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.
Eileen Gray 1980s Vintage Red Metal Daybed
By Eileen Gray
Located in Manzano, IT
Eileen Gray 1980s Vintage Red Metal Daybed This striking vintage daybed, designed by the iconic Eileen Gray in the 1980s, offers a unique blend of modernist elegance and retro charm...
Fabric, Rubber
Chaise lounge ClassiCon Day Bed design Eileen Gray - Black leather - Black
By Eileen Gray
Located in Alcamo, IT
Brand: ClassiCon Model: Day Bed Design: Eileen Gray, 1925 The Day Bed is rightly counted among Eileen Gray's most celebrated designs. Conceived as a lounge piece that "offers pleasa...
Steel
Chaise lounge ClassiCon Day Bed design Eileen Gray - White leather
By Eileen Gray
Located in Alcamo, IT
Brand: ClassiCon Model: Day Bed Design: Eileen Gray, 1925 The Day Bed is rightly counted among Eileen Gray's most celebrated designs. Conceived as a lounge piece that "offers pleasa...
Steel
Chaise lounge ClassiCon Day Bed design Eileen Gray - White leather - Black
By Eileen Gray
Located in Alcamo, IT
Brand: ClassiCon Model: Day Bed Design: Eileen Gray, 1925 The Day Bed is rightly counted among Eileen Gray's most celebrated designs. Conceived as a lounge piece that "offers pleasa...
Steel
Chaise lounge ClassiCon Day Bed design Eileen Gray - Brownred - Chrome
By Eileen Gray
Located in Alcamo, IT
Brand: ClassiCon Model: Day Bed Design: Eileen Gray, 1925 The Day Bed is rightly counted among Eileen Gray's most celebrated designs. Conceived as a lounge piece that "offers pleasa...
Steel
Chaise lounge ClassiCon Day Bed design Eileen Gray - Black leather
By Eileen Gray
Located in Alcamo, IT
Brand: ClassiCon Model: Day Bed Design: Eileen Gray, 1925 The Day Bed is rightly counted among Eileen Gray's most celebrated designs. Conceived as a lounge piece that "offers pleasa...
Steel
Chaise lounge ClassiCon Day Bed design Eileen Gray - Brownred
By Eileen Gray
Located in Alcamo, IT
Brand: ClassiCon Model: Day Bed Design: Eileen Gray, 1925 The Day Bed is rightly counted among Eileen Gray's most celebrated designs. Conceived as a lounge piece that "offers pleasa...
Steel
Vintage Boho Wrought Iron Chair After Eileen Gray
By Eileen Gray
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
An exceptional vintage Boho outdoor lounge chairs. Done in the manner of Eileen Gray. A whimsical wrought iron frame with a channel tufted cushion. Perfect indoors our out. You decid...
Wrought Iron
$9,002 / set
H 34.26 in W 26.38 in D 26.38 in
Pair of Giorgetti Italian Velvet Armchairs "Progetti", 1980s
By Giorgetti S.p.A.
Located in Puglia, Puglia
This pair of armchairs in solid ebonized beech and armrests in glossy Pau Ferro, the padding of the seat and back is in polyurethane foam. They have been completely restored and upho...
Velvet, Wood, Beech
$2,600Sale Price|50% Off
H 27 in W 64 in D 39 in
'Bounty' Leather Loveseat by L. Davanzati for The Pace Collection, 1980s
By Lorenzo Forges Davanzati, Elam, Pace Collection
Located in Los Angeles, CA
A lovely example of the 'Bounty' series two-seat loveseat / settee by The Pace Collection in the early 1980s, this deep seated channel-tufted loveseat sofa was designed by L. Davantazi produced by Elam and retailed by The Pace Collection. Perfect for a cigar, whiskey or wine lounge or any space that can use something a bit modern yet still refined and classy. *Note, we have the matching club lounge chair and three-seater couch in another listing. Last two photos show the entire set. See our other listings or contact us for more details if you wish to create a living room or office / hotel lobby set. This channel-tufted leather love seat retains its original supple leather upholstery in an intriguing deep burgundy-brown color, almost like dark-cognac with beautiful lightly aged leather patina. The sumptuous seats are encased in a dark colored lacquer, providing an attractive modern contrast with the rich and elegant leather. This two-seater sofa has casters for ease of relocation according to occasion and mood or to better suit a view. The back is finished with tufted leather making this loveseat look incredible when floating in a room with the back exposed. Curved Art Deco styled arms lend 1980s juxtaposition and character to any room. Similar in style to the Saratoga Sofa by Massimo and Lella Vignelli for Poltronova 1970s, but at a fraction of the price. Plus something you don't get with the Saratoga sofa is the refined style of the elegant channel-tufted leather cushions on this Bounty loveseat sofa by The Pace Collection. The Pace Collection also offered the highly sought after collection by Guido Faleschini such as the Tucroma chair which is an interior designer and 20th century Modern design collector's favorite go to chair. Another example is the wild 1970s bed that featured interior design magazine covers when Lenny Kravitz home was featured with the Mariani bed...
