"Drouant" Side Chair
Ruhlmann designed this chair for the fashionable Drouant restaurant in Paris. The subtle elegance of the design, with its gracious curves, counter-curves, tapering, and swelling, makes it representative of all of Ruhlmann’s work. The Met bought this example from the designer in 1925. Its original silk damask upholstery was designed by Ruhlmann and made by a weaver in Lyon. Unfortunately, the silk was so fine that it disintegrated over time, perhaps intensified by the use of artificial dyes. The current fabric is a digitally printed reproduction that convincingly evokes the colors and texture of the original.
Artwork Details
- Title: "Drouant" Side Chair
- Designer: Emile-Jacques Ruhlmann (French, Paris 1879–1933 Paris)
- Date: ca. 1925
- Medium: Macassar ebony, silvered bronze, modern silk upholstery
- Dimensions: Overall: 33 7/16 × 17 3/16 × 19 3/4 in. (85 × 43.6 × 50.2 cm)
- Classification: Furniture
- Credit Line: Purchase, Edward C. Moore Jr. Gift, 1925
- Object Number: 25.231.3a–c
- Curatorial Department: Modern and Contemporary Art
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Emile-Jacques Ruhlmann
ca. 1925
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ca. 1917
Emile-Jacques Ruhlmann
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ca. 1925
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