Paris and Art in 1950s - influence on design

Paris, newly liberated from the German occupation, sprung to life during the 1950s as a centre for all modes of artistic endeavour, most notably in fine art, literature, and music. Its association with romantic literary figures such as Jean-Paul Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir, and Roland Barthes made the city incredibly appealing to every serious-minded man or woman. But the city’s allure was not just intellectual: Gay Paree was reopened to visitors, and they flocked in droves. Many high-end magazines in the United States and Europe, such as Esquire, advertised Paris vacations, which were now much more accessible due to the rise in commercial air travel.

Max Factor Pink & Orange Lipstick ad 1958

Parisian motifs

Parisian motifs started to appear on almost every kind of clothing, household fabric, and crockery: palettes, streetside cafes, dressed poodles, and the Eiffel Tower. Designers looked to fine artists for inspiration as well as more familiar pictures. Many of the artists they selected, such as Joan Miro and Paul Klee, painted free-floating organic abstract images that could easily be transformed into repeat fabric or wallpaper designs. Similarly, Alexander Calder’s mobiles’ abstract shapes were easily made into precise graphic forms. Surrealist artists, especially Salvador Dali, whose metaphysical images complemented contemporary philosophical concepts, were sources of inspiration for designers. Artists were immediately elevated to the status of gods, and everyone aspired to be one. The art schools of Paris, London, and New York came to life.

Hanging mobile—sheet metal, wire and paint designed by Alexander Calder (1954)

Paris in Film

An American in Paris (1951), starring the French Leslie Caron and the American Gene Kelly, and To Catch a Thief (1955), starring Grace Kelly and Cary Grant, were two of the major film releases of the time. Leslie Caron, alongside Audrey Hepburn, was instrumental in popularising the ‘French Look,’ an impish ‘gamine’ style of dress that featured snug black pedal pushers, flattie shoes, stripey T-shirts, berets, plenty of red lipstick, and the obligatory Gauloise. A basket containing a baguette, a bottle of wine, spaghetti, and several paintbrushes was the ultimate accessory for the art-student version of this type.

Films like these often portrayed the jazz clubs, or ‘dives,’ of Paris. Contemporary and traditional jazz emerged as the musical epitome of a ‘with it’ artistic lifestyle, and similar clubs flourished in London’s Soho and New York’s Greenwich Village. The saxophone motif, which had gained popularity in the 1940s, could be found not only on record sleeves but also on any item or fabric willing to embrace it.

Sources

Byars, M., & Riley, T. (2004). The design encyclopedia. Laurence King Publishing.

Powell, P. (1994). ’50S & ’60s style. Grange Books.

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Maurice Matet (b.1903) French Decorator and furniture designer

eginning in 1923. He occasionally cooperated with Etienne Kohlmann and Dubard. He became a professor at the Ecole des Arts Appliqués in Paris in c1930. After WWII, he continued to design furniture, creating models in metal and glass and silver tableware, with radically Modern lines.Read More →
Primerose Bordier (1929 – 1995) French textile designer

Primrose Bordier (1929 – 1995) was a French designer known for her colourful and innovative home textiles. She studied at the Atelier Charpentier in Paris.Read More →
Damon (1920s & 1930s) French lighting design firm

Damon was located at 4 avenue Pierre-I-de-Serbie in Paris during the 1920s and 1930s. It was well-known for its innovative use of glass in lighting fixtures, with white glass designs that provided a dazzling effect without glare.Read More →
Staub Cookware – Benefits of Cast Iron Cooking Pots

For over 2000 years, cast iron cooking pots have been used. They have long been valued for their durability and heat retention capacity, and it is not uncommon for these valuable items to be passed down from generation to generation. The addition of enamelling is now a significant advancement in this traditional material.Read More →
Jaque Klein (1899 – 1963) French Decorator & Furniture Designer

Jaque Klein was a French decorator and furniture designer. In 1942, he founded his firm, 31 rue de Miromesnil, Paris, after designing wallpaper and rugs for the Galeries Lafayette department store in Paris. Delepoulle and Gouffe both made some of his furniture.Read More →
Ronald-Cecil Sportes – French architect and designer

Ronald-Cecil Sportes is a French architect and designer. He was born Orleanville (Algeria) and professionally active in Paris. He studied at the Ecole des Arts Appliques et des Metiers d’Arts, Paris. Read More →
PLUMY sofa by Annie Hiéronimus ⚜️

The Plumy line was inspired by the 1980s and is a revival of the famous model that first debuted over 35 years ago. Plumy’s enveloping design is the ultimate of comfort and relaxation, made entirely of bonded blocks of polyether and Bultex polyurethane foams of various densities.Read More →
Kafa Stool by Luca Erba | Good Design ♥️

The Kafa Stool is a subtle proclamation of weight, excellent as a compositional counter-balance or a lone anecdote, both physically and compositionally substantial. This stool, which comes in marble or oak, has an intense physicality that is gently offset by the curved focus of its design.Read More →

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The Chevron pattern – a Popular motif for Designers
The chevron, which can be seen on pottery and petrographs all over the ancient globe, is one of the oldest symbols in human history, with V-shaped markings dating back to the Neolithic age (6th to 5th millennia BC) as part of the Vinca symbols catalogue.

Lino Sabattani Italian Metal Smith – Shapes influenced by natural materials – Encyclopedia of Design
Lino Sabbatini worked as a silversmith from a very early age. He learned metalworking techniques and became interested in shapes derived from natural materials. W. Wolff in Germany commissioned him to design the 1950 Boule Teapot. He moved to Milan in 1955 and met Gio Ponti, who mentored him and included him in an exhibition organised the following year.

Eric William Ravilious (1903 – 1942) British wood engraver, watercolourist, and ceramics decorator
Eric William Ravilious (1903 – 1942) was a British wood engraver, watercolourist, and ceramics decorator. He studied at the Eastbourne School of Art from 1919 to 1922 and at the Royal College of Art in London from 1922 to 1925 under Paul Nash and others.