a variety of woods that included oak, ash and beech, and integrated other organic materials in his seats and backrests such as leather, wicker and rope.
Dudouyt is known for his way of “embellishing chunky proportions with elegant carvings,” according to Amanda Jesse and Whitney Parris-Lamb of New York City design firm Jesse Paris-Lamb. Vintage Dudouyt sideboards, console tables and seating feature the distinct details now associated with Art Deco, such as geometric inlays, pronounced shapes and raised carved motifs. His oak dining chairs, while lauded for their substantial frames and durability, can also be seen as inviting and light in their sleek legs and armrests.
After he died in 1946, Dudouyt’s son Jacques continued operating La Gentilhommière until it closed in 1960. Today, Charles Dudouyt’s pieces continue to be highly sought by Art Deco interior designers and aficionados.
On 1stDibs, find a range of vintage Charles Dudouyt furniture.
$9,568 / set
Pair of chairs by Charles Dudouyt
By Charles Dudouyt
Located in SAINT-OUEN-SUR-SEINE, FR
Jolie paire de Chaises par Charles Dudouyt pour l’abeillé.
Oak
Charles Dudouyt Oak and Straw chairs
By Charles Dudouyt
Located in Santa Gertrudis, Baleares
Painter and illustrator turned furniture designer Charles Dudouyt (1885-1946) sense of rusticity and modernism is strikingly present in this set of 1930s chairs.
Straw, Oak
Art Deco Set of 4 Chairs, Charles Dudouyt, France, 1940
By Charles Dudouyt
Located in Split, Splitsko-dalmatinska županija
Set of four French Art Deco dining chairs, Charles Dudouyt, 1940s, France. We can clearly see the work of the French school of the 1940s. The detailed designed backrest panels will ...
Brass
$4,200 / set
H 31.89 in W 18.51 in D 21.26 in
Pair of French Art Deco Oakwood Dining Chairs by Charles Dudouyt
By Charles Dudouyt
Located in Sammu-shi, Chiba
This dining chair was designed around 1930 by French designer Charles Dudouyt. It is an Art Deco design from a period just before the mid-century period, and while it still retains s...
Oak
$1,655 / set
H 33.86 in W 17.72 in D 17.33 in
Pair of French Turned Wood Chairs with Rush Seats in Charles Dudouyt Style
By Charles Dudouyt
Located in London, London
Pair of French Turned Wood Chairs with Rush Seats, in the Style of Charles Dudouyt, 1940s A striking pair of French chairs, crafted in the 1940s and attributable to the rustic mode...
Oak
Charles Dudouyt Set of Six (6) Rush and Walnut Dining Chairs
By Charles Dudouyt
Located in North Miami, FL
Vintage Walnut and rush seat dining chairs by Charles Dudouyt, France 1940s. Dudouyt crafted wooden furniture in strong Art Deco/ brutalist forms, using playful geometries and const...
Rush, Walnut
$2,380 / set
H 27.17 in W 16.54 in D 16.54 in
Charles Dudouyt, French decorator, set of 4 low chairs, 1940s
By Charles Dudouyt
Located in leucate, FR
4 French design armchairs. These armchairs were designed by designer Charles Dudouyt in the 1930s. They are made up of a solid oak structure and a seat in woven rye straw. The wood ...
Straw, Oak
Pair of chairs in the taste of Charles Dudouyt, 1950
By Charles Dudouyt
Located in MONTESSON, FR
This pair of vintage chairs is made from solid wood, with a mulched seat and back. Their carved structure, particularly the turned legs, recalls the work of Charles Dudouyt and the m...
Wood
Pair of Carved Wood and Woven Chairs by Charles Dudouyt
By Charles Dudouyt
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Incredible pair of carved wood armchairs by Charles Dudouyt from France, 1940s. Beautiful woven rush back and seat. Intricate carved wood detail on arms, legs, and wood frame with da...
Rush, Wood
$14,950 / set
H 38.39 in W 16.93 in D 15.75 in
8 Natural Oak and Rush Chairs by Charles Dudouyt , France 1955
By Charles Dudouyt, Pierre Chapo, Charlotte Perriand
Located in Den Haag, NL
Set of 8 French dining chairs by Charles Dudouyt 1950's. Beautiful Natural Oak frames with legs that taper slightly from top to bottom. With woven Rush seats and the characteristic b...
Rush, Oak
$1,196 / set
H 27.56 in W 18.12 in D 16.54 in
Pair of Charles Dudouyt Finca Style Chairs with Wicker Upholstery
By Charles Dudouyt
Located in Baambrugge, NL
Pair of Finca style chairs by Charles Dudouyt. Small fire side chairs with beautiful carved oak frames and rationalist style wicker upholstery. Midcentury 1940s. As you can see o...
Wicker, Oak
$1,148Sale Price|20% Off
H 27.96 in W 18.9 in D 16.54 in
Pair of low straw chairs by Charles Dudouyt, France, circa 1940
By Charles Dudouyt
Located in VÉZELAY, FR
Pair of low chairs by Charles Dudouyt. Dudouyt began his career as a cabinetmaker and worked for important cabinetmakers, such as Dominique, and for private clients. He quickly deve...
Straw, Wood, Beech
Charles Dudouyt Pair of 1940s Oak and Woven Lounge Chairs
By Charles Dudouyt
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Stunning pair of 1940's French oak and woven armchairs by Charles Dudouyt. Beautiful carved wood detail throughout with intricately woven tan and green papercord seat. Adjustable sla...
Papercord, Oak