Jean-Michel Frank (1895 – 1941) was a French interior decorator and furniture designer. He was born in Paris and professionally active in Paris and New York.
Eugenia Errazuriz’s passion for simplicity and purity affected his approach to his design work, and he combined modern lighting fixtures with provincial Louis XVI furniture.
Biography
After World War I, he worked as a cabinetmaker at Jacques-Emile Ruhlmann’s studio in Paris, where he met decorator Adolphe Chanaux, who had collaborated with André Groult and Jacques-Emile Ruhlmann on the 1925 Paris ‘Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes.’
Paris in the 1920s
From 1927 to 1933, Frank most likely designed for the Desny firm. In the 1920s, he was the first to use white-leaded wood (with his stable of designers). In 1932, after a year of collaborating in a decorating business with workshops in La Ruche (with Chanaux), opened the shop, 147 rue du Faubourg St.-Honoré, Paris. He sold pieces designed by Frank and Chanaux and associates such as Emilio Terry, Diego and Alberto Gio.
Initially, Frank’s designs were hard-edged and rectilinear, owing to Le Corbusier and Robert Mallet-Stevens, respectively. Frank received the commission to decorate the rooms of the Vicomte and Vicomtesse de Noailles’ villa in Hyéres between 1924—33 through Mallet-Stevens.
Two Essential Interiors of the Twentieth Century
Frank’s 1929 decorations and furniture for rooms of the de Noailles’ Hétel Bischoffsheim mansion, place des Etats-Unis, Paris, were among the essential Modern interiors of the century. The beige vellum walls contrasted subtly with the Macassar ebony furniture and a Modernist carpet on an ancient parquet floor. Ivory was used to trim the massive bronze door. Shagreen, leather, and lacquer were used on the sofas and chairs, and shagreen, leather, and lacquer were used on the tables and screens. ‘Pity, the burglars, got everything,’ Jean Cocteau joked, referring to the lack of furnishings.
Own Home
In Frank’s own home in 1930, straw was placed to the ceiling and walls to simulate grained marquetry. Chairs, a ‘tuxedo’ sofa, and a white leather screen were arranged around dark gypsum tables. Claude-Nicolas Ledoux and Etienne-Louis Boullée’s ambitious 18th-century projects piqued Frank’s curiosity, as did Emilio Terry’s.
Frank’s art began to take on a more theatrical tone, and he experimented with increasingly complex forms. He began to work more closely with the Giacometti’s in the mid-1930s, commissioning their white plaster and patinated bronze ornamental items.
Theatrical Setting – Guerlain Salon
Frank built a theatrical setting for the Guerlain salon with trompe l’eil effects with them and others, including Bérard. Elsa Schiaparelli commissioned Frank to decorate her rooms on Boulevard Saint-Germain. The main room’s bright chintz was offset by black, including black porcelain plates in the dining area. Baron de l’Epée, Lucien Lelong, and Philippe Berthelot were among the other clients. Frank’s demeanour was mirrored in his melancholy office, dubbed “the Confessional.”
Parsons Table
He designed the so-called Parsons (or T-square) table from his lectures at the Parsons School of Design in Paris. He moved to New York in 1940 with the help of interior design firm McMillen. He had previously created the interiors and furniture of Nelson A. Rockefeller’s New York apartment in 1937 and apartments for M. Templeton Crocker in San Francisco.
Death and Legacy
After barely one week in New York, he jumped to his death from a window of the Hotel St. Regis, depressed and lovesick. Despite only having a ten-year career, he had a significant impact.
Only one Frank project has survived to this day: Count Cecil and Countess Minie Pecci Blunt’s three-room apartment on the third floor of a 16th-century palace near Rome, completed in 1930. In 1986, Ecart International, and later Palazzetti, began producing Frank’s canapé for Charles de Noailles’ Paris home, which was the forerunner of the ‘tuxedo’ sofa and other models.
Jean-Michel Frank in our partner stores


Sources
Byars, M., & Riley, T. (2004). The design encyclopedia. Laurence King Publishing. https://amzn.to/3ElmSlL
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Jules Cheret (1836 – 1932) – The Father of Modern Poster Art
Jules Cheret was a French painter who became a master of Belle Epoque poster art. Over the course of his long life, Cheret produced more than 1000 posters. His extravagantly colourful designs were used to regularly promote upcoming theatre productions. He is regarded as the father of the modern poster.Read More →
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Mission Furniture – Design Dictionary Term
The term mission furniture was first popularized by Joseph P. McHugh of New York, a furniture manufacturer and retailer. The word mission references the Spanish missions throughout colonial California. The style became increasingly popular following the 1901 Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo.Read More →
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Glyphs – Road to International Understanding
Glyphs are graphical symbols that are more or less universally used. The Ancient Greeks had a word for most of today’s needs, the glyph is a Greek word meaning carving. Glyphs should carve a road to international communication by breaking down language barriers.Read More →
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Murrine ancient glass technique – design dictionary
When a glass cane is cut into thin cross-sections, coloured patterns or images created in the cane are revealed as murrine. One well-known design is the flower or star shape, which is known as millefiori when used in large quantities.Read More →
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John Makepeace (b.1939) British Furniture Designer
He started designing furniture in 1961. In 1964, he set up a workshop in Farnsborough Barn, Banbury, moving in 1976 to Parnham House in Dorset. He established the Parnham Trust and School for Craftsmen in Wood in 1977.Read More →
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Shirley Craven (b.1934) British Textile Designer
Shirley Craven (b.1934) was a British textile designer. She studied at Kingston upon Hull and the Royal College of Art, London. Craven ‘pioneered an aesthetic more akin to painting than textiles’, breaking ‘all the rules’.Read More →
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Dan Friedman (1945 – 1995) American Graphic Designer
Dan Friedman (1945–1995) was a prolific graphic and furniture designer, artist, writer, and educator. Friedman’s work posed a radical challenge to tradition and commodification in design practice. His work is held in the collections of the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum and the Museum of Modern Art.Read More →
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International Silver Company (ISC) American Silversmiths
The International Silver Company was founded in 1898 by a group of independent silversmiths from New England. Ashbil Griswold, who established his pewter shop in Meriden, Connecticut, in 1808, is credited with starting the early records of this industry.Read More →
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Max Ingrand (1908 – 1969) French artist and decorator
Maurice Max-Ingrand (1908–1969) was a French artist and stained glass artist. He was captured by the Nazis during World War II but returned to France in 1945. In 1968, he established Verre Lumière, one of the first businesses to manufacture halogen lamps.Read More →
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Milan Triennial XII (1960) – School and Home
On May 5th, 1959, the Bureau of International Expositions (BIE) authorised the Milan Triennial XII. The Palazzo dell’Arte served as its location, and it lasted from July 16th to November 4th, 1960. School and Home was the theme.Read More →
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Moquette – fabric for public transport
Moquette is a tough woollen fabric used for upholstery on public transportation all over the world. The fabric is typically composed of 85% wool and 15% nylon and is created using the weaving method known as jacquard. It has excellent thermal characteristics, keeping you warm in the winter and cool in the summer.Read More →
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Marion Dorn (1896 – 1964) American Textile Designer
American textile designer Marion Dorn (1896–1964) is best known for creating wall hangings, carpeting, and rugs, but she is also known to have created wallpaper, graphics, and illustrations.Read More →
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