French Oak Dining Table with Extension Leaves by Jean Royere

About the Item

A rare French oak dining table designed by Jean Royere circa 1955 as part of his "Sculpture" series. It featured a dramatically rounded legs of solid oak and a removable top. The design of this series around 1955 as well as "Visiteur du soir" series were likely stemmed from an earlier series "Coin de repos pour L'hiver", presented in artists and decorators' pavilion, international exhibition, Paris, in 1937. The table is 62" wide without leaves and when fully extended it measures 102" in width. It can be used as a bespoken desk as well. Provenance: Originally purchased from Wright Auction Modern Design Sale October 3rd, 2004; Lot 250. Literature: De Beyrie, Catherine & Stephane. Jean Royère. 2001. pp 48-57. Jacques Lacoste, Patrick Seguin, Jean Royère and F.C. Prohon. Jean Royère. 2013.

Creator:
Jean Royère (Designer)
Dimensions:
Height: 28.5 in (72.39 cm)Width: 102 in (259.08 cm)Depth: 47.5 in (120.65 cm)
Style:
Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
Materials and Techniques:
Brass,Oak
Place of Origin:
France
Period:
20th Century
Date of Manufacture:
1950s-1960s
Condition:
Refinished. Wear consistent with age and use. Professionally resurfaced with minimal change. Expected some wear and minor gaps between leaves and main table top due to age etc.
Seller Location:
Atlanta, GA
Reference Number:
1stDibs: LU94501065358
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Shop All Jean Royère

Jean Royère

World traveler, polyglot and avant-garde visionary Jean Royère (1902–81) is one of the biggest names in French mid-century design. He was fascinated by different materials, such as raffia and zebrawood, and aesthetics from around the world, from Scandinavian modernism to the traditions of the Middle East. Owing to this venturesome spirit, Royère produced an eclectic body of work that truly doesn’t fit a singular style. One light fixture might have organic shapes reminiscent of Art Nouveau, while a table would be crafted with minimalist straw marquetry.

Born in Paris, Royère studied classics at Cambridge University and then worked for an import-export company. In 1931, he switched gears to design, studying cabinetmaking in the workshops of Faubourg Saint-Antoine and furniture making under the tutelage of Pierre Gouffé. He made his debut in interior design in 1934 when he won a design contest for the brasserie in the Hotel Carlton on the Champs-Élysées.

Royère’s most famous piece of furniture was his biomorphic Boule sofa, sometimes playfully called the Ours Polaire, or Polar Bear. Designed for his mother in 1947, the curved sofa with its fuzzy white velvet shocked the French interior design world when it was displayed at the Art et Industrie exhibition, but it proved enduringly popular with customers, such as the Shah of Iran, who purchased several for his daughter. Royère would continue to design furniture and interiors for an elite clientele, including the kings of Saudi Arabia and Jordan.

Royère retired in 1972, then moved to the United States in 1980. After he died a year later, his archives were given to the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris. His works continue to be highly coveted — Kanye West, for instance, once tweeted that the Polar Bear sofa is his favorite piece of furniture. In 2016, Galerie Patrick Seguin in Paris opened a retrospective of his distinctive designs, from the plush 1943 Eléphanteau chair to the 1963 Tour Eiffel table with its elegant metal supports.

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