Postmodern Les Amisca Quebec 69 Spider Chair

One of the most recognizable and important names in the American studio craft movement of the 1960's and 70's, Paul Evans was a groundbreaking pioneer in brutalism. Collaborating as well as sharing a showroom with Phillip Lloyd Powell until 1964 when Evans met the owner of Directional Furniture and created a line of 6 coffee tables to go into the Directional High Point, NC booth for the spring Market. As the story has been recounted by Dorsey Reading, the tables never even made it to the showroom floor. Evans soon found out the tables never even had the opportunity to be sold; obviously disappointed, owner of Directional, BG agreed to put the tables out on the showroom floor in New York City to placate Paul Evans. What happened can probably best be compared today with "going viral." The coffee tables started flying off the floor, and the orders came rolling in. This fervor led to Evans creating eventually over 800 designs with Directional-- with the very first series being the "Sculptured Metal" Collection which was publicized in 1968. This piece specifically is a throne chair that also swivels. Upholstered in black leather, this throne chair is a wonderful example of Paul Evans Sculpted bronze technique, which involves hand sculpting using an epoxy resin and coating in an atomized cold cast bronze. This piece is signed and dated "PE 69" making it an early example of his goopy cast bronze series and line of furniture for Directional. It's extremely important to note: Directional Furniture showrooms in New York City and Chicago were private to-the-trade only showrooms, so only interior designers and their clients were able to custom order these pieces through the showroom. There was never any "inventory" of furniture. Each and every piece was a custom, hand crafted work of art, created to order. No two of any piece were ever alike. Evans eventually went on to employ a team of nearly 90 people, working two shifts-- helping to hand-craft his designs. This could easily explain why not every piece is hand signed, therefore making an early, had-signed pieces like this even more desirable for a collector. This piece has a wonderful patina, with vibrant colors and while still brutalist in nature, it's a bit more subdued and could effortlessly be blended into any contemporary environment. We currently have this piece in the gallery paired with a Vladimir Kagan serpentine cloud sofa, and a Karl Springer goatskin...

Designed and crafted by French Pop Artist, Luois Durot, this piece is sure going to be a conversation piece. Is it a tongue? Is it a bum? It's called the Pouffesses chair and it's definitely a fun piece that makes a bold statement in any room! While the chair is certainly a bold piece of functional pop art, it looks fantastic in the gallery, flanked with a Vladimir Kagan cloud sofa, and Paul Evans cube table (as photographed). We also have this piece among Olivier Mourgue, Pierre Paulin and Verner Panton pieces and not only does this piece hold its own, it makes a statement. This piece would look incredible in any modern, mid century modern, or contemporary environment. Louis Durot's pieces have sharply increased in popularity in recent years-- being currently styled by top interior designers. A quick search online will yield a treasure trove of these pieces being used in a number of absolutely stunning contemporary environments. Louis Durot, born 1939, is a French pop artist who narrowly escaped deportation in 1943 by missing the train to Auschwitz. Gathered in Magagnosque ( Alpes-Maritimes ), it is there that he discovered the pleasure of sculpting the earth and making objects from it. In 1960, he enrolled at the Faculty of Science, where he obtained a diploma in “propaedeutics – Maths 1 Mécagène”. In 1963, he became a "gluer" for two months and then an engineer at Equipiel, where he was responsible for calculations and resistance measurements to develop prototypes of nuclear power plants. When the French branch was abandoned and became a research company, Equipiel offered him a one-year training in organic chemistry. Between 1966 and 1972, Louis Durot was at the head of a dozen research contracts. In 1964, Louis Durot founded the Freelane Studio which aims to bring together artists from various disciplines with common artistic expectations. The Freelane Studio thus brought together the jazz journalist Gilles Brinon, the painter Jean Ihallero, Maxime Defert... It was thanks to them that Louis Durot met the painter François Arnal , who introduced him to the French sculptor César in 1966. Louis Durot becomes César's assistant for a year, in order to put his qualities as a chemical engineer at his service. In César's studio, he improves his knowledge of polyurethane foam and the artist's foam creations, his expansions. Thanks to César, Louis Durot met Pierre Restany (founder and mentor of the New Realists group founded in 1960), Arman and Robert Malaval...

Vintage Quebec 69 post modern Spider armchair by Les Amisca / Creations Gibo aka Group Gibo / Amisco Industries. The Quebec 69 Spider Chair was designed in the 1980s by the Canadian postmodern...

1970's accent bentwood chair made by Thonet. Condition: Great vintage condition throughout. Additional information: Materials: Bentwood, Upholstery Color: Red Period: 1970s Brand: ...