Leather, Lacquer
$2,690
H 24 in W 74 in D 35 in
Eileen Gray Black Daybed Leather and Chrome Modern Chaise Lounger Daybed
By Eileen Gray
Located in Rochester, NY
One of Eileen Gray's most celebrated designs, this minimalist elegant piece hosts black leather on a tubular chrome frame. Since the structure is mainly open, the piece can be sat u...
Chrome
Eileen Gray Bar Stool No. 1 Black Leather Chrome, circa 1920
By Eileen Gray
Located in Vienna, AT
Eileen Gray bar stool no. 1, designed in 1920s, production by Classicon circa 1985- engraved and numbered. Classical design by Eileen Gray that...
Stainless Steel, Chrome
Eileen Gray Daybed
By Eileen Gray
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Red leather and tubular chrome daybed by Eileen Gray, 1980s.
Steel
'Brigadier' Loveseats by Cini Boeri for Knoll, Italy, 1980s
By Cini Boeri, Knoll
Located in Antwerp, BE
Two exceptional sofas from the award-winning Brigadier Series by renowned Italian architect and designer, Cini Boeri (1924–2020). Crafted in the 1980s for Knoll, these sofas feature ...
Leather, Lacquer
$3,300 / item
H 31.11 in W 17.72 in D 20.87 in
ClassiCon Roquebrune Chair in Black with Chrome Legs by Eileen Gray
By Eileen Gray
Located in New York, NY
For the terrace of her second house in Castellar Eileen Gray designed a very comfortable chair with a deep seating area. It was covered with blue canvas. She created another version,...
Steel
$7,429 / item
H 29.53 in W 24.81 in D 26.38 in
Customizable ClassiCon Bonaparte Lounge Chair by Eileen Gray
By Eileen Gray
Located in New York, NY
Bonaparte is one of the seldom cases in which the luxurious comfort of an upholstered chair has been successfully united with a tubular steel construction. The result communicates bo...
Upholstery
$28,000 / set
H 30.5 in W 23 in D 42.25 in
Pair Eileen Gray Ecart International Transat Black Leather Lounge Chairs
By Eileen Gray, Ecart International
Located in Houston, TX
France, 1970s. Ecart International re-edition: wood, leather, nickel pleated metal. Between 1926 and 1928, Eileen Gray collaborated with Jean Badovici on the creation of an architec...
Nickel
Bamboo Daybed, 1980s
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Elegant micro-suede daybed with a python pattern embossed into the fabric. Circa 1980s. Beautiful bamboo frame with a slatted wood back support. Good vintage condition. Super comfort...
Synthetic, Bamboo
$6,400Sale Price|20% Off
H 24 in W 110 in D 43 in
Eileen Gray “Monte Carlo” Red Leather and Chrome Sofa for ClassiCon
By Eileen Gray
Located in Miami, FL
The Monte Carlo sofa was originally designed by Eileen Gray in 1929 during the Bauhaus movement and was later licensed and produced by ClassiCon. This example is from circa 1990s an...
Chrome
LOTA Sofa by Eileen Gray
By Eileen Gray
Located in Berlin, Berlin
Sofa, designed by Eileen Gray. Germany, Classicon, 1990s. The LOTA sofa, designed by Eileen Gray, produced by Classicon in Munich. Sofa with black lacquer...
Wool, Wood