Although he was Romanian by birth, architect and designer Jean Gillon’s heart and soul belonged to his adopted country of Brazil. The country’s culture and revered architecture served as a muse for his mid-century furniture designs. Today Gillon ranks among the most interesting figures in Brazilian modernism, which is characterized by sensual forms and beautifully handcrafted chairs, tables and cabinets built from exotic hardwoods.
Gillon was born in Iasi and graduated from the city’s George Enescu National University of the Arts. He then moved to Paris, where he studied tapestry, worked at the newspaper Le Monde as a cartoonist and moonlighted as a set designer for the Paris Opera Ballet. He eventually left Paris for Vienna, where he studied architecture at the School of Industrial Arts, known today as the University of Applied Arts. In the early 1950s, Gillon was a visiting lecturer at London’s Central School of Arts and Crafts.
In 1956, Gillon moved with his wife and two daughters to São Paulo, where he developed a passion for Brazilian architecture, namely the work of modernists such as celebrated architect Lina Bo Bardi and designer José Zanine Caldas. Gillon took on interior decorating projects and formed the Fábrica de Móveis Cidam, which later became Italma Wood Art, in order to design furniture for his clients. Gillon’s furnishings, produced at Italma and also in collaboration with manufacturers such as Probel, were immensely popular and could be found in the planned capital city of Brasilia, a project launched in 1956 by Oscar Niemeyer.
Gillon designed everything from bowls and baskets to centerpieces, tables and other objects and furniture. However, he was best known for his lounge chairs and sofas, including his iconic Jangada chair. Named for the Portuguese word for traditional Brazilian fishing boats, the award-winning Jangada was framed in jacaranda in the late 1960s. The welcoming seat of Gillon’s visually striking trapezoidal lounge chair features plush leather cushions that are supported by nylon fishing rope.
Gillon continued to produce furniture for Italma Wood Art until he retired in 2003. He died in 2007, and today Gillon’s pieces remain highly covetable among interior designers and collectors of modern furniture.
On 1stDibs, find a range of vintage Jean Gillon seating, decorative objects and serveware.
$4,520Sale Price / set|52% Off
Jean Gillon Pair of Probel Side Tables
By Jean Gillon
Located in Washington, DC
Beautiful pair of side tables by Brazilian master Jean Gillon, designed for Probel.
Wood
Brazilian Modern Coffee Table by Jean Gillon, Brazil, 1960s
By Jean Gillon
Located in Antwerp, BE
Designed in the 1960s by Jean Gillon, this rare coffee table exemplifies the sculptural language that distinguishes Brazilian modern furniture of the period. The composition is defin...
Wood
1960s Brazilian Modern Coffee Table by Móveis Cimo, Rosewood & Marble
By Moveis Cimo
Located in New York, NY
This refined coffee table, produced in Brazil by Cimo in the late 1950s to early 1960s, exemplifies the architectural language that defined Brazilian modernism during its most influe...
Marble, Brass
Pair of Murano Tile Side Tables
By Edward Wormley
Located in St.Petersburg, FL
A pair of charming side tables with Murano tiles, set in random pattern.
Walnut
$3,499 / set
H 22.05 in W 26.38 in D 8.86 in
Jean Royere Style Pair of Red Iron with Mirror Top Side Tables / Night Stands
By Jean Royère
Located in Buenos Aires, Olivos
Jean Royere Style Pair of Red Iron with Mirror Top Side Tables / Night Stands. These side tables embody Jean Royère’s playful yet refined aesthetic, translated into a compact, funct...
Iron
$3,499 / set
H 22.05 in W 26.38 in D 8.86 in
Jean Royere Style Pair of Black Iron with Mirror Top Side Tables / Night Stands
By Jean Royère
Located in Buenos Aires, Olivos
Jean Royere Style Pair of Black Iron with Mirror Top Side Tables / Night Stands. These side tables embody Jean Royère’s playful yet refined aesthetic, translated into a compact, fun...
Iron
$89,700
H 30.01 in W 125.99 in D 36.03 in
Rosewood Dining Table by Jean Gillon, Italma, 1960s, Brazilian Midcentury
By Italma, Jean Gillon
Located in New York, NY
This fantastic dining table was designed in the 1960s by Jean Gillon (1919-2007), a Romanian-born architect, artist, and designer who landed in Brazil in 1956. The piece has a solid Rosewood structure, with a veneered top and extensions that comfortably accommodate six to ten seats. Gillon created an extensive and varied production of furniture, drawings, paintings, sculptures, tapestries, costumes, and scenarios for theater. In 1961, he opened his own company to manufacture furniture, Cidam, a company that came to be called WoodArt. In addition to this brand, other Brazilian furniture...
