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.
Bronze Mounted Circular Low Table, by Jules Leleu
By Jules Leleu
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
Bronze mounted circular low table, by Jules Leleu. Rosewood inlaid top having floral and butterfly inlays in a variety of woods and abalone, circa 1925. Measures: Height 17 5/8 in....
Wood
French Art Deco Table By Jules Leleu
By Eugene Printz, Jules Leleu, Maison Dominique, Jean Dunand, Paul Follot
Located in Houston, TX
French Art Deco Table By Jules Leleu. Offered is a gorgeous 1930's era French Art Deco sycamore table trimmed in stunning bronze accents and sabots and topped with a beautiful gold e...
Bronze
$6,995
H 28.5 in W 74.5 in D 39 in L 28.5 in
French Art Deco Bronze Mounted Dining Table Attributed to Jules Leleu
By Jules Leleu
Located in Swedesboro, NJ
Dimensions: 28.5 inches high x 74.5 inches wide x 39 inches deep Elegant, architectural, and exceptionally refined, this remarkable French Art Deco dining table embodies the sophist...
Bronze
Fine Art Deco Coffee Table by Jules Leleu
By Jules Leleu
Located in Bridgewater, CT
Jules Leleu (1883-1961). A modernist French Art Deco mirrored table, created circa 1936. In sycamore, with gilt bronze accents. Signed and referenced in "Mobilier et Decorati...
Brass
Art Deco Guéridon Table by Jules Leleu, France, 1935
By Jules Leleu
Located in Kampen, NL
Elegant Art Deco guéridon attributed to Jules Emile Leleu, France, circa 1935. Expertly crafted in rosewood and walnut veneer, the circular top features refined marquetry inlay, whil...
Brass
Contemporary Bronze Side Table, Low Brazier by Rick Owens
By Rick Owens
Located in Warsaw, PL
Contemporary bronze side table - low brazier by Rick Owens 2007 Dimensions: L 42 x W 42 x H 25 cm Materials: bronze Weight: 18.5 kg ...
Bronze
French Art Deco Table by Jules Leleu, circa 1925
By Jules Leleu
Located in Paddock Wood Tonbridge, GB
Jules Leleu - Art Deco table An Art Deco circular coffee table by Jules Leleu, Exceptionally high quality and appealing design as to be...
Wood
Jules Leleu Low Rosewood Coffee Table
By Jules Leleu
Located in Philadelphia, PA
French Modernist Art Deco low coffee/side table by Jules Leleu, circa 1930, in rosewood. 31.5" diameter x 21" high. Documented in Interieurs d’Aujourd ‘Hui. JULES-EMILE LELEU (...
Rosewood
$2,975
H 29.93 in W 27.76 in D 15.56 in
19th Century Spanish Hand Carved Card Foldable Table with Bronze Mounts
Located in Miami, FL
19th Century Spanish Hand Carved Card Table with Bronze Mounts and red carpet. The bronze ashtrays are removable
Bronze
Hollywood Regency Ebony Game, Card Table, Louis XVI Style, Bronze Mounted
Located in Stamford, CT
This exquisite Hollywood Regency style ebony game or card table is a stunning blend of style and functionality. One side features a beautifully finished checkerboard top, perfect for...
Bronze
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
$95,000
H 30 in W 56 in D 32 in
Fantastic Late 19th Century Gilt Bronze Mounted Center Table by François Linke
By François Linke
Located in Long Island City, NY
A Fantastic Late 19th Century Gilt Bronze Mounted Louis XV Style Kingwood Center Table By François Linke François Linke With serpentine-grey and yellow marble top, above a frieze ...
Marble, Bronze, Ormolu
$2,400
H 25.5 in W 23.5 in D 17 in
Mid-Century Modern Italian Brass Serving Table with Glass Tops, 1960
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
A vintage Mid-Century Modern Italian side, sofa table made of hand crafted brass, in good condition. The serving, tea table is composed with two tier glass tops, supported by four ro...
Metal, Brass