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.
$11,000 / set
Jules Leleu Pair of French Art Deco Side Tables
By Jules Leleu
Located in Bridgewater, CT
A pair of French Art Deco side tables, circa 1930s signed LELEU, in rosewood with mother of pearl inlaid.
Rosewood
French Mid-Century Rosewood End Table, by Jules Leleu
By Jules Leleu
Located in Queens, NY
French midcentury rosewood round end table with a floral inlaid top of mother of pearl and ebony supported on three scroll legs connected with a stretcher base (JULES LELEU). Jules...
Rosewood, Glass
$9,350Sale Price|33% Off
Jules Leleu Documented Coffee Table in Mahogany and Brass, France, c 1957
By Jules Leleu
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This exquisite coffee table by Jules Leleu was executed in circa 1957 France, in Mahogany with patinated metal stretchers, brass accents and a antiqued mirrored glass top. Documented in Leleu Decorateurs Ensembliers by Francoise Siriex, the underside is impressed with Maison Leleu inventory numbers '29090'. Jules Leleu first opened Maison Leleu, a Paris gallery, in 1924 and won a grand prize at the 1925 Exposition Industrielle et Arts Decoratifs. Later, Leleu designed the Grand Salon of the Ambassadors at the Society of Nations in Geneva and the French Embassies of several nations and the SS Ile de France...
Brass
$4,760Sale Price / set|20% Off
H 22 in W 24.5 in D 17.5 in
Pair of Brass & Mahogany Campaign Style Coffee Tables or End Tables
By Baker Furniture Company
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
Pair of brass & mahogany Campaign style coffee tables or end tables. Unmarked, Attributed to the Baker Furniture company Rare to find a pair, often used together as coffee tables,...
Brass
Jules Leleu, Coffee Table with Tripod Base, circa 1930
By Jules Leleu
Located in New York, NY
Beautiful examples of Jules Leleu timeless designs. The coffee table, circa 1930, is in mahogany, glass and nickel plated metal. It is in great condition. Jules-Emile Leleu (1883-...
Metal
Jules Leleu Low Round Table
By Jules Leleu
Located in Bridgewater, CT
A Jules Leleu rosewood and chromium-plated metal and glass low table. Literature: Viviane Jutheau, Jules and Andre Leleu, 1989, page 75 for a similar...
Brass
Mid-Century Modern Walnut and Rosewood End Table "Tuxedo" by Lane
By Lane Furniture
Located in Buffalo, NY
Modern walnut and rosewood end "Tuxedo" line by Lane. Classic design and form, nice quality, construction featuring stunning rosewood butterfly inlay detailing. Also avail matching l...
Rosewood, Walnut
French Art Deco Period Jules Leleu Manner Burlwood Work Table
By Jules Leleu
Located in Forney, TX
A visually striking Art Deco period inlaid burlwood travailleuse / work table, in the manner of iconic French designer Jules Leleu (Paris, France, 1883-1961) France, circa 1930s, ex...
Brass
French Art Deco Table Attributed To Jules Leleu
By Émile-Jacques Ruhlmann, André Arbus, Dominique, Jacques Adnet, Jules Leleu
Located in Houston, TX
French Art Deco Table Attributed To Jules Leleu. This handsome period French Art Deco table features an unusual geometric design w...
Sycamore
$4,500 / set
H 18 in W 24 in D 16 in
Pair of Mid-Century Modern Rosewood Brass Nightstands or End Tables by Rougier
By Milo Baughman, Roger Rougier
Located in Philadelphia, PA
A super handsome and sophisticated pair of night stands made by Rougier. They feature well made laminate cases, with beautiful rosewood drawers, and brass plinth bases. Very much in ...
Brass
French Art Deco Coffee Table in the Style of Jules Leleu
By Jules Leleu
Located in North Bergen, NJ
This amazing French Art Deco coffee table with mother-of-pearl inlay detail is in the style of famous French artist Jules Leleu. The marquetry is spectacular with butterfly details. ...
$2,200 / set
H 25.99 in W 21.66 in D 13.39 in
Art Deco Pair of Night Stands Parchment Style Jean Pascaud, France 1935
By Jean Pascaud
Located in Saarbruecken, DE
Art Deco pair of night stands parchment Style Jean Pascaud, France 1935. brass details. restored condition.
Brass
Mid-Century Modern Danish Rosewood Three-Drawer Side End Table
Located in Port Jervis, NY
Slender, simple and elegant 3-drawer rosewood table. Two drawers on the left and a larger full size one on the right. Very sturdy and tight, great for a narrow space. In excellent vi...
Rosewood
Pair of Art Déco Bedside Tables by Jules Leleu
By Jules Leleu
Located in Roma, IT
A splendid pair of Art Dèco bedside tables realized by Jules Leleu in 1923. Amboyna burl veneer, Breccia marble tops, and brass or bone knobs. A refined and sculptural pair of Art ...
Mahogany
Jules Leleu French Art Deco Bedside Nightstand
By Jules Leleu
Located in Forney, TX
A rare French Art Deco sycamore inlaid nightstand or end table attributed to Jules Leleu (1883-1961). Handcrafted in France in the mid 20th century, having a shaped front rectangular...
Sycamore
Sold
H 25 in W 15.75 in D 15.5 in
2 Fine French Art Deco Mahogany and Rosewood Side Tables by Jules Leleu
By Jules Leleu
Located in Long Island City, NY
Two fine French Art Deco side tables by Jules Leleu with a solid mahogany base and a rosewood veneered top. Stamped. Dimensions: Bigger one is H 25" x W 15 3/4" x D 15 1/2" Smaller...
Mahogany, Rosewood
French Midcentury 1930s Ceruse Oak End/Side Table
By Jules Leleu
Located in Queens, NY
French midcentury 1930s bleached ceruse oak end or side table with a round sunburst design top resting on a four-panel pedestal base with bronze sabot feet (LELEU). Jules Leleu was ...
Bronze
Four-Leaf Clover Table
By Jules Leleu
Located in New York, NY
Burled walnut, glass top and bone rings.
Jules Leleu, Rare Coffee Table, France, 1930
By Jules Leleu
Located in Encino, CA
Jules Leleu (1883-1961). Very rare and Fine Art Deco two tiered rectangular burled amboyna veneer side table by Jules Leleu, France, circa 1930. The table is stamped. The table ha...
Burl, Amboyna
Pair of Side Tables by Jules Leleu
By Jules Leleu
Located in Bois-Colombes, FR
Pair of tables designed by Jules Leu, circa 1960s. Numbered.
Iron
Two Tiered Walnut Side Table by Maison Leleu
By Jules Leleu
Located in New York, NY
Two tiered side table in walnut with gun metal patinated legs and gilt-bronze sabots, by Leleu
Ormolu
Jules Leleu, Mahogany Art Deco Side Table, France, C. 1930
By Jules Leleu
Located in New York, NY
Fine early Art Deco two-tiered flamed mahogany side table by Jules Leleu (1883-1961) Illustrated in Mobilier et Décoration 1931, p. 490 and p. 491 (Interiors of the Comtesse de Ma...
Mahogany
Jules Leleu Pair of French Art Deco Side Tables
By Jules Leleu
Located in Bridgewater, CT
A pair of French Art Deco side tables, circa 1930s signed LELEU, in rosewood with mother-of-pearl inlaid.
Rosewood
Pair of French Art Deco Mirrored Tables by Jules Leleu
By Jules Leleu
Located in Bridgewater, CT
A pair of French Art Deco side tables stamped Jules Leleu, in mahogany wood and featuring two circular mirrored shelves.
Mahogany