One of the most elegant and innovative 20th-century French furniture designers, Jacques Adnet created a simple, unadorned signature style that is both trim and vigorous. He began his career in the heyday of the Art Deco era, and in the 1950s, in association with Hermès, created chairs, lamps, desks and other pieces that employed slender metal frames clad in stitched saddle leather. With such furnishings, Adnet brought a fashion sensibility to design and decor that had not been seen since the 1920s prime of the great Paris couturier-decorator Paul Poiret.
Adnet was born in a provincial town in Burgundy, where he studied design before moving, along with his twin brother, Jean, to Paris to study at the École des Arts Décoratifs. After their graduation in the early 1920s, the brothers were hired to work in the decorative-arts atelier of the department store Galeries Lafayette, under the direction of Maurice Dufrêne, an Art Deco master who developed a singularly robust and opulent style. Both Adnets showed their work at the 1925 Paris Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes — the design fair from which the term Art Deco is derived.
In 1928, Jacques Adnet took charge of the struggling La Compagnie des Arts Français, a decorative-arts firm founded by Louis Süe and André Mare that created modern furnishings that bore traces of 18th-century styling. Adnet immediately took the company in a different direction. He developed a simple lithe and lean look that incorporated industrial materials such as metal and glass, along with exotic woods and finishes such as parchment and sharkskin.
Adnet’s furniture begs to be described in terms of personalities: charming faux-bamboo side tables, suave chrome lighting and urbane club chairs. His most noted pieces, which feature sleek metal frames wrapped in Hermès leather, have a character all their own — smooth, elegant and self-assured, they inhabit a room with the same wit and grace as Jean-Paul Belmondo and Catherine Deneuve.
Find vintage Jacques Adnet furniture for sale on 1stDibs.
Pair of 1950's Stitched Leather Armchairs by Jacques Adnet
By Jacques Adnet
Located in Bois-Colombes, FR
Description1950's Stitched leather armchairs by Jacques Adnet Great condition France A Rare French Midcentury Modern hand stitched leather armchairs by Jacques Adnet, circa 1955. Adn...
Leather
Pair of 1950's Red Stitched Leather Chairs by Jacques Adnet
By Jacques Adnet
Located in Bois-Colombes, FR
Pair of 1950's red stitched leather chairs by Jacques Adnet France.
Leather
1950's Stitched leather armchair by Jacques Asnet
By Jacques Adnet
Located in Bois-Colombes, FR
1950's Stitched leather armchair by Jacques Adnet Could be nice to match with a writing table or abed room
Leather
$21,000 / set
Jacques Adnet Pair of Black Armchairs
By Jacques Adnet
Located in Philadelphia, PA
French Fortie Art Deco pair of armchairs by Jacques Adnet in black French polish with bronze mounts. 21.5” wide x 19” deep x 35” high. These chairs are unrestored in the photographs....
Wood
Jacques Adnet Set of Six Rosewood Armchairs
By Jacques Adnet
Located in Philadelphia, PA
French Modernist Art Deco set of six armchairs by Jacques Adnet in rosewood, circa 1935. 24” wide x 26” deep x 30” high. Restored, refinished. Need new upholstery. JACQUES ADNET ...
Rosewood
Pair of Stitched Leather Armchairs by Jacques Adnet
By Jacques Adnet
Located in Bois-Colombes, FR
Pair of stitched leather armchairs by Jacques Adnet From a set of six 1 pair in black 1 pair in burgundy.
Brass
1950's Stitched leather Rocking chair and ottoman by Jacques Adnet
By Jacques Adnet
Located in Bois-Colombes, FR
1950's Stitched leather and his ottoman by Jacques Adnet Burgundy leather France
Leather
Pair of 1950's Stitched leather ottomans by Jacques Adnet
By Jacques Adnet
Located in Bois-Colombes, FR
Pair of 1950's Stitched Leather Ottomans with brass feet Price given for a pair
Brass
Jacques Adnet Leather Chair
By Jacques Adnet
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Stunning chair by French designer Jacques Adnet. Black iron frame with black leather seat and seat back. Chair sits on brass feet and features a triangular support under the seat whi...
Iron
1950's Stitched leather ottoman by Jacques Adnet
By Jacques Adnet
Located in Bois-Colombes, FR
1950's Stitched leather ottoman BY Jacques Adnet
Brass
Jacques Adnet Black Leather Chair, 1950s France
By Jacques Adnet
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Stunning black leather chair by French designer Jacques Adnet. Black metal frame with its legs ending in brass ball feet. Brass balls adorn the top of the frame as well. Thick leathe...
Brass, Iron
1950's Stitched leather armchair by Jacques Adnet
By Jacques Adnet
Located in Bois-Colombes, FR
Very nice armchair covered with stitched leather on black metal base Nice vintage condition Could be a great match with a desk or in a bed room Bi-color Blac...
Metal
1950's Stitched leather desk armchair by Jacques Adnet
By Jacques Adnet
Located in Bois-Colombes, FR
1950's Stitched leather desk armchair by Jacques Adnet Seat high : 4" cm Armrest : 67 cm
Leather
Pair of Stitched Leather Armchairs by Jacques Adnet
By Jacques Adnet
Located in Bois-Colombes, FR
Pair of stitched leather armchairs by Jacques Adnet From a set of 6, 1 other pairs are black 1 other pair in clear brown, France.
Brass
1950's pair of stitched leather stools by Jacques Adnet
By Jacques Adnet
Located in Bois-Colombes, FR
Nice pair of stitched leather stools Burgundy Jacques Adnet France 1950's
Leather
$9,368
Jacques Adnet chairs
By Jacques Adnet
Located in Paris, FR
Elegant set of four Jacques Adnet chairs covered with leather hand stitched piqué-sellier.
Leather
Pair of Stitched leather chairs by Jacques Adnet
By Jacques Adnet
Located in Bois-Colombes, FR
1950's Stitched leather bi-color chairs Black and red leather Designed by Jacques Adnet
Metal
Pair of 1950's Stitched leather ottomans by Jacques Adnet
By Jacques Adnet
Located in Bois-Colombes, FR
NIce pair of stitched leather ottomans designed by Jacques Adnet Great condition France
Brass
Pair of Stitched Leather Armchairs by Jacques Adnet
By Jacques Adnet
Located in Bois-Colombes, FR
Pair of stitched leather armchairs by Jacques Adnet From a set of 6 others pairs are burgundy and clear brown, 1950s, France.
Brass
$24,500 / set
Set of Four Art Deco Oak Armchairs by Jacques Adnet
By Jacques Adnet
Located in Montreal, QC
Set of four Art Deco oak armchairs by Jacques Adnet upholstered in fuschia color.
Beech
$42,038 / set
Pair of Armchairs by Jacques Adnet
By Jacques Adnet
Located in Saint-Ouen, FR
Pair of armchairs with black iron structure and brass details Red Stiched original leather and black stripes Jacques Adnet, circa 1950 Great condition.
Brass, Iron
Leather Stool with Brass Capped Feet by Jacques Adnet, France, c. 1940
By Jacques Adnet
Located in New York City, NY
Gorgeous leather stool with stitched leather legs and patinated brass capped feet. This is a great example of Adnet's work; a real collector's item.
Brass
1950's Pair of Stitched Leather Stools by Jacques Adnet
By Jacques Adnet
Located in Bois-Colombes, FR
1950's pair of stitched leather stools by Jacques Adnet France.
Leather