Cabinet (for Jacques Doucet residence, Paris, France) (Primary Title)
Pierre Legrain, French, 1889 - 1929 (Designer)
Jean Dunand, Swiss (active in France), 1877 - 1942 (Lacquerer)
The French fashion designer and art patron Jacques Doucet ordered this cabinet from designer Pierre Legrain. Its interior has 24 small file drawers covered in light red lacquer. Each drawer has a metal handle with a designated letter of the alphabet. Because of its unusual design, this cabinet was most likely created for Doucet’s financial documents. It was Legrain who played the most influential role in redecorating Doucet’s Paris house, a project which lasted from 1914 to 1929.
not signed
Gift of Sydney and Frances Lewis
Displayed at the XIIIè Salon des artistes décorateurs, Paris, 1922;
“Fastes et décors de la vie, 1900-1929,” Musée Galliera, Paris, June-Aug. 1957
“Fastes et décors de la vie, 1900-1929,” Musée Galliera, Paris, June-Aug. 1957
Philippe Garner, "Pierre Legrain-Decorateur, Connoisseur, vol. 189, no. 760, June 1975,pp. 130-137;
Image released via Creative Commons CC-BY-NC
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