In 1954, Charlotte Perriand in Japan. photos Adagp, Paris, 2023 Archives Perriand/Adagp images
After Le Corbusier’s years, it was his passion for Japan that drove this design pioneer. The story told by Virginia Giraud.
In this year 1926, Mademoiselle Perrian caused a sensation in the salon of decorative artists with her corner of the lounge between Art Deco and avant-garde. The paper celebrates his talent. Next to her artwork, the reader discovers the doll face of this young woman with the choppy hair typical of the Roaring 20’s.
Immediately after this event, the young designer joined the agency of Le Corbusier and his cousin, Pierre Jeanner. This is where he developed his LC7 swivel chair and his LC4 lounge chair, iconic pieces of furniture that interior design enthusiasts still reach for.
LC7 chair by Charlotte Perriand. Silvera Press
LC4 lounge chair. Silvera Press
Japanese influences
After ten years with Le Corbusier, Charlotte emancipated herself. In 1940, when the war had just started, he was invited by the Japanese government to advise on the industrial production of furniture in the country. Despite the difficulties inherent in the geopolitical context, a 37-year-old young woman manages to board a Japanese ship and discover the Land of the Rising Sun. It is magic. Modernity and tradition come together in a bare interior where natural materials interact.
The designer traveled around the country and attended multiple conferences when the sugar tongs gave him an idea. Simple bamboo sugar tongs. In the West they are all made of metal…, a bit like the frames of his creations. Therefore, he reinvents his lounge chair in this material. Strong and flexible plant blades replace steel. Its result builds a bridge between the art of Western living and the poetic elegance of Japanese homes in harmony with nature. To complement the seating of the ideal Japanese interior, he reinterprets his Méandre bench with bamboo slats and upholsters his folding armchair in Tatsumura fabric. This expensive brocade, usually of silk, is characterized by the beauty of the patterns that decorate it. fat (belts) beautiful ladies with slim silhouettes.
1941 Charlotte Perriand during her first stay in Japan with artisans and architect Yunzo Sakakura. Photos Adagp, Paris, 2023 Archives Perriand/Adagp images
after the exhibition titled Assistance in interior decoration of an apartment in Japan. Choice, tradition, creativity, Charlotte Perriand left the Levant in 1942. The Battle of the Atlantic was raging, and at that time the country was an ally of Nazi Germany. But the aesthetics found on the island of Honshu continued to embroider the fabric of his dreams, which took shape in 1954; The Ombra Tokyo chair was thus made of natural or black beech. It looks like origami, the art of folding paper to create three-dimensional shapes.
Charlotte Periand’s creative obsession, inspired by Japan, reached its peak in 1993 when UNESCO commissioned her to create a tea house. He imagines a small house made of natural materials, sheltered by a translucent soft green canopy. It appears to be set on a disc-shaped base, with rounded pebble-covered spaces embracing tall bamboo with chlorophyll-soaked leaves. Tea drinkers sit on tatami mats in the middle of this dreamy, matcha-colored haven. Charlotte Perriand undoubtedly synthesized the essence of her memories in the shadow of Fujiyama in this work.
* Virginia Giraud holds a doctorate in history. Find him on the podcast At the heart of the story From Europe 1 Studio, on your favorite listening platform.
Source: Le Figaro
