André Hunebelle (1896-1985), a man of many talents, was a prominent figure in the French creative industry. Born in Meudon, he studied mathematics at the École Polytechnique, Paris, before venturing into design and decoration. From 1922 to 1939, Hunebelle was known for his work in glassware, lighting, and metalwork at his studio on Avenue Victor-Emmanuel-III in Paris. He also created bibelots and small furniture pieces, showcasing his unique style and craftsmanship.
A shift in his career saw Hunebelle enter the world of media. He was an administrator at a newspaper from 1937 to 1939 before transitioning to the film industry in 1941. As a film producer and director, he was responsible for numerous successful films such as “Feu Sacré,” “L’Inévitable Monsieur Dubois,” and “Monsieur Taxi,” among others. His films “Massacre en Dentelles” (1951) and “Mon Mari est Merveilleux” (1952) even won the Prix du Meill.
A pillar of the French film industry, Hunebelle was a member of the Comité Directeur du Syndicat français des Production et Exportation des Films, further cementing his influence and contribution to French culture and the arts.
Sources
Byars, M., & Riley, T. (2004). The design encyclopedia. Laurence King Publishing. https://amzn.to/3ElmSlL
More on French Designers
-
The Life and Legacy of Isabelle Hebey: A French Design Icon
Explore the life and legacy of Isabelle Hebey, the groundbreaking French designer known for her eclectic style and high-profile clients. Learn how she revolutionized interior design by seamlessly blending the old with the new.Read More →
-
Andrée Putnam (1925 – 2013), French Interior Designer
Andrée Putman was a French interior designer, furniture designer, and entrepreneur. She was born in Paris. Putman was probably best known internationally for her black and white palette, illustrated by the 1985 interior of Morgans Hotel in New York. It was commissioned by the entrepreneurs Ian Schrager and Steve Rubell.Read More →
-
Boris-Jean Lacroix (1902-1984) 🇫🇷 French Lighting Designer
Boris-Jean Lacroix (1902-1984) was a French Lighting Designer born in Paris. Biography Lacroix was a prolific designer of lighting, wallpaper,Read More →
-
Peter Raacke (b.1928) German metalworker and designer
Hessische Metallwerke commissioned Raacke to produce metal cutlery, kitchen equipment, and cookware, most notably his “Mono-a” line (v-33), with silverware available in stainless steel and sterling silver.Read More →
-
Paul Poiret (1879 – 1944) – King of Fashion
In the early decades of the 20th century, Paul Poiret was a crucial figure in the French fashion industry, notably by adding a deep oriental flavour and rich colours to contemporary clothing. Read More →
-
Sonia Delaunay (1885 – 1979) An Explorer of Colour
Sonia Delaunay (1885-1979), an interior and textile designer, revolutionized the use of color in the arts. Her collaboration with Robert Delaunay led to the development of Simultaneous Color, emphasizing vibrant hues. She commercialized her talent and designed geometric costumes, opened La Casa Sonia, and created popular textile patterns. During the 1930s Depression, she returned to…
-
Albert Paley (b.1944) American modernist metal sculptor
Albert Paley (born 1944) is an American modernist metal sculptor. Starting as a jeweller, he has evolved into one of the world’s most renowned and famous metalsmiths. Furniture, gates, railings, and staircases are among his creations. He consults with architects and space planners, and he leads a team of craftspeople in his Rochester, New York,…
-
Armand Point (1861-1932), French Algerian painter, and designer
Armand Point (1861-1932) was a Symbolist painter, engraver, and designer from France, one of the Salon de la Rose + Croix founding members. Point’s first paintings were orientalist scenes of markets and musicians and scenes from his childhood in Algeria’s streets. In 1888, he moved to Paris to study under Auguste Herst and Fernand Cormon…
-
André Hunebelle (1896-1985) Designer French Decorative Arts
André Hunebelle, a French creative artist, studied mathematics at École Polytechnique and worked in glassware, lighting, and metalwork. He transitioned to media and film, producing and directing successful films like “Feu Sacré” and winning the Prix du Meill.Read More →
-
Frechet Brothers French decorators and furniture designers
Andre Frechet (1875-1973) and Paul Frechet were French decorators and furniture designers. They were born in Chalons-sur-Mame; and active in Paris. Working together and individually from 1906, the Frechet brothers’ furniture designs were produced by various firms including Jacquemin freres in Strasbourg, E. Verot, and Charles Jean-selme; 1909-11.Read More →
-
Charles Plumet (1861 – 1928) French Architect Designer
In the year 1861, Charles Plumet was born. As an architect, he built structures in the mediaeval and early French Renaissance styles. He worked on interiors and furniture designs in Art Nouveau styles with Tony Selmersheim (1871–1971). Between 1896 and 1901, Charles Plumet joined l’Art dans Tout (Art in Everything), an association of architects, painters,…
-
Paul Chemetov (b.1928) French Furniture Designer
Paul Chemetov, a French architect and furniture designer, studied at Ecole Nationale des Beaux-Arts and founded AUA in 1961. He designed low-cost housing and chair designs, earning the 1980 National Grand Prize for Architecture.Read More →
-
Georges Champion (1889 – 1940) French Furniture Designer
Georges Champion, a French decorator and furniture designer, was known for his sleek lines and modern aesthetic. Influenced by the Art Deco movement, Champion’s furniture featured geometric shapes and bold colors. He worked on high-profile projects, including Parisian hotels and restaurants. Champion’s designs are highly sought after by collectors and design enthusiasts worldwide.Read More →
-
Jeanine Abraham French Furniture Designer
Jeanine Abraham was a French furniture designer who left an indelible mark on interior design. Her designs were characterized by a unique blend of functionality and elegance, and were highly sought after by discerning clients. She studied at the École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts and Centre Art et Technique, and her work is highly prized…
-
Mario Botta (b.1943) Swiss Architect and Designer
While the space arrangements in this structure are inconsistent, its relationship to its site, separation of living from service spaces, and deep window recesses echo his stark, robust and towering style. Read More →
-
Clément Mère (1861 – 1940) French designer and furniture maker
Clément Mère was born in Bayonne and active in Paris. He was a French painter, table-builder, artist and furniture builder. He studied painting with Jean-Léon Gérôme at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris.Read More →
-
Raymond Subes (1893 – 1970), French metalsmith
Raymond Subes (1893–1970) was a French metalsmith. He made ironwork for the oceanliners 1931 Atlantique, 1926 Ile-de-France, Pasteur, and 1935 Normandie. After World War II, he worked as a metalworker and became the head of Borderel et Robert.Read More →
-
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 →
-
George Barbier one of the Great French Illustrators
George Barbier was one of the Great French Illustrators of the early 20th centuryRead More →
-
Jacques Gruber (1870 – 1936) French Stained Glass artist and designer
Jacques Gruber (1870-1936) was a French stained-glass artist, designer, and teacher, born Sundhausen, Alsace. He studied at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts, Paris, under Gustave Moreau. He was distinguished as a designer in the Art Nouveau idiom. Read More →
-
Jean-Charles de Castelbajac (b. 1949) French fashion designer
Jean-Charles de Castelbajac (b. 1949) was a French fashion designer born in Casablanca. He studied law at Faculté de Droit, Limoges and founded the Ko ready-to-wear fashion firm in 1968. He was recognised for his avant-garde designs for women’s clothing featuring unconventional materials. Read More →
-
Paul Iribe (1883 – 1935) French Designer and Illustrator
Paul Iribe was a French designer and illustrator known for his contributions to the Art Deco movement. Iribe’s modernism was influenced by 19th-century luxury, and he wrote a manifesto against modern art.Read More →
-
Léon Jallot (1874 – 1967) French designer and artisan
Léon Jallot (1874-1967), a scion of the French Art Nouveau, stood out within the movement as an ébéniste, or cabinet maker.Read More →
-
Jean-Paul Gaultier (b.1952) French Fashion Designer
Before launching his label in 1976, Gaultier worked for Cardin, Jacques Esteirel, and Patou. From the onset, Gaultier was dubbed the ‘enfant terrible de Paris’.Read More →
-
Georges Dunaime – Art Deco -French Designer
Georges Dunaime designed lighting for E. Etling, the designer and engraver. His work included table lamps, torchéeres, and chandeliers made of silver, gilt, and patinated bronze with shades made of cloth, cut glass, quartz, marble, and alabaster.Read More →
-
Marc Held (b.1932), French Designer & Architect
Marc Held is an architect and designer who focuses on the interaction between traditional and modern architecture, creating Limoges dinnerware, ski gear, automobiles, and homes.Read More →
-
René Gabriel (1890 – 1950) French Interior Designer
René Gabriel was a follower of Francis Jourdain who made wallpaper, fabric, rugs, and porcelain for the Manufacture de Sèvres. He also designed bent-metal tubular seating and structures, and opened Ateliers d’Art, Neuilly. He taught at the Ecole des Arts Appliqués and was the director of the Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Arts Décoratifs. His work…
-
Why was Edgar Brandt a leader in the field of ironwork?
Egdar Brandt was a French metalworker known for his innovative designs that incorporated traditional and modern techniques, and his work can be found in many public and private collections.Read More →
-
Maison Gripoix costume jeweller – glass with class
Maison Gripoix, a French costume jeweller, was located in Paris. Around 1890, Maison Gripoix sold glass beads and buttons wholesale. Subsequently, specialised in handmade imitations of precious and semi-precious jewels, including parures for Sarah Bernhardt.Read More →
-
Chafik Gasmi (b.1962) French-Algerian designer
Chafik Gasmi is