MARCEL COARD (1889-1975)

A COQUILLE-D'OEUF, LACQUER AND CHROMED METAL TABLE, CIRCA 1930

Details

MARCEL COARD (1889-1975)
A Coquille-d'Oeuf, Lacquer and Chromed Metal Table, circa 1930
25¼ in. (63.7 cm.) high, 13¾ in. (35 cm.) square
underside stamped C. Coard and with parrot cypher

Provenance

Private collection, France.

Further details

The work of Marcel Coard was produced in a limited quantity and is exceedingly rare to come to the market. Primarily a decorator, Coard supplied the majority of his clients with antiques from his shop on boulevard Haussmann in Paris (which he opened in 1914) and reserved the magnificent, luxurious objects he himself designed for only a select few. His most famous patron was the couturier Jacques Doucet whose studio in Neuilly, decorated and furnished between 1927 and 1929, was perhaps the single most important assemblage of contemporary works of fine and decorative art of the day. Through Doucet, Coard associated with other gifted designers such as Pierre Legrain, Eileen Gray, Rose Adler and Gustav Miklos. Coard's interest in African and Oceanic art, an influence which is evident in his work, was certainly furthered by Doucet's remarkable collection.

Coard was a private individual who avoided the annual salons and exhibitions, and his work received little attention at the time. His true signature was the variety of rich and exotic materials with which he masterfully veneered and encrusted each piece: mother-of-pearl, shagreen, lacquer, parchment, tinted mirror-glass, lapis-lazuli and amethyst. Or, as seen in this exquisite table, eggshell, which was also notably used by Jean Dunand.
The present table surprises in its unusual choice of materials. The subtle tone and texture of the eggshell stands in stark contrast to the chromed-metal spheres connecting the table top to the base. With this combination, Coard explores the sumptuous materials of Art Deco, yet pays tribute to a modernistic aesthetic at the same time.

Lot Essay

cf. P. Kjellberg, Le Mobilier du XXe Siècle Dictionnaire des Créateurs, Paris, 1994, p. 138 for another example of a work by Coard decorated with eggshell and lacquer.
A. Duncan, Art Deco Furniture, London, 1984, pp. 43-44 for more information on Coard.
J. Gallotti, "Marcel Coard", Art et Décoration, Paris, September 1932, vol. 61, pp. 277-288 for more information on Coard and other important examples of his work.

More from Important 20th Century Decorative Art & Design

View All