Andre Sornay French Midcentury Mahogany Bedside / End Table
About the Item
- Creator:Andre Sornay (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 26.5 in (67.31 cm)Width: 18.5 in (46.99 cm)Depth: 19.5 in (49.53 cm)
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:20th Century
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:Queens, NY
- Reference Number:Seller: REG48611stDibs: LU977933786382
Andre Sornay
Although he is among the least known of the like-minded French Art Deco furniture designers of his era, André Sornay introduced innovative fabrication techniques and a unique decorative style to his modernist seating, case pieces and other creations.
Sornay was born in Lyon in 1902, and graduated from École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts de Lyon in 1918. His career as a furniture designer began in 1919 when he was appointed head of his family’s furniture company after his father’s death.
In the early 1920s — inspired by the Bauhaus and De Stijl as well as his friends and fellow French avant-garde designers Francis Jourdain and Pierre Chareau — Sornay shifted the company’s focus from manufacturing period reproductions to creating contemporary designs.
Sornay’s work fused tradition with modernism. He preferred to work with metals, exotic woods such as mahogany and rosewood, rubber and Duco lacquer for a range of cabinets, desks, chairs and mirrors. Sornay’s pieces featured sleek brass drawer pulls and sharply geometric lines, and the distinctive mode that he worked in was known throughout Lyon as “Le Style Sornay.”
Sornay was also recognized for his inventive design methods that were not only decorative but functional. In 1932, he patented the cloudage technique — studding the perimeter of veneered furniture panels with uniform brass nails. Sornay integrated this technique into his wardrobes, side tables and the armchairs he designed, which were frequently defined by clean lines and sharp angles. In the early 1950s, he also patented a technique called the “Tigette,” which allowed for quick and easy assembly or disassembly of modular furniture — a forerunner to IKEA’s flat-packed furniture.
While Sornay isn’t as well known as other European modernists like Le Corbusier and Charlotte Perriand, he attracted modest attention at exhibitions of the day, such as the 1923 Salon d’Automne and the 1925 Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes in Paris, the design fair that brought the Art Deco style to the world. He was awarded the bronze medal at Paris’s Exposition Internationale des Arts et Techniques dans la Vie Moderne in 1937.
In the late 1950s, Sornay ceded control of his furniture design company to his children, remaining as an advisor until production ceased in 1999. He died the following year.
On 1stDibs, discover a range of vintage André Sornay case pieces and storage cabinets, seating and tables.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Shipping from: Long Island City, NY
- Return Policy
More From This Seller
View All20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Night Stands
Metal
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Side Tables
Walnut
Mid-20th Century French Mid-Century Modern Dressers
Leather
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Side Tables
Wood, Walnut
20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Night Stands
Metal
20th Century Danish Mid-Century Modern Night Stands
Wood, Walnut
You May Also Like
Mid-20th Century Belgian Mid-Century Modern Night Stands
Metal, Brass
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Night Stands
Brass
Vintage 1960s Danish Scandinavian Modern Night Stands
Mahogany
Vintage 1960s Danish Scandinavian Modern Night Stands
Mahogany
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Night Stands
Cane, Rosewood, Walnut
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Side Tables
Walnut
