Furniture and interior design have evolved to some considerable extent as people have adopted various models for theory offices, homes, and interior building designs over the years. Interior design is the science and art in which artists enhance the interior side of a building to realize an aesthetically pleasing and healthy environment. Aspects such as researching, planning, and coordinating are the managerial functions that an interior designer employs in this daily work. As a science, interior design can be regarded as a multifaceted profession that entails the development and execution of the selected model. Over the years, different personalities have contributed through their work to the development and evolution of interior design. One of such person is Jacques-Emile Ruhlmann, a French man well known for his artistic work in Art Décor Style, manufacturing items like pianos, cabinets, and chairs out of wood.
Jacques-Emile Ruhlmann happens to be a famous interior decor artist hailing from France who utilizes furniture for his interior design work. He was inspired by his parents, who primarily participated in the decorating business and saw him take it over after his father passed away. He has tremendously impacted the interior décor art world. In the year 1919, he contributed to the establishment of Ruhlmann et Laurent, a company specializing in interior design. The company also produces home products like wallpapers and different lighting. It focuses on the formation of elegant furniture designs using exotic and precious woods, which he combined with ivory fittings (Bryant and David 146). The classical design elements coupled with craftsmanship ideals that existed in the furniture back in the 18th century were the source of his most potent inspiration. The artist later shaped the same old ideas into what he referred to as precious pieces. They occurred between 1918 and 1925 and happened to be his favourites. They were curved using rare woods like Brazilian rosewood and amboyna burl or a combination of both. He would transform them from simple to slight curves.
The company also produces home products such as wallpapers, furniture, and lighting. Through the Ruhlmann et Laurent Company, he focused on the formation of his products, hence giving them a classic appeal to users. Jacques is regarded as one of the loudest promoters of the Art Décor style, which uses furniture and interior design. Ruhlmann is someone to envy because he is among the pioneers of putting art into interior design. He has been of the opinion that beasts determine the salvation of art, and hence, he employed spirits of the age of the 19th century, and that is the reason he is the artist of my choice. His work, however, does not involve ornaments. Instead, he fashions his wooden work and utilizes the most exotic materials, including metal, different wood, and ivory. This further propelled Jacques to become an artist of all times concerning post-war conventional, as he was enthusiastic about showing the world his enormous wealth in art and taste. Going by his achievements, he has the potential to inject the life of the aristocratic classical era of the past into the modern world (Rappolt and Mark 145). I would like my artist to design a wooden and leather graced chair, such as the Macassar-ebony chair he had planned. He utilized leather made by hand tools, and a single unit sells for at least $ 28,000, which changes the ambience of the club atmosphere compared to modern designs. It has been manufactured using semi-precious, rarely-found materials that exhibit opulence. This is a work that is not showy nor gauche, instead of a plan that gives a luxury feel and is not ostentatious.
The elegance exhibited by the Macassar chair is of untold beauty. Comparing it with modern furniture reveals the excessive decoration employed in the making of contemporary club chairs and dark-figured wood. Ruhlmann’s designs were not intended to be vying for attention but now naturally command it, as shown in the photo below.
Pic 1.0 Pollaro Macassar-ebony and leather club chair with bronze feet, from $28,000
Aesthetically, his style is a mixture of drama and fragility. It is a redefined style and viewed as shamelessly elicit, with the interior décor having passed through both modernist and egalitarian revolutions. He once pronounced that “only the very rich can pay for what is new, and they alone can make it fashionable”( Abercrombie and Stanley 194). These utterances are still valid and up to date. Ruhlmann’s style of making wooden furniture is both contemporary and feels homely to have around.
Renowned modern-day designers such as Accouter, hailing from London, confess to having been inspired by Jacques as clients have contracted them for the creation of lavished homes themed by Jacques’s style of interior décor and can be said to have phenomenally excelled in his now vibrant career due to Jacques inspirations. His favourite item is the diamond patterning, which is seen in a variety of cabinets that give the final product panelling finishing concepts that transform a living area. Ruhlmann’s career was founded in the post-World War in France, hence managing to draw clientele from the wealthy and entrepreneurial class of the time. These were a category of people who were eager to show off their wealth and sophistication through art, making Jacques’s aristocratic styles of the ancient times look appealing and also accessible, particularly a group that called themselves “new loyalty”, which raised his ratings even higher in France (Vanlaethem et al., 119).
Different exhibitions have been held in his name in different locations, such as “The lines in his furniture often have a slight swell or curve as if the wood were breathing.” This is the slogan he is best known for. For instance, in 2004, his work was the subject of a huge retrospective exhibition that was held in the New York US Metropolitan Museum of Art, which happens to be one of the most frequented museums in the world due to its rich history. Again, in 2009, the American Media-New York Times recognized him as having contributed immensely to the decorations world and crowned him as “Art Décor’s Greatest Artist.” This shows that he not only excelled back in ancient times but also has an unending legacy that lives on in the field of décor, and he explicitly uses furniture in his artwork (Bryant and David 146). Another event that propelled his career was industrialization, leading to increased demand for his works, which are also famed for his name. The future artist drew a lot of inspiration from the field of décor. The fact that his work can transform rooms into adorable things through his mastery and use of furniture in itself is marketing enough for Jacques ( Laidlaw and Christine Wallace 90).
Other designers have taken Ruhlmann’s aesthetic design style and twisted it in several gears. One such artist is David Linley, who is synonymous with a décor style that is refreshed and comes with “the Suits Lonely Interior Design” that is made at Coleridge. His numerous cues in the designs have emanated from Ruhlmann. For example, he says, “There is the bow front of a desk, the fluting on a torpedo leg, and the fine lattice stringing on a chiffonier.” While Linley’s art décor line has been literal for a given period, coming up with new pieces has been nothing but experiments. He continued and added that “Ruhlmann’s work was not a pastiche of what had gone before; instead, he modernized traditional techniques and steered makers to innovate” ”( Abercrombie and Stanley194). These sentiments can be seen evidently through the Graft Collection, which saw the collaboration of Designer Simon Hassan. Console tables go for $ 5,950, and side tables for $ 2,750, which have been finished using marquetry brass and steel, showcasing the unique nature of wood. This strikes a rich, glamorous cord that can be traced back to the 19th century. Ironically, it unmistakably looks like it belongs to the 21st century. The marquetry items depict perfections that had been worked out before production and had been themed to appear as Jacques’s works. It portrays a fresh accent in a finely growing and individually rare category of design.
In conclusion, it has taken time to see art décor to get where it currently is. However, much of its fundamentals can be borrowed from its past and those artists who have been actively involved in it. Despite being in ancient World War times, his work skills and products in the field cannot be overlooked. French Architects Association commemorates his work in the robust art world and uses it as an indicator for the future development of architectural art designs. He is the originator of the taste of high style in France, having come at a time when the field of interior design in furniture was unknown. Combined with his aesthetic refinement, excellent artistic techniques, and utilization of rich materials positioned his work at par with the exquisite artists of the 18th century.
Works Cited
Abercrombie, Stanley. “Jacques-Émile Ruhlmann: The Designer’s Archives (Book).” Interior
Design, vol. 75, no. 10, Aug. 2004, p. 194.
Bryant, David. “Jacques-Émile Ruhlmann: The Designer’s Archives. 2 Vols. (Book).” Library
Journal, vol. 129, no. 14, 9/1/2004, p. 146.
Rappolt, Mark. “Jacques-Emile Ruhlman: The Designer’s Archives (Book).” Modern Painters,
vol. 17, no. 3, Sept. 2004, p. 145.
Laidlaw, Christine Wallace. “The Metropolitan Museum of Art and Modern Design: 1917-
1929.” The Journal of Decorative and Propaganda Arts 8 (1988): 88-103.
Vanlaethem, France, and Lora Chin. “Ruhlmann. Un génie de l’Art déco/Ruhlmann: Genius of
Art Deco.” (2006): 118-120.
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