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.
1930s French Art Decò Sideboard Buffet Dry Bar by Jules Leleu, in Walnut Briar
By Jules Leleu
Located in Vigonza, Padua
This beautiful sideboard designed and executed by J&M Leleu, Paris (Jules and Marcel Leleu atelier), all in precious walnut briar , is a piece of furniture that alone embellishes...
Walnut
A Fine Small French Art Deco Walnut Bar
Located in Long Island City, NY
A Fine French Art Deco small bar with a drop front sunburst walnut veneered door and glass handles.
Glass, Walnut
$176,408
H 45.28 in W 56.3 in D 17.33 in
Italian Art Deco Bar Cabinet in Parchment with Inlays Signed by Anzani, 1930s
By Giuseppe Anzani
Located in Meda, MB
This bar cabinet was produced in Italy, in the late 1930s and is a really unique and special piece. Its tremendous historical and artistic value is what makes this item a real piece of art, hard to find and one of a kind. Firstly, let's talk about its history. It was produced most likely in 1939 in Mariano Comense which is a small village near Milan by the artist Giuseppe Anzani. Anzani has been one of the greatest, if not the greatest wood crafter and inlaid maker. He started his career as an engraver when he was a little child and he won awards for his skills when he was only 16. Later on, he started also to master the art of wood inlay, becoming the most skilled inlayer of all times. His fame was so big that people from all over the world used to come to his little laboratory in the small and unknown village...
Glass, Mirror, Wood, Maple, Walnut, Parchment Paper
Beautiful Art Deco Cabinet from 1930s
Located in Copenhagen, DK
Introducing a piece of history - an Art Deco cabinet from the 1930's that has been repurposed as a bar/fridge, but with endless possibilities for customization. This unique piece of ...
Mahogany
$4,410
H 57.88 in W 57.09 in D 19.3 in
1940s Art Deco Mid-Century Italian Walnut Burl and Mirror Mosaic Dry Bar Cabinet
By Paolo Buffa, Gio Ponti, Vittorio Dassi, Guglielmo Ulrich, Ico & Luisa Parisi
Located in Carimate, Como
Unique, impressive and very elegant Italian Art Deco Mid-Century Modern dry bar cabinet, in beautiful veneer walnut briar burl wood, two doors with amazing interior part in mirror gl...
Brass
$2,763
H 26.38 in W 30.32 in D 15.75 in
1950s Art Deco Mid-Century Italian Walnut Burl and Mirror Mosaic Dry Bar Cabinet
By Gio Ponti, Paolo Buffa, Vittorio Dassi, Guglielmo Ulrich, Ico & Luisa Parisi
Located in Carimate, Como
Very elegant Italian Art Deco Mid-Century Modern dry bar cabinet, in beautiful wood, two doors and brass handles. When opened, on the right side an amazing interior part in mirrors m...
Brass
$2,704
H 27.56 in W 34.26 in D 15.36 in
Italian 1960s Art Deco Mid-Century Burl Walnut Mirror Mosaic Dry Bar Cabinet
By Guglielmo Ulrich, Ico & Luisa Parisi, Vittorio Dassi, Paolo Buffa, Gio Ponti
Located in Carimate, Como
Very elegant Italian Art Deco Mid-Century Modern drinks dry bar cabinet with black glass top and beautiful veneer walnut briar burl wood, two doors and great central wooden decor cra...
Brass
$2,940
H 36.62 in W 34.65 in D 17.72 in
Italian 1940s Art Deco Mid-Century Walnut Burl Dry Bar Cabinet
By Gio Ponti, Paolo Buffa, Vittorio Dassi, Guglielmo Ulrich, Ico & Luisa Parisi
Located in Carimate, Como
Very elegant Italian Art Deco Mid-Century Modern drinks dry bar cabinet in beautiful veneer walnut briar burl wood, various doors and storage spaces with great shapes and decors. The...
Brass
Very Rare Bar Cabinet by Charles Dudouyt, France, 1930s/40s
By Charles Dudouyt
Located in Lewes, East Sussex
An very rare bar cabinet attributed to Charles Dudouyt, France, 1930s/40s. Structurally sound and ready to use. Some marks to the top surface and inside shelves. Fast shipping worldw...
Wood
$2,704
H 27.56 in W 34.65 in D 16.54 in
1960s Art Deco Mid-Century Italian Walnut Burl and Mirror Mosaic Dry Bar Cabinet
By Ico & Luisa Parisi, Paolo Buffa, Vittorio Dassi, Gio Ponti, Guglielmo Ulrich
Located in Carimate, Como
Beautiful Italian Art Deco Mid-Century Modern dry bar cabinet decorated in veneer briar burl wood, with two side doors, central slant door and antique brass handles. When opened, on ...
Brass
$4,116
H 36.23 in W 34.65 in D 13 in
1950s Art Deco Mid-Century Italian Walnut Mirror Mosaic Sideboard Bar Cabinet
By Gio Ponti, Vittorio Dassi
Located in Carimate, Como
Impressive 1950s Italian cocktail liquor bar cabinet in beautiful wood with inlay decorated two front doors and standing on greatly decorative shaped legs. Once you open the two door...
Brass
Fine Art Deco Sideboard by Jules Leleu
By Jules Leleu
Located in Bridgewater, CT
Jules Leleu (1883-1961). An important rosewood cabinet, decorated with a spray of inlay mother-of-pearl flowers and butterflies, legs with gilded bronze sabots. With the original ...
Bronze
$4,469
H 45.67 in W 36.62 in D 14.18 in
1950s Art Deco Midcentury Italian Walnut Mirror Mosaic Sideboard Bar Cabinet
By Gio Ponti, Vittorio Dassi
Located in Carimate, Como
Impressive 1950s Italian sideboard bar cabinet in beautiful burl veneer wood, two front doors and standing on greatly decorative carved legs. Once you open the two doors the interior...
Brass
Sold
H 44.5 in W 62.5 in D 39.5 in
Exceptional Art Deco Bar Cabinet by Jules Leleu, Circa 1940's, France
By Jules Leleu
Located in North York, ON
Own a piece of design history with this stunning Art Deco bar cabinet by the iconic French designer Jules Leleu. Crafted in France around the 1940s, it showcases the exquisite beauty...
Brass
Sold
H 51 in W 30 in D 17.5 in
French Mid Century Ebony Bar by Art Deco Furniture Designer Jules Leleu
By Jules Leleu
Located in INTERLAKEN, NY
An exquisite mid century bar by famed French Art Deco furniture designer, Jules Leleu (1883-1961), in fine Maccasar ebony with marquetry i...
Abalone, Mother-of-Pearl, Ebony, Sycamore
Art Deco Rosewood Marquetry Cocktail Cabinet by Jules Leleu
By Jules Leleu
Located in Forest Row, East Sussex
An Art Deco rosewood marquetry cocktail cabinet by Jules Leleu, (1883-1961). Stepped top over a parquetry and marquetry in...
Bronze
Jules Leleu, a Pair of Two Door Cabinets, France, circa 1948
By Jules Leleu
Located in New York, NY
This exceptional matched pair of two door cabinets was made in the aftermath of the war, a time when Jules Leleu was returning to the Deco splendor of plush, exotic materials. This p...
Bronze
Fine Jules Leleu Designed Bar Cabinet
By Jules Leleu
Located in New York, NY
A fine Jules Leleu designed modernist two-door bar cabinet. Mahogany marquetry details on the doors, resting on patinated gilt bronze legs. Interior door shelves crafted in polished...
Bronze
Fine Jules Leleu Designed Modernist Bar Cabinet
By Jules Leleu
Located in New York, NY
A fine Jules Leleu designed modernist bar cabinet. Mahogany marquetry details on the doors, resting on patinated gilt bronze legs. The interior...
Mahogany
A Leleu Bar Cabinet
By Jules Leleu
Located in New York, NY
This magnificent signed bar cabinet, designed by Jules Leleu, has both style and substance. Its exquisite workmanship, including the fine marquetry, brass detailing, nickel plated h...