Miami Easychair by P. Guariche for Meurop, 1950s

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Miami Easychair by P. Guariche for Meurop, 1950s

About the Item

Set of two red fabric Miami easychairs designed by Pierre Guariche for Meurop. The chairs feature a minimal design black lacquered metal base. The chairs are modular and can be used as a two-seat sofa. The fabric and metal base are in good condition. Original makers mark still present. 1950s, France Measures: Height: 85cm/33" Seating height: 40cm/16" Width: 54cm/21" Depth: 78cm/30" Midcentury French designer Pierre Guariche was born into a family of goldsmiths in Paris in 1926. He studied at the École Nationale Supérieure des Arts Décoratifs de Paris under René Gabriel, graduating in 1949. Next he worked in the studio of Marcel Gascoin, one of his former professors, and joined the Union des Artistes Moderns (UAM), a collective dedicated to the promotion of progressive design principles founded by Robert Mallet-Stevens in 1929. Through the UAM, Guariche was able to experiment with materials and forms and exhibit his work at the Salon des Arts Ménagers and the Salon des Artistes Décorateurs. Guariche’s work was soon noticed and put in production by Galerie MAI, Pierre Disderot’s lighting company, and the newly formed Airborne brand—which began editing Guariche’s Prefacto Series in 1951. That same year, Guariche began designing for Steiner—a collaboration that led to Guariche’s famous Tulipe Chair (1953), Vampire Chair (1954), and Amsterdam/Tonneau Chair (1954). In 1954, Pierre Guariche founded the Ateliers de Recherche Plastique (ARP) in collaboration with his two designer friends, Michel Mortier (1925-2015) and Joseph-André Motte (1925-2013). The trio had met while interning with Gascoin, and together they created a range of modernist, affordable furniture for Huchers Minvielle and others. In 1957, Guariche became the artistic director for Belgian manufacturer Meurop, where his work embraced more biomorphic silhouettes, as in the Mars Armchair (1965), Jupiter Armchair (1966), and Luna Armchair (1967). By the late 50s, Guariche focused increasingly on public and private commissions, like La Plagne and Courchevel winter resorts in France. Guariche was awarded the René Gabriel prize in 1965. He passed away in 1995.

Creator:
Pierre Guariche (Designer),Meurop (Manufacturer)
Dimensions:
Height: 33.47 in (85 cm)Width: 21.26 in (54 cm)Depth: 30.71 in (78 cm)Seat Height: 15.75 in (40 cm)
Sold As:
Set of 2
Style:
Mid-Century Modern (In the Style Of)
Materials and Techniques:
Brass,Fabric,Metal
Place of Origin:
France
Period:
1950-1959
Date of Manufacture:
1950
Condition:
Wear consistent with age and use.
Seller Location:
HEVERLEE, BE
Reference Number:
Seller: 001101stDibs: LU3944311640193

Shop All Pierre Guariche

Pierre Guariche

The architect Pierre Guariche was one of the leading modern furniture and lighting designers of postwar France. Guariche can, in some ways, be thought of as the French version of Charles Eames: with his lean and angular chairs and slender, sculptural table lamps, he helped introduce a new aesthetic to the country’s interiors — and he was an eager pioneer in the use of new industrial materials and production techniques that emerged in the 1950s.

Guariche studied at the École Nationale Supérieure des Arts Décoratifs in Paris (the national design academy) under René Gabriel — a designer known for his quality, mass-produced furnishings, who served as a director of the postwar Ministry of Reconstruction. Two years after graduating in 1949, Guariche opened his own design firm, and he was soon creating pieces for numerous companies, including the lighting manufacturer Disderot.

Wood and metal were rationed in the years following the war and Guariche learned to do more with less. His chairs of the early 1950s include several designs with narrow, softly angular wooden frames; others, like the Tonneau chair, feature a single piece of molded plywood set atop metal legs. His lamps of the period are likely his best-known works. They include delicate compositions of slender steel tubes, and more flamboyant pieces such as the Kite lamp, with its curved metal reflector panel.

Always on the lookout for new materials, Guariche spent several years in the mid-1950s operating a firm making furniture in fiberglass and other plastics, along with Joseph André Motte and others. After 1957 — when Guariche was named head of design for the Belgian company Meurop and given a brief to create stylish, up-to-date chairs and cabinets — he began to look to America for ideas.

In the mid-1960s, Guariche produced several lines of deeply upholstered, rounded lounge chairs inspired by the Space Age look, and gave them names like Jupiter, Polaris and Luna. While Guariche always kept pace with his times, throughout his career he showed a consistent talent for producing elegant, eye-catching forms using a minimum of materials.

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