Jean Prouve Compas Desk
View Similar Items
Jean Prouve Compas Desk
About the Item
- Creator:Jean Prouvé (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 27.75 in (70.49 cm)Width: 47.25 in (120.02 cm)Depth: 30.75 in (78.11 cm)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1953
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:Beverly Hills, CA
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU80803168162
Jean Prouvé
Engineer and metalsmith, self-taught designer and architect, manufacturer and teacher, Jean Prouvé was a key force in the evolution of 20th-century French design, introducing a style that combined economy of means and stylistic chic. Along with his frequent client and collaborator Le Corbusier and others, Prouvé, using his practical skills and his understanding of industrial materials, steered French modernism onto a path that fostered principled, democratic approaches to architecture and design.
Prouvé was born in Nancy, a city with a deep association with the decorative arts. (It is home, for example, to the famed Daum crystal manufactory.) His father, Victor Prouvé, was a ceramist and a friend and co-worker of such stars of the Art Nouveau era as glass artist Émile Gallé and furniture maker Louis Majorelle. Jean Prouvé apprenticed to a blacksmith, studied engineering, and produced ironwork for such greats of French modernism as the architect Robert Mallet-Stevens. In 1931, he opened the firm Atelier Prouvé. There, he perfected techniques in folded metal that resulted in his Standard chair (1934) and other designs aimed at institutions such as schools and hospitals.
During World War II, Prouvé was a member of the French Resistance, and his first postwar efforts were devoted to designing metal pre-fab housing for those left homeless by the conflict. In the 1950s, Prouvé would unite with Charlotte Perriand and Pierre Jeanneret (Le Corbusier’s cousin) on numerous design projects. In 1952, he and Perriand and artist Sonia Delaunay created pieces for the Cité Internationale Universitaire foundation in Paris, which included the colorful, segmented bookshelves that are likely Prouvé’s and Perriand’s best-known designs. The pair also collaborated on 1954’s Antony line of furniture, which again, like the works on 1stDibs, demonstrated a facility for combining material strength with lightness of form.
Prouvé spent his latter decades mostly as a teacher. His work has recently won new appreciation: in 2008 the hotelier Andre Balazs purchased at auction (hammer price: just under $5 million) the Maison Tropicale, a 1951 architectural prototype house that could be shipped flat-packed, and was meant for use by Air France employees in the Congo. Other current Prouvé collectors include Brad Pitt, Larry Gagosian, Martha Stewart and the fashion designer Marc Jacobs. The rediscovery of Jean Prouvé — given not only the aesthetic and practical power of his designs, but also the social conscience his work represents — marks one of the signal “good” aspects of collecting vintage 20th century design. An appreciation of Jean Prouvé is an appreciation of human decency.
- Jean Prouve DaybedLocated in Beverly Hills, CAOriginal Jean Prouve "Antony " daybed Ateliers Jean Prouve France, 1954 Original black linen upholstery, oak table, enameled steel frame. Daybed features signature swivel si...Category
Vintage 1950s Daybeds
MaterialsMetal
$38,000 - Jacques Adnet DeskBy Jacques AdnetLocated in Beverly Hills, CARare and important desk by Jacques Adnet wrapped in black leather with signature saddle stitching and 3 drawers. Curved legs wrapped in leather with b...Category
Vintage 1950s French Desks
MaterialsLeather, Acrylic, Walnut
$25,000 Sale Price28% Off - Jacques Adnet Table/DeskBy Jacques AdnetLocated in Beverly Hills, CAWonderful Jacques Adnet table which could also be used as a desk. Beautiful slatted wood top and signature caramel leather legs with contrast stitch detail New leather beautifully...Category
Vintage 1940s French Center Tables
MaterialsLeather, Oak
$42,000 - 1950s Italian Writing DeskBy Gio PontiLocated in Beverly Hills, CA1950s Italian writing desk in the manner of Gio Ponti Wonderfully constructed of beechwood with original kelly green laminate top. Great hardware...Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Desks
MaterialsLaminate, Beech
$6,000 Sale Price36% Off - Gio Ponti Attributed DeskBy Gio PontiLocated in Beverly Hills, CARare Gio Ponti attributed desk - Italy, 1950s Gorgeous from every angle with floating top and drawers and angular scissor legs Constructed of oak wood and original black top In...Category
Vintage 1950s Italian Desks
MaterialsOak, Laminate
$24,500 - Charles Dudouyt Desk & ChairBy Charles DudouytLocated in Beverly Hills, CAIncredible Charles Dudouyt desk and chair with signature corkscrew carved legs, checkerboard wood top and carved circular detailed sides. Great sma...Category
Vintage 1940s French Desks
MaterialsOak
$10,500
- Jean Prouvé, Cafétéria n°512 Table, a.k.a "Compas" Table, circa 1950By Jean ProuvéLocated in Paris, FRBent sheet steel and laminated wood top H. 68.5 x L. 130 x P. 70 cm H. 26.97 x L. 51.18 x D. 27.56 inches.Category
Vintage 1950s French Desks
MaterialsSteel
- Compas DeskBy DrugeotLocated in Courbevoie, FRLeaning against the wall, the COMPAS desk is ideal for small places. Simple lines, original design and still so functional: 2 removable flaps giving access...Category
2010s French Desks
MaterialsOak
$1,736 / item - France Desk Art Deco, 1950, France, Material: Wood Attributed to Jean SouvrainLocated in Ciudad Autónoma Buenos Aires, CFrench Desk Style: Art Deco Year 1940 Wood and bronze Finish: polyurethanic lacquer. It is an elegant and sophisticated dream desk. The quality of the furniture and the exotic wood...Category
Vintage 1940s French Art Deco Desks and Writing Tables
MaterialsBronze
- Boulle Desk .Located in Kraków, MałopolskaBoulle Desk from 1880Category
Antique 1870s French French Provincial Desks
MaterialsOak
$7,595 / item - Executive Desk, Corner Desk in Mahogany, Germany, 1970'sBy Arne Vodder, Johannes AndersenLocated in Wiesbaden, DEBeautifully designed writing desk in teak. With a very distinct design this desks every wood surface has been given specific angles such as the tabletop, the unit with drawers as wel...Category
Mid-20th Century German Scandinavian Modern Desks
MaterialsMetal
- Jean PROUVE - "Standard BS"Located in Saint ouen, FRJean PROUVE (1901-1984). "Standard BS" desk in folded and white lacquered sheet steel and oak suspended pedestals. Manufactured by the Jean Prouvé workshops around 1948. H: 74 cm - W...Category
Vintage 1940s Desks
MaterialsWood
$48,826