Endeavoring to create exquisite work that would endure forever, designer Émile-Jacques Ruhlmann defined the grandeur of the French Art Deco movement of the 1920s. His luxurious storage cabinets, seating, other furniture and interiors garnered considerable popularity alongside the growth in post–World War I Paris’s population of newly wealthy residents.
The Paris-born Ruhlmann was the son of a decorating contractor, a business he took over in the early 1900s and expanded into furniture and interior design. But by the end of his career, he was best known for being a skilled ensemblier, a term for a designer who not only makes furniture and decorates spaces but rather personally crafts each and every piece required in the space, from doorknobs to sofas. This practice ensured that the space was harmonious and consistent with Ruhlmann’s vision, and it contributed to the lasting popularity of his designs.
Ruhlmann enjoyed the patronage of the newly affluent and was encouraged by the popularity of Art Deco. While the Arts and Crafts and Art Nouveau movements were early influences, he is renowned for the modernity of his Art Deco–era designs, which reflected the celebratory nature of the times, including an integration of opulent flourishes; luxurious materials like Macassar ebony, amboyna burl, ivory and precious metals; and skilled craftsmanship and construction techniques.
Renowned all over the world, Ruhlmann was commissioned by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York to design a cabinet in 1925, embellishing its curved door with a sophisticated floral motif by way of an ornate marriage of wood and ivory veneer. Also in 1925, at the Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes, arguably the exhibition that introduced Art Deco on an international level, his pavilion was the most popular.
By the time the economic depression of the 1930s materialized, Ruhlmann’s exorbitantly expensive designs were no longer viable. But the majesty and elegance of the ’20s remain an important part of design history, and Ruhlmann has been described as “perhaps its finest exponent.”
Find a collection of authentic Émile-Jacques Ruhlmann furniture on 1stDibs.
Emile Jacques Ruhlmann, Exceptional panel from the restaurant DROUANT Paris 1924
By Émile-Jacques Ruhlmann
Located in Encino, CA
Emile Jacques Ruhlmann (1879-1933) We are proud to showcase an exceptional and unique tall glass panel originating from the Drouant Restaurant in Paris, designed by Ruhlmann in 1924...
Art Glass
Ruhlmann Large Tapestry with floral Details
By Émile-Jacques Ruhlmann
Located in Berlin, DE
Large tapestry designed by Émile-Jacques Ruhlmann. It depicts a lattice pattern from flower-sprouting threads on a dark blue background, with repeating floral motifs inside each latt...
Fabric, Thread
Set of 2 Wallpapers "JER", Jacques Emile Rulhmann
By Émile-Jacques Ruhlmann
Located in Geneve, CH
Set of 2 Wallpapers "JER", Jacques Emile Rulhmann Dimensions: 53 W x 0.2 D x 1000 H cm Materials: Wallpaper (paper quality 150g) Different colors are available JER is a wallpap...
Paper
$1,280
H 4 in W 36 in D 4 in
Brunschwig & Fils Hand-Printed Yellow Kanchou Mimosa Wallpaper Double Roll 2002
By Brunschwig & Fils
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Brunschwig & Fils hand-printed yellow Kanchou wallpaper, floral, avian, parrots. 2002. Design features lovely yellow background and a large floral a...
Paper
$1,932Sale Price / set|20% Off
H 58 in W 41 in D 0.1 in
Japanese Garden Wallpaper Panels Hand Painted Wallpaper on gold gilded paper
Located in Wuxi, 32
If you love the look of De Gournay wallpaper but not the price, this is for you. Measures: 41" wide x 58" The colorways in this sections present our latest colorways, which can be a...
Gold Leaf
$670
H 1 in W 360 in D 27 in
Brunschwig & Fils Hand-Printed Cherubin et Lapins, Wallpaper, Angels and Rabbits
By Brunschwig & Fils
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Brunschwig & Fils hand-printed Cherubin et Lapins, wallpaper, angels and rabbits, 2000. Vintage, rare, out of print design featuring alternating scenes of rabbits and cherubs surroun...
Paper
Set of 3 Block Prints on Paper, Attributed to Delicourt
Located in Lyndhurst, NJ
Wallpaper ornament, Juno from the series Olympus, 1826–50; Attributed to Delicourt (France); block printed on paper. Delicourt was founded in 1838 by Étienne Delicourt, a former work...
Paper
$250 / item
H 9 in W 180 in D 0.5 in
Vintage Brunschwig & Fils Victoria & Albert Bird Song Hand-Printed Wallpaper
By Brunschwig & Fils
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Adorable and rare Brunschwig & Fils hand-printed wallpaper border inspired by Victorian design from the Victoria & Albert Museum. Have not been able t...
Paper
Large Antique French Embroidered Tapestry
Located in Stamford, CT
A beautiful extra large embroidered tapestry hand made in France. A very good looking and decorative piece in a wood frame. I believe this to be a period 19th century piece that woul...
Tapestry, Wood
$3,255
H 39 in W 24.75 in D 0.1 in
Air France Paris 1957 Travel Airline Advertising Poster, JACQUES NATHAN-GARAMOND
Located in Bath, Somerset
Original 1957 Air France Paris travel poster designed by Jacques Nathan-Garamond. Superb poster which sumptuous colours and in fantastic condition. Jacques Nathan-Garamond (1910-200...
Linen, Paper
Large 19th Century French Aubusson Floral Tapestry Fragment
By Aubusson Manufacture
Located in New York, NY
Handwoven in Aubusson, France in the 19th Century, this lovely silk and wool piece was originally the setback of a loveseat. It measures 2 x 5.3 ft. It is in pristine condition and ...
Tapestry, Wool, Silk
$4,900
H 60 in W 43 in D 60 in
Antique French Aubusson Tapestry with Woodland Scene Surrounded by Floral Border
Located in Atlanta, GA
This enchanting antique Aubusson tapestry beautifully illustrates the remarkable sense of depth and richness that was perfected by French artisans of the 19th century. A remarkable d...
Wool
Vintage Colorful Floral Tapestry 5.0X5.05
Located in Los Angeles, US
A wall hanging tapestry, simply put, is a textile specifically designed and woven to portray an artistic scene with the intent of hanging it on a wall. Antique tapestries, those that...
Wool, Cotton
$550Sale Price|54% Off
H 33.5 in W 118 in D 0.125 in
Antique French Needle Point Tapestry, Carpet, Rug Runner with Floral Design
Located in Plainview, NY
An antique French Handwoven needlepoint tapestry or runner featuring a French geometrical patchwork design with a multi-colored background and border, accented with shades of olive, ivory and crimson colors. The elegant tapestry runner...
Wool
Glitch Wallpaper
By Millim Studio
Located in Roma, IT
Glitch by Millim Studio, is the first wallpaper by Secondome. The febrifugal plants, that cover the background, contrast the short-lived fault in the system which causes the “glitch”...
Paper
Emile Jacques RUHLMANN, Original Set/3 Art Deco Gouaches, c.1930
By Émile-Jacques Ruhlmann
Located in Encino, CA
Emile Jacques RUHLMANN (1879-1933) Unique and original set of Art Deco gouaches, circa 1930, consisting of three watercolors on paper, each depicting a single flower in a ring of pe...
Paper