A designer and ensemblier, Jules Leleu was one of the key authors of the Art Deco movement. While he did not win the fame of such contemporaries as Émile-Jacques Ruhlmann and Jean-Michel Frank, Leleu had a longer career and was easily their peer in the conception of trim, refined furniture forms and in the use of the opulent materials — from lacquer and ivory to sharkskin and exotic woods — that were a keynote of haute Art Deco design.
Leleu was born into a family of artisans and decorators. Their firm, Maison Leleu, had existed since the 18th century and Jules would guide it through much of the 20th. (The business lasted until 1973, headed at the end by Jules's children.) He studied architecture, served as an aviator in World War I, and after the conflict took up design full-time.
Leleu presented work at the 1925 exposition in Paris that gave us the term Art Deco, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York purchased a burl amboyna wood commode by Leleu directly from the show.
As the desks, dining tables and other furniture on 1stDibs show, Leleu was a stickler for precision craft and preferred to let his materials do the talking — his furniture is generally spare and sleek; its presence is established by figuring (or patterning/graining) in the wood and the occasional marquetry medallion. He had a keen eye for currents in design and an adaptable sensibility.
Maison Leleu would embrace many of the starker forms of modernism after the 1940s, as well as new materials such as artificial lacquer and plastics (then considered cutting-edge rather than cheap). Jules Leleu is a guiding light of 20th-century modernism: a man whose work represents both a devotion to traditional handiwork and an appreciation for the next wave in design.
Find Jules Leleu tables, sideboards, dining chairs and other furniture on 1stDibs.
Jules Leleu, Midcentury Vitrine in Mahogany Parquetry, France, 1957
By Jules Leleu
Located in New York, NY
Unique vitrine by Jules Leleu in mahogany marquetry, patinated metal and gilt bronze Numbered 33774 5697. Provenance: This vitrine was created for Mr. Renondin and is entered ...
Metal, Bronze
$1,995
H 58 in W 29.75 in D 15 in
Late 19th Century French Louis XVI Style Mahogany Vitrine, Bookcase, Marble Top
Located in Fayetteville, AR
Standing at 58 inches in height, this small scale late nineteenth century Louis XVI style mahogany vitrine or bookcase is finished with stunning bronze banding and a red marble top with white veining. Its corners feature fluting with inset bronze filets. Its single door is finished with a bronze border and key surround and opens to reveal an interior with three adjustable shelves. The cabinet rests on Classic finial...
Marble, Bronze
$2,590
H 48.42 in W 46.45 in D 11.81 in
French Provincial Plantation Style Walnut Vitrine, Bookcase, 19th Century
Located in Miami, FL
This early (circa 1830) French Provincial plantation style walnut bookcase features an upper part topped by a cornice above two glazed doors opening u...
Walnut
$1,036Sale Price|68% Off
H 91 in W 83 in D 16 in
Large Solid Oak French Louis XV Style Breakfront Bookcase Vitrine, circa 1980
Located in Swedesboro, NJ
This impressive French Louis XV style breakfront bookcase vitrine, crafted in solid oak circa 1980, is a striking example of fine European craftsmanship. The substantial design featu...
Oak
$3,371
H 79.14 in W 49.22 in D 16.54 in
French Henri II Style Oak Bookcase Vitrine Second Part 19th Century
Located in Labrit, Landes
French armoire vitrine bookcase of the Napoléon III period (late 19th century) Glass, oak, brass. This elegant display cabinet and bookcase, crafted from solid oak in the second ha...
Brass
$3,994Sale Price / item|30% Off
H 76.78 in W 44.89 in D 15.75 in
French Directoire Style Vitrine and Bookcase in Solid Oak
Located in Pontaubault, NORMANDIE
This Vitrine is a handmade reproduction of the French Directoire style at the end of the 18th century. This period is remarkable with its straight, classical and timeless lines. T...
Cherry, Oak
$28,950Sale Price|39% Off
H 60.5 in W 75 in D 19.25 in
French 19th-20th Century Louis XV Style Mahogany and Ormolu Mounted Vitrine
By Georges-François Alix
Located in Los Angeles, CA
A very fine and large French 19th-20th century Louis XV style mahogany and ormolu-mounted Vitrine cabinet with its original Veined Mint green marble top, attributed to Georges-François Alix...
Marble, Ormolu
$4,169
H 75.4 in W 73.63 in D 17.33 in
French Louis XVI Style Oak & Walnut Three Doors Vitrine Bookcase circa 1900
Located in Labrit, Landes
A grand Louis XVI-style bookcase crafted around 1900 from solid oak and walnut veneer. This elegant piece stands out for its balanced design featuring three glass-paned doors, offeri...
Glass, Oak, Walnut
Jules Leleu French Art Deco Cherry Marquetry Vitrine
By Jules Leleu
Located in Baambrugge, NL
French Art Deco Cherry vitrine by Jules Leleu (1883-1961) from the 1930s and features a top compartment with two sliding glass doors and a glass shelf. A lower compartment has two wo...
Bronze
$6,850
H 51 in W 39 in D 19 in
French Art Deco Vitrine Bar or Display Cabinet attributed to Jules Leleu
By Georges Leleu
Located in Long Island City, NY
French Art Deco elegant rosewood showcase, display cabinet from the 1940's, attributed to Jules Leleu in a very good condition. Features intricate inlay marquetry details on both do...
Bronze
$4,800
H 59 in W 47 in D 13 in
19th Century French Louis XVI Style Mahogany Marble Top Vitrine / Bookcase
Located in Tarry Town, NY
Early 19th century French Louis XVI style Mahogany with brass mounted marble top vitrine / bookcase. This was designed to display your most prized possessions or one of a kind collec...
Marble, Brass
$6,000Sale Price|20% Off
H 43 in W 83 in D 14 in
19th Century French Ebony and Boulle Bookcase/Vitrine
By François Linke
Located in Vancouver, British Columbia
A handsome bookcase or china cabinet made in France in the last half of the 19th century. The case is in ebonized wood (including the top), and is curved at each side. There are three front doors with...
Wood
French Art Deco Dry Bar Cabinet, Attributed to Jules Leleu, 1920s
By Jules Leleu
Located in Miami, FL
French Art Deco Dry Bar Cabinet, Attributed to Jules Leleu, 1920s French Art Deco Dry Bar Cabinet by Jules Leleu Modernist French Art Deco Dry Bar Cabinet attributed to Jules Leleu ...
Brass
Sold
H 55.12 in W 60.63 in D 18.51 in
Nice Sycamore Marquetry Cabinet with Bronze Feet by Jules Leleu, France, 1956
By Jules Leleu
Located in Brussels, BE
Elegant sycamore marquetry two doors cabinet with double columns gilt bronze feet. The interior with six adjustable shelves.Stamped on the back wit...
Bronze
SATURDAY SALE. Rare Jules LELEU Exceptional Signed Cabinet
By Jules Leleu
Located in Miami, FL
Exceptional signed,numbered,dated,JULES LELEU Cabinet: "ce meuble dessine par Jules LELEU a ete execute sous sa direction et porte le numero 26031". le 20 mars 1953 Signed Jules ...
Sycamore, Beech