The story of Art Deco is incomplete without the contributions of Paule Leleu. The daughter of celebrated French designer Jules Leleu, Paule carved out her niche in designing beautiful Western European rugs. A rich use of color and bold geometric patterns made Leleu’s rugs a quintessential representation of Art Deco style.
Leleu was born in 1906 into a family with a love of design. Her grandfather operated a painting business in Paris, which her father and uncle transformed into an interior design company. They grew it into an influential design studio, which was among the first to pivot to Art Deco when it became popular after World War I. The Leleu design studio won the top prize at the 1925 International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts.
French designer Ivan da Silva Bruhns initially helmed the rug department of the Leleu firm. When he left the company in 1936, Paule Leleu took over. She expanded on da Silva Bruhns’s success and soon produced many award-winning designs.
Leleu instilled the Art Deco style into her hand-knotted rugs that featured simple linear motifs and decorative flourishes. In the 1940s, she began using floral patterns. Leleu always created her designs with her family company’s furniture in mind. Like that furniture, her later carpets also tended towards the minimalism of mid-century modern style.
Across her career as the chief rug designer at the Leleu design house, Paule Leleu is credited with more than 500 rug designs. The stunning statement pieces remain classics for today’s homes.
On 1stDibs, find Paule Leleu rugs and carpets as well as other home accents.
Doris Leslie Blau Vintage French Art Deco Red Rug by Paul Leleu
By Paule Leleu
Located in New York, NY
Vintage French Art Deco Red Rug by Paul Leleu Size: 5'8" × 9'10" (172 × 299 cm) Bold, sophisticated, and utterly timeless, this 1930s French Art Deco rug designed by Paul Leleu is a ...
Wool
Doris Leslie Blau French Art Deco Vintage Geometric Sage Rug By Paule Leleu
By Paule Leleu
Located in New York, NY
An exceptional vintage French Art Deco carpet, circa 1920s, designed by Paule Leleu, daughter of renowned French designer Jules Leleu and an accomplished artist in her own right. Thi...
Wool
Zabihi Collection Red Dragon Vintage Tibetan Rug
Located in New York, NY
A colorful one-of-a-kind Tibetan rug from the 3rd quarter of the 20th century with a dragon motif on red ground Measures: 3' x 5'7''.
Wool
Aki Rug B Maroon Red by Studio Christinekalia
Located in Geneve, CH
Aki Rug Maroon red by Studio Christinekalia Dimensions: W 180 x L 300. Materials: Artificial wool, felt. Christine Kalia is a design studio exploring modes of spatial relations between architectural, interior and product design. The studio’s vision is calibrated towards ecocentric design and contemporary aesthetics; where the end products manifest the prime materials. The various collections take different approaches to this design mode, often seen as sitting in-between reality and daydreaming. The “coming from” of each design’s unique materiality is carefully crafted towards a “belonging with”, where the sophisticated design of the studio’s products is complementing any environment, in order to elevate its aesthetic aura. Christine Petrou...
Wool, Felt
Vintage Moroccan Modernist Wool Berber Rug
Located in Milan, IT
Many French carpet designers of the mid-20th century were commissioning their weavings in Morocco, which at the time was a French colony, in that they could obtain beautiful pile car...
Wool
$2,995
W 110 in L 141 in
Antique Chinese Art Deco Nichols Hand-Knotted Room Size Wool Rug, Circa 1920s
Located in South Bend, IN
A beautiful antique hand-knotted Chinese Nichols Art Deco large room size wool area rug China, Circa 1920s Tan and soft mauve field, with navy blue and brown floral design Measure...
Wool
$7,199Sale Price|20% Off
W 55 in L 84 in
Vintage Navajo Carpet, Folk Rug, Handmade Wool, Beige, Red, Tan
Located in Port Washington, NY
Navajo rugs and blankets are textiles produced by Navajo people of the four corners area of the United States. Navajo textiles are highly regarded and have been sought after as trade...
Wool
Vintage American Hand Hooked Rug, Wool on Cotton, Allover Geometric Pattern
Located in Barrington, IL
Celebrate the charm of American folk art with this exceptional vintage hand-hooked rug, crafted in the late 1800s in the historic New England region. Featuring a striking geometric p...
Cotton, Wool
Contemporary Painterly Red Tuareg Moroccan Rug
Located in Milan, IT
A unique flat-weave with a very robust texture obtained by brocading a warp-faced fabric composed of very thick woolen light orange wefts. It is inspired by the reed carpets of the T...
Wool
$7,999Sale Price|20% Off
W 48 in L 79 in
Vintage Navajo Carpet, Oriental Rug, Handmade Wool Rug, Red, Black, Ivory, Bold
Located in Port Washington, NY
Navajo rugs and blankets are textiles produced by Navajo people of the Four Corners area of the United States. Navajo textiles are highly regarded and have been sought after as trade items for over 150 years. Commercial production of handwoven blankets and rugs has been an important element of the Navajo economy. As one expert expresses it, "Classic Navajo serapes...
Wool
$21,092
W 70.87 in L 93.71 in
Stunning Art Deco American Hooked Rug Attributed to Ralph Pearson, Circa 1925
Located in Milan, IT
A finely worked American hooked rug distinguished by an explosive pattern of stunning beauty, reminiscent of the architectural details seen on Art Deco masterpieces such as the Chrysler Building in New York. Art Deco and Modernist patterns are very rarely encountered in this medium, as a very small artisanal production began during the Colonial Revival period. Ralph Pearson...
Wool
Geometric Navajo Indian Weaving Rug
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This hand Woven Navajo Indian weaving rug is most unusual with the circles and geometric pattern almost looks Mid-Century Modern. The condition is very good.
Wool
$2,437Sale Price|25% Off
W 32.29 in L 119.69 in
Vintage Central Anatolian Old Runner Kilim, Geometric Wool Rug Turkish Carpet
Located in Tokyo, JP
This is Central Anatolian Vintage with a rare and beautiful color composition. It is a long and thin runner that reaches up to three meters. What is amaz...
Wool, Natural Fiber
Geometric Hooked Rug
Located in Nantucket, MA
This geometric hooked rug has multicolored circles against a light colored field. A modernist design that is bold and lively. Stretched and profes...
Fabric, Wool