Tabacco Pot with Original Spoon by Jean Gillon, circa 1960

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Tabacco Pot with Original Spoon by Jean Gillon, circa 1960

About the Item

Beautiful tobacco pot by Jean Gillon, manufactured in Brazil around 1960. Made of high quality Brazilian solid rosewood, this well-crafted pot is still in great condition and includes the original spoon that also closes the lid. With minor wear consistent with age and use, preserving a beautiful patina. Jean Gillon (1919–2007) was a Brazilian furniture designer. Born in Iasi, Romania, in 1919, he graduated at the Architecture and Fine Arts schools at the National University. He took specialization courses at Vienna’s Kunstgewerbschulle and at Leeds’s Arts and Crafts School – where he later worked as visiting lecturer. In 1956, already possessing a consistent portfolio, he moved to São Paulo, where he developed simultaneous actions on three main axis: interior architecture, fine arts and design. Regarding architecture, he acquired renown in the hotel business, projecting tens of luxury hotels throughout Brazil, as well as stores and homes. In fine arts, he was a prolix creator of tapestries – usually one-of-a-kind pieces elaborated with different techniques, based on gouache drawings. Jean Gillon started to design furniture due to his architecture clients’ demands and, in 1961, he founded his first company, Fábrica de Móveis Cidam, later followed by WoodArt, in which he produced full lines of Brazilian rosewood furniture pieces and objects, using leather and upholstery as well. A successful businessman, he turned to exports and at one point he worked with 22 different countries. He collaborated with MTM – Indústria de Móveis Village, Italma, and Probel, which produced his designs. In 1991, his Jangada (raft) armchair received a mention at the Movesp Award. In 1992, he was honored as Professional of the Year by the Brazilian Association of Interior Architects and Designers. Jean Gillon died in 2007, in São Paulo.

Creator:
Jean Gillon (Designer)
Dimensions:
Height: 5.71 in (14.5 cm)Diameter: 5.52 in (14 cm)
Style:
Mid-Century Modern (In the Style Of)
Materials and Techniques:
Rosewood
Place of Origin:
Brazil
Period:
1960-1969
Date of Manufacture:
Circa 1960
Condition:
Wear consistent with age and use.
Seller Location:
Amsterdam, NL
Reference Number:
1stDibs: LU103982526502

Shop All Jean Gillon

Jean Gillon

Although he was Romanian by birth, architect and designer Jean Gillon’s heart and soul belonged to his adopted country of Brazil. The country’s culture and revered architecture served as a muse for his mid-century furniture designs. Today Gillon ranks among the most interesting figures in Brazilian modernism, which is characterized by sensual forms and beautifully handcrafted chairs, tables and cabinets built from exotic hardwoods.

Gillon was born in Iasi and graduated from the city’s George Enescu National University of the Arts. He then moved to Paris, where he studied tapestry, worked at the newspaper Le Monde as a cartoonist and moonlighted as a set designer for the Paris Opera Ballet. He eventually left Paris for Vienna, where he studied architecture at the School of Industrial Arts, known today as the University of Applied Arts. In the early 1950s, Gillon was a visiting lecturer at London’s Central School of Arts and Crafts.

In 1956, Gillon moved with his wife and two daughters to São Paulo, where he developed a passion for Brazilian architecture, namely the work of modernists such as celebrated architect Lina Bo Bardi and designer José Zanine Caldas. Gillon took on interior decorating projects and formed the Fábrica de Móveis Cidam, which later became Italma Wood Art, in order to design furniture for his clients. Gillon’s furnishings, produced at Italma and also in collaboration with manufacturers such as Probel, were immensely popular and could be found in the planned capital city of Brasilia, a project launched in 1956 by Oscar Niemeyer.

Gillon designed everything from bowls and baskets to centerpieces, tables and other objects and furniture. However, he was best known for his lounge chairs and sofas, including his iconic Jangada chair. Named for the Portuguese word for traditional Brazilian fishing boats, the award-winning Jangada was framed in jacaranda in the late 1960s. The welcoming seat of Gillon’s visually striking trapezoidal lounge chair features plush leather cushions that are supported by nylon fishing rope.

Gillon continued to produce furniture for Italma Wood Art until he retired in 2003. He died in 2007, and today Gillon’s pieces remain highly covetable among interior designers and collectors of modern furniture.

On 1stDibs, find a range of vintage Jean Gillon seating, decorative objects and serveware.