Charlotte Perriand "CP-1" Wall Lights, 1960

French architect Charlotte Perriand (1903–99) was an inimitable trailblazer in the field of design, defining modern living in the 20th century through her pursuit of functionality. The sleek CP-1 wall lamps she created in the 1960s represent her belief that design wasn’t meant to produce merely decorative objects, but objects that responded to the needs of the user most practically and efficiently.

In the 1920s, design was plagued with sexism (the landscape has since improved, but there is still much room for growth) — the Bauhaus, for example, admitted women but they were encouraged to enroll in weaving workshops. In the face of structures like this, Perriand trained as an architect and built a triumphant, multifaceted career. She famously worked alongside giants of mid-century design like Le Corbusier and his cousin Pierre Jeanneret and later with Jean Prouvé and Fernand Léger, creating towering, decorative bookcases and codesigning icons such as the tubular steel LC4 Chaise Longue (1928) along the way.

Perriand, an unsung visionary in a world crowded by the names of celebrated men, was preoccupied with understanding how people lived and moved through spaces. She called this the “art of living,” writing that “…the profession of architecture is work in the service of humanity.” The minimalist CP-1 wall lamps embody this belief: Their enameled sheet-metal plates are positioned over the bulb, and the plates pivot and rotate so that the user can control the direction and intensity of light.

Much like the ideals of the modernist movement from which they emerged, the CP-1 wall lamps — originally sold exclusively by Galerie Steph Simon in Paris — are outwardly unexceptional, but their ingenuity lies in Perriand’s deep understanding of the needs of their users. Through her remarkable career, she helped define an ideology that continues to inspire generations of designers.

A pioneer of modernism in France, Charlotte Perriand was one of the most influential figures in 20th-century design and architecture. In her long career, Perriand’s aesthetic grammar constantly evolved, moving from the tubular steel furniture of the Machine Age to a lyrical naturalism.

Perriand’s studies at the Ecole de L'Union Centrale de Arts Decoratifs left her enthralled by Le Corbusier and his vision of a new, rational architecture. In 1924, she joined his studio to design furniture along with Pierre Jeanneret, Corbu’s partner and cousin. Together, they devised some of the finest examples of early modernist furniture, including two icons of the era: the B306 chaise with its swooping frame and hide upholstery; and the chunky, steel-framed Grand Confort club chair. Collaborative design produced another Perriand triumph: in the early 1950s, she and Jean Prouvé were engaged to produce desks, worktables and bookcases for the University of Paris. The bookcases — slim pine shelves with brightly painted aluminum dividers — are minimalist masterpieces.

By the end of that decade, Perriand’s aesthetic had changed completely from the earliest days of her career. She produced a series of furniture in ebonized wood: chairs with gentle S-curve legs, front and back; tables with elliptical tops. In the mid-1960s, she adopted an almost rustic look, designing simple chairs with dowel-cut frames and rush seats. Yet everything in Perriand’s oeuvre is beautiful, whether it’s the centerpiece of a décor or an accent. Charlotte Perriand’s work is in every great design collection, public and private. Works on these pages will show you why.