Rare and Early Art Deco shagreen black lacquered giltwood stool Attributed Pierre Legrain

Rare and early Art Deco shagreen black lacquered giltwood stool "tabouret" in the Africanist style attributed to Pierre Legrain. France: circa 1925. Similar examples are featured in the collection of the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts as well as in the Brooklyn Museum ( see reference photos). Provenance: Private collection USA, Galerie Yvonne Benda Zurich, William Bowman Milan, Eliane Vincileoni-Corradini Milan. The stool is accompanied by its custom crate showing various labels including a label inscribed "Yvonne Benda - St- Germain". Pierre Legrain was introduced to bookbinding when Jacques Doucet, couturier and great art collector, took the young artist under his wing as an employee and assigned him the task of binding his collection of books. Pierre Legrain then set up his workshop in the patron's apartments and worked with Jacques Doucet to harmonize the decoration of his apartment with his art collection. This collaboration with Pierre Legrain initiated the creation of exceptional furniture mixing the influences of cubism and a African art, particularly prized by Doucet. At the same period, Pierre Legrain met Jeanne Tachard, a friend of Jacques Doucet, whose collection of African art inspired Legrain. She commissioned Pierre Legrain to create the furniture to decorate her Villa at La Celle-St-Cloud. Literature: Art Deco Furniture, Duncan, pg. 133, no. 144.

width

21 in.

height

21.5 in.

depth

11.75

condition

Very good condition , crackeling to black lacquer , normal abrasions and wear to underside of platform base consistent with use over time.

Circa 1925