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Élizabeth Garouste Furniture

French, b. 1946

Born in Paris in 1946, Élizabeth Garouste studied interior design at the École Camondo and worked as a theater set designer before meeting Mattia Bonetti in the late 1970s. Bonetti, born in Lugano, Switzerland, in 1952, attended Lugano’s Centro Scolastico per L’Industria Artistica, where he studied textile design and got into photography. As celebrated duo Garouste and Bonetti, the two designers are best known for concocting Surrealistavant-garderomantic furniture and lighting that merge whimsy and wonder with luxury and sophistication.

Their first collaboration came in 1981, after Garouste’s husband, interior designer Gérard Garouste, asked them both to produce designs for the Paris restaurant Le Privilège. They devised a collection of Art Brut–inspired furniture called Barbare, which debuted at the Jansen House of Interior Design, earning them the nickname Les Nouveaux Barbares (the New Barbarians).

Garouste and Bonetti achieved international acclaim in 1987 when French couturier Christian Lacroix hired them to design for his maisons de couture in Paris and London. Instead of the staid decor used by other haute couture houses, Garouste and Bonetti’s furnishings were rebellious and daring. As described in Architectural Digest, “rooms and carpets were acrid ochers, edged with black baroque swirls Louis XVI-inspired chairs upholstered in fruit tones. Tree stump stools topped with ivory tufted cushions. White curtains were trimmed with black polka dots the size of pancakes.” 

Following their success with Lacroix, Garouste and Bonetti designed interiors for illustrious clients such as German socialite Princess Gloria von Thurn und Taxis and Bernard Picasso, a French art collector and grandson of Pablo Picasso.

Throughout the late 1980s and ’90s, Garouste and Bonetti designed several modern pieces such as rainbow-colored console tables, the wavy, high-backed Koala sofaceramic tablewaretable lamps and decorative objects. In 2002, the duo parted ways. 

Bonetti continues to create furniture, finding inspiration in everything from ancient Greece to children’s toys to UFOs. His works have been shown at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Victoria and Albert Museum in London and the Centre Pompidou in Paris. 

Garouste also continues to design and is inspired by the natural world for her “quirky pieces,” Élisabeth Delacarte, owner of the Paris gallery Avant-Scène, says of her designs: “You feel like you’re in a dream rather than in reality. She very much has her own universe.”

On 1stDibs, find a range of vintage Élizabeth Garouste furniture on 1stDibs.

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Creator: Élizabeth Garouste
Elizabeth Garouste Mattia Bonetti Etagere Vitrine "Cage Barbare" 1981, France
By Élizabeth Garouste, Mattia Bonetti
Located in Chicago, IL
Elizabeth Garouste & Mattia Bonetti Etagere Vitrine "Cage Barbare" 1981. Bottom glass shelf has a small chip out of corner. Elizabeth Garouste was born in Paris, France in 1949. Afte...
Category

1980s French Mid-Century Modern Vintage Élizabeth Garouste Furniture

Materials

Wrought Iron

Elisabeth Garouste "Vive la vie" Clock in Ceramic Signed Unique piece 2000
By Élizabeth Garouste
Located in Saint Rémy de Provence, FR
Rare Elisabeth Garouste "Vive la vie" ceramic clock signed 2000. Unique piece Certificate of authenticity on request Very good condition, no thread, no scratch signed E.G under the b...
Category

Early 2000s French Modern Élizabeth Garouste Furniture

Materials

Ceramic

"Koala" Suite by Elizabeth Garouste & Mattia Bonetti, France, 1990s
By Élizabeth Garouste, Mattia Bonetti
Located in New York, NY
The suite consists of a sofa with asymmetrical arm and backrests in purple velvet and an over upholstered bergère in a light salmon. Model Koala. Measures: Sofa: Height 43” back, ...
Category

1990s French Modern Élizabeth Garouste Furniture

Materials

Bronze

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Élizabeth Garouste furniture for sale on 1stDibs.

Élizabeth Garouste furniture are available for sale on 1stDibs. These distinctive items are frequently made of metal and are designed with extraordinary care. There are many options to choose from in our collection of Élizabeth Garouste furniture, although silver editions of this piece are particularly popular. Many of the original furniture by Élizabeth Garouste were created in the modern style in france during the 20th century. If you’re looking for additional options, many customers also consider furniture by Honoré Paris, Didier Gomez, and Georges Laurent. Prices for Élizabeth Garouste furniture can differ depending upon size, time period and other attributes — on 1stDibs, these items begin at $8,000 and can go as high as $38,000, while a piece like these, on average, fetch $20,424.

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