From Jean Prouvé to Ron Arad: nine design greats offered in Paris

There was a time when mid-century modern style was not as cool and desirable as it is today — when the sleek lines of a 1960s Scandinavian sideboard or the metallic sheen of a Jean Prouvé cabinet were not the aspirational focus of every interior design magazine. ‘Back in the early 2000s, there were very few dealers who offered mid-century,’ says Agathe de Bazin, head of Design at Christie’s in Paris. ‘Collectors had to go the extra mile to find these things.’

This makes Tiqui Atencio Demirdjian all the more remarkable. ‘I learned from the best,’ says the author and collector, citing her friend, the late interior designer Frédéric Méchiche, whose sophisticated yet eclectic incorporation of trends and eras into his clients’ homes earned him a reputation as a design maverick with a superlative eye. Not only did he show her ‘the value and beauty of mid-century modern furniture’, he also inspired her to place it alongside pieces from other periods.

Creative combinations have become a hallmark of her style. ‘It seems obvious to us now, but few people would have thought of pairing an American designer like George Nakashima with a European like Mathieu Matégot back in 2006,’ says Bazin. ‘I love how well Ms Atencio Demirdjian managed to combine these things — she really is a pioneer.’

From post-war industrial chic to post-millennial biomorphism, here are nine outstanding pieces selected by Atencio Demirdjian, all offered in the Paris Design sale on 21 May 2025.

Jean Prouvé, ‘BA 12’ sideboard, circa 1946

The resourceful French designer Jean Prouvé had an instinctive talent for blending the traditional with the industrial. A pioneer of post-modern architecture, Prouvé never hid the construction process, boldly making visible the screws, joints and nails in his ingenious designs. This ‘BA 12’ sideboard embodies Prouvé’s philosophy of truth in design, combining the smoothness of a Brancusi sculpture with an uncompromising toughness.

Serge Mouille, three-armed floor lamp, circa 1952

This celebrated floor lamp was conceived by the French virtuoso Serge Mouille, a metalsmith turned lighting designer who used his craft to create deceptively simple, ingenious lamps in black-enamelled aluminium. With their sleek, graphic style, narrow profile and high functionality, they won the designer great acclaim in the 1950s.

Mathieu Matégot, ‘Nagasaki’ side chairs, circa 1954

The Hungarian-born French designer Mathieu Matégot developed the technical process known as ‘Rigitulle’ during his imprisonment in a mechanical engineering factory in Germany during the Second World War. The technique, which became his signature, allows sheet metal to be shaped and folded in a way that mimics fabric. These ‘Nagasaki’ side chairs are a perfect example of the practice: they appear almost weightless, but have a hidden solidity.

Georges Jouve, Cylindres, circa 1955-1968

The ceramicist Georges Jouve had intended to become an architect before his plans were interrupted by the Second World War. Having served as a soldier in the French Liberation Army, he began making ceramics as a way of earning a living after he escaped from a German prisoner-of-war camp. Jouve sought inspiration for his designs in early modern art movements such as Cubism and abstraction, and soon settled on his signature style: smooth, minimal objects glazed in strong metallic colours, combining functionality with a liquid beauty.

Charlotte Perriand, coffee table, circa 1955

In the 1930s, the revolutionary French designer Charlotte Perriand showed her passion for modern materials by creating stark, uncompromising furniture that was astonishingly radical. She was such a hardline modernist that she used to wear a necklace of ball bearings, and even wrote a diatribe against wood. That all changed in the 1950s, when a trip to Japan reawakened her love of nature. Her subsequent designs echoed the natural world through the use of organic materials.

Poul Kjærholm, ‘PK 9’ dining chair, 1960

Poul Kjærholm designed furniture with the gravity of a sculptor, creating beautiful, austere, modernist works. The ‘PK 9’ dining chair was one of his most innovative constructions, combining modernity with a respect for human scale. The Danish designer believed in being true to his materials, resulting in timeless furniture that still looks contemporary today.

George Nakashima, ‘R’ bench, 1972

Anyone who has seen the 2020 documentary Woodworker will know what an extraordinary man George Nakashima was. An architect and designer who believed in the divinity of craft, he said that his hand-carved wooden pieces were a way for the tree’s spirit to live on in a new form. Nakashima drew on his Japanese and American heritage, together with his nomadic wanderings in India, to create furniture imbued with a soulful energy.

Isamu Noguchi, ‘Pierced Table’, 1982

The Japanese American polymath Isamu Noguchi is celebrated for his graceful, well-structured creations. The artist believed in the life-enhancing power of sculpture, using his skills to create harmonious designs that could be enjoyed by everyone. His simple ‘Akari’ paper lamps are still in production today. This ‘Pierced Table’ — designed in 1982 — has a lively sensibility, reflecting the artist’s lifelong fascination with playgrounds, which he saw as utopian social spaces.

Ron Arad, ‘Blo-Void III’ armchair, circa 2006

Ron Arad evades categorisation: he is an innovator who has been pushing the boundaries of the creative industries for decades, bringing his restless brilliance to the domestic interior in pieces such as this sculptural, biomorphic ‘Blo-Void III’ chair. He attributes his non-conformity to the influence of Marcel Duchamp and Man Ray, artists who pioneered new forms of creativity in the early modern era. The British-Israeli designer became a household name in the early 1990s for his polished D-Sofa, which has broken records at auction.

For Art’s Sake: Selected Works by Tiqui Atencio & Ago Demirdjian is part of the 21 May 2025 Design sale at Christie’s in Paris, on view 15-21 May