Rosewood
Pair of Vintage French Side Tables
By Jacques Adnet
Located in London, GB
A very stylish and extremely well made pair of vintage French side tables. They are in the manner of Jacques Adnet, they were made in France and date from the 1950-60’s. The quality...
Brass, Steel
Pair of Regency Side Tables
Located in Woodbury, CT
Pair of mahogany Regency revival side tables that stand upon swept legs with turned finials and brass casters. Ring turned and fluted column. The octagonal shaped tops having highl...
Boxwood, Mahogany
Pair of Danish Vintage Side Tables
Located in London, GB
A smart and extremely well made pair of Danish vintage side tables, dating from the 1960’s. They are of wonderful quality and have a stylis...
Wood
$641
H 17.33 in W 26.38 in D 26.38 in
Scandinavian Mid-century Modern Rosewood Side Table / Coffee Table, circa 1960s
Located in Chorzów, PL
This elegant rosewood coffee table from Denmark, dating back to the 1960s, showcases the timeless beauty of Scandinavian modern design. With its minimal and simple form, the table em...
Rosewood
Pair of Travertine Modernist Side Tables
Located in Highland, IN
This pair of substantial side tables executed in rich travertine have a wonderful scale and an understated quality with their minimalist shape and details such as the low plinth base...
Travertine
$17,900 / set
H 22.75 in Dm 13 in
Pair of French Modern Neoclassical Iron & Stone Side Tables, Jean Michel Frank
By (after) Jean Michel Frank
Located in New York, NY
An Elegant and Timeless Pair of French Mid-Century Style Modern Neoclassical Side or End Tables in the style of the highly noted French designer, Jean-Michel Frank. The tables are co...
Travertine, Wrought Iron
Vintage Danish Rosewood Coffee Table by Severin Hansen, 1960s
By Severin Hansen, Haslev Mobelsnedkeri
Located in Asaa, DK
Vintage Danish Rosewood Coffee table by Severin Hansen, 1960s Elegant and stylish mid-century modern table by Danish designer Sev...
Rosewood
Sold
H 7.09 in W 33.47 in D 26.38 in
Solid Wood Side Table, by Jean Gillon, Brazilian Mid-Century Design Modern
By Jean Gillon
Located in São Paulo, SP
The side table designed by Jean Gillon, a prominent figure in Brazilian mid-century modern design, showcases the elegant simplicity and innovative use of materials characteristic of ...
Hardwood
Midcentury Modern Side Table set in Hardwood by Jean Gillon, 1960s
By Jean Gillon
Located in New York, NY
Available today, this Brazilian modern side table set in Hardwood designed by Jean Gillon in the 1960’s is nothing less than spectacular. Sizes: - Side Tables: H14.6, W25.6, D25.6 (in) H37, W65, D65 (cm) The entire set is made in Brazilian Rosewood (known as Jacaranda) and Rosewood leaf of the finest quality as it can be seen on the wood veins and grain. Each table consists of four legs and a tabletop. Sold as a set of three. The set has all the fun aspects of a bold Brazilian Modern piece: Clean and straight lines, exuberant Brazilian Jacaranda. A set like this could flex into any Mid-Century Modern, Modern or Contemporary, Transitional, or even Hollywood Regency environment. The gorgeous set is showcased in our gallery together with a sofa by Cimo in Leather and fabric and the convo looks stellar! (Image attached). The last images are vintage and contemporary publications, including Jean Gillon’s book. About the author, Jean Gillon was a Brazilian furniture designer born in Romania in 1919. He studied at the Architecture and Fine arts Schools at the National University. He founded his first company Fábrica de Móveis Cidam in 1961 after emigrating to São Paulo, Brazil in 1956. Gillon's firm designed many luxury hotels throughout Brazil and homes and stores. He was known for his one of a kind tapestries. His second furniture company, WoodArt, produced full lines of Brazilian rosewood furniture...
Hardwood, Wood
Side Table in Jacaranda by Jean Gillon
By Jean Gillon
Located in Sao Paulo, SP
Side table in jacaranda by Jean Gillon.
Jacaranda