Beschreibung:

Property from a Private Collection, London Jean Royère Follow "Flaque" low table circa 1955 Straw marquetry-covered wood. 10 x 49 3/4 x 25 7/8 in. (25.5 x 126.5 x 65.7 cm)
Provenance Private collection, France Galerie Jacques Lacoste, Paris Hemisphere Gallery, London, acquired from the above, 1989 Acquired from the above by the present owner, early 1990s Literature “Il y avait aussi des chambres,” Le décor d’aujourd’hui , no. 86, 1954, p. 187 René Chavance, "Les aménagements nouveaux de Jean Royère et les réflexions qu'ils inspirent," Mobilier et Décoration , no. 8, November 1956, p. 21 Claude Opole, "Quartier libre de fantaisie," Mobilier et Décoration , November 1958, p. 4 Claudine Chareyron, "Conforts et plaisirs de la campagne," Mobilier et Décoration , May 1959, p. 2 Jean Royère , exh. cat., Galerie Jacques Lacoste, Paris, 1999, p. 59 Jean Royère décorateur à Paris , exh. cat., Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Paris, 1999, pp. 27, 63 Pierre-Emmanuel Martin-Vivier, Jean Royère , Paris, 2002, pp. 209, 211 Galerie Jacques Lacoste and Galerie Patrick Seguin, Jean Royère Volume 1 , Paris, 2012, pp. 49, 110, 212-13, 216, 218 Galerie Jacques Lacoste and Galerie Patrick Seguin, Jean Royère Volume 2 , Paris, 2012, pp. 58, 167 Pierre-Emmanuel Martin-Vivier, Jean Royère , Paris, 2017, pp. 157, 217, 251, 278 Catalogue Essay The freeform shape of the “Flaque” table—French for puddle—illustrates the influence of biomorphism introduced by artists such as Hans Arp and Alexander Calder and situates Royère’s design within a larger international discourse. From the 1930s, designers including Frederick Kiesler Eileen Gray Charlotte Perriand and Isamu Noguchi began exploring biomorphism in their work, departing from more traditional furniture forms. Technical innovations, such as plywood and tubular metal, assisted in the creation of these unconventional, organic forms. However for Royère’s “Flaque” table the designer employed straw marquetry, a traditional technique meant to imitate wood veneer which had been in use in Europe since the seventeenth century. Revitalized by designers such as Jean-Michel-Frank and André Groult during the 1930s, the technique of straw marquetry enabled Royère to combine color, pattern, and craftsmanship, transforming a humble material into a sophisticated design. During the following decades Royère would create several variations of the “Flaque” table, incorporating different materials and varied colors and ornamentation. In 1947, for his own residence on the Faubourg-Saint-Honoré in Paris, Royère designed his first pieces of biomorphic furniture, an “Ours Polaire” sofa and a “Flaque” low table. The latter featured an opaline glass top decorated with red stars and supported by three perforated sheet metal legs, positioned in the designer’s living room alongside a carpet whose fluid form echoed that of the low table. A few years later, Royère presented a version of the table with a blue opaline glass top as part of his design for an office lounge at the 1949 Salon des artistes décorateurs. These versions of Royère’s "Flaque" table from the 1940s illustrate the connection to the biomorphic forms developed by designers during the 1930s, such as the series of coffee tables designed by Gray with irregularly shaped wooden or metal tops on tubular steel frames. During the 1950s Royère developed his repertoire of freeform designs, substituting the use of metal with straw marquetry, thus enabling him to introduce new ornamentation into these works, characterized by supple lines and delicate star motifs. In 1943 at the Salon d’automne Royère presented his first piece of straw marquetry furniture, a cabinet with red and green stars composed of thin strips of straw. For his presentation at the 1954 Salon des arts ménagers, Royère exhibited a Flaque low table featuring black straw marquetry and enlivened with multi-colored stars uniformly positioned across the tabletop. For the furnishings of a villa in Pontault-Combault (1955-1958), Royère paired a cabinet and “Flaque” low table, each decorated with straw marquetry and featuring the multi-colored star motif. Set against matte ivory-colored wal