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, Vanity Cabinet, France, 1948
By Jules Leleu
Located in New York, NY
Rare palissander drop front vanity cabinet by Jules Leleu (1883-1961). The drop front opens to reveal an illuminated mirror in three sections Bibliog...
Brass, Bronze
Jules Leleu, Fine Art Deco Standing Mirror / Vanity, France, circa 1928
By Jules Leleu
Located in New York, NY
A fine and rare vanity with a pleasing asymmetrical form, ample storage, nickel-plated hardware and pulls, and a beautiful oval, rimless mirror. ...
Nickel
A Fine French Art Deco Mirrored and Mahogany Vanity
Located in Long Island City, NY
A fine French Art Deco engraved mirrored vanity with a mahogany base and one drawer.
Mirror, Mahogany
Fine French Art Deco Illuminated Chrome Table Mirror
Located in Long Island City, NY
A fine French 1930s partially adjustable vanity/table mirror in chrome. Signed (not identified).
Chrome
French Art Deco Vanity att. Jacques Adnet
By Jacques Adnet
Located in Brooklyn, NY
This stunning vintage art deco triptych illuminated vanity features a mirror on base by Miroir-Brot, France. Attributed to French art deco modernist ...
Steel, Nickel
Fine French Art Deco amboyna vanity/ dressing table w/ brass trim
Located in New York City, NY
As an ode to the glamour of the Roaring Twenties, this stunning original 1930s dressing table exudes Hollywood glamour with its exotic amboyna g...
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
Art Deco Mahogany Vanity Dresser With Mirror
By Beautility
Located in Pasadena, TX
An Art Deco vanity made by Beautility featuring beautifully grained mahogany and a stylish flowing design. The dresser comprises of mirror, two large drawers,a jewelery drawer and t...
Mahogany
French Art Deco Vanity or Dressing Table, 1930s
Located in Amsterdam, NL
Magnificent and rare Art Deco vanity or dressing table. Design in the style of Émile-Jacques Ruhlmann. Striking French design from the 1930s. Black lacquered walnut and burl base wit...
Granite, Marble, Brass
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
French 1940s mirrored vanity
Located in Miami, FL
French Mirrored Vanity, Art Deco period. Beautiful patina.
Mirror, Wood
Stunning French Art Deco Vanity/ Dressing Table/ Full View Oval Mirror
By Louis Majorelle
Located in Buffalo, NY
Stunning French Art Deco vanity/ dressing table/ full view oval mirror, beautiful burl and mahogany, Classic Art Deco grapevine stylized details, retains original marble tops, also o...
Brass
French Art Deco Table By Jules Leleu
By Maison Dominique, Sue et Mare, Jules Leleu, Eugene Printz, 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
![1930's Glamorous French Art Deco Period Parchment [Goatskin] Vanity- Tall Mirror](https://a.1stdibscdn.com/1930s-glamorous-french-art-deco-period-parchment-goatskin-vanity-tall-mirror-for-sale/f_92852/f_395820421714946070898/f_39582042_1714946072504_bg_processed.jpg?width=240)
![1930's Glamorous French Art Deco Period Parchment [Goatskin] Vanity- Tall Mirror](https://a.1stdibscdn.com/1930s-glamorous-french-art-deco-period-parchment-goatskin-vanity-tall-mirror-for-sale-picture-2/f_92852/f_39582042/IMG_1714946126295_master.JPG?width=240)
$1,616Sale Price|50% Off
H 64.5 in W 14.5 in D 47.5 in
1930's Glamorous French Art Deco Period Parchment [Goatskin] Vanity- Tall Mirror
Located in Opa Locka, FL
1930's French Art Deco Parchment Clad w/ Rosewood Ladies Vanity. This is a glamorous piece of furniture. Tall mirrored with 6 drawers. Parisian Estate.
Wood
Ladies Writing and Vanity Table by Jules Leleu, circa 1950s
By Jules Leleu
Located in CA, CA
A Ladies Writing and Vanity Table by Jules Leleu circa 1950s A beautifully proportioned piece of furniture forming a vanity and desk combined. The middle lifts to reveal a a compart...
Wood
Pair of Art Deco Bedside Chests by Jules Leleu
By Jules Leleu
Located in Paddock Wood Tonbridge, GB
A serpentine shaped sides and front pair of two drawer chests with saber legs covered in sycamore parqutry veneer and having peach mirror tops designed and produced in Paris by Jules...
Sycamore
Jules Leleu, Mahogany Vanity, France, 1945
By Jules Leleu
Located in New York, NY
Mahogany writing table or vanity by Jules Leleu with its original mirror, and patinated and gilt bronze details Signed "JLeleu" on upper front leg Provenance: Designed by Leleu...
Bronze