Pierre Chareau architecte de la Maison de verre un moderne au temps de l’Art décoClosed

Exhibition Overview

This exhibition, held with the full cooperation of the Centre Pompidou of Paris, introduces the artist Pierre Chareau (1883-1950), who produced unparalleled works of furniture, interior design, and architecture during the 1920s and 30s.

The young Chareau launched his career in the Paris branch of the English furniture manufacturer, Waring & Gillow, before striking out on his own in 1919. Beginning in 1922, he started working with the craftsman metalworker Louis Dalbet to create handcrafted lighting and architectural fixtures made of metal. At the 1925 International Exposition of Modern Industrial and Decorative Arts in Paris, he designed the office-library of the French Embassy exhibit, which received considerable attention. The opportunity led to two major commissions, the guesthouse of Reifenberg and the interior design of the Grand Hotel in Tours (both completed in 1927).

The centerpiece of the exhibit is the House of Glass, jointly designed by Chareau in the years 1927 to 1931. The residence still stands today on Paris’ Left Bank and is famed as an early masterpiece of modern architecture. The unique space is built into the hollowed out lower floors of an 18th century apartment building, with the third floor preserved as-is. This pre-existing upper floor is supported by steel pillars, painted black and a vivid red, while the facade is covered in translucent glass blocks to maximize the amount of light cast into the restricted space. The densely packed interior is interspersed with elegant furnishings and the fixtures required for modern life.

Beginning in 1932, Chareau was affected by the economic recession, and in 1940 he moved to America to seek out the new world. He remained active there, designing the home and studio of Robert Motherwell, for example. He died in 1950, however, and it was not until the 1990s that his reputation and works experienced a revival in interest. In Japan as elsewhere, he had been thought of as an architect who worked for only a brief period of time between the two World Wars and who produced few works.

The exhibition includes approximately 60 items from Paris’s Musée National d'Art Moderne in the Centre Pompidou, including lighting fixtures, furniture, models, and design sketches, as well as photographs and documents. Even as Chareau’s interior furnishings are now recognized as superior examples of the art deco movement, this is the first exhibition in Japan that fully showcases the range of his rare talent and modern style—in furniture, interior design, architecture, and other fields.

Section One

In the 1920s, Chareau produced a number of furniture and interior pieces for the Exposition of Decorative Arts and the Salon d’Automne. In his work, he drew on the rich traditions of French decor while also focusing on functionality, pioneering new materials and employing new industrial techniques in the process. Section One of the exhibit showcases his representative art deco pieces from the 1920s, including lighting fixtures such as his Table Lamp and Nun Table Lamp (both 1923), and furniture such as the steel tubing chairs designed for the Grand Hotel Tours. Artwork and models by his artistic acquaintances, such as Jacques Lipchitz and Pablo Picasso, are also on display, and visitors can trace Chareau’s blossoming talent as he transitions from interior designer to modern architect. This section also features three pieces from the 1925 Art Deco exposition that were awarded with the Legion of Honor.

Section Two

Two of his earliest and most important clients were the doctor Jean Dalsace and his wife, Annie (born Bernheim), and in 1927 they commissioned him to build a new house. Helping him in the design was the Dutch architect Bernard Bijvoet. The first floor of the house was occupied by Dr. Dalsace’s medical clinic. Visitors who climb the imposing metal staircase are greeted by the reception salon. Above the spacious salon are the private rooms of the family. The bathrooms that are attached to each bedroom feature rotating partitions and moveable bureaus made of metal, fixtures designed by Chareau for modern convenience and sanitation. Characterized by its connected spaces, moveable furnishings, translucent walls, and functionality, the house is representative of the new approach that modern architecture was exploring at the time. As the day ends, the glass house is lit up from within like a magic lantern; in the evening, large floodlights hanging outside the house pour light into it.

Section Three (Difficulties and Exile)

In 1932, Chareau completed two interiors (apartments belonging to the Dreyfus family and Fahri family) in which we see Chareau’s style reach full maturity. At the same time, however, France was falling into a deep recession, and Chareau suddenly began to run out of work. In 1937, after completing a small house for his friend Djemel Anik, a dancer of Île-de-France, Chareau moved to the new world of America. Section 3 features works from his final years in America, such as the East Hampton residence One-room House and the home and studio of the artist Robert Motherwell.

Exhibition design

The exhibition space was created by MIKAN (Project Lead: Manual Tardits).

Exhibition Catalog

Architect Pierre Chareau, architect of the House of Glass, A Modernist in the time of Art Deco Pu
blisher: Kajima Institute Publishing. Available at the museum shop, and from August at bookstores across the country, and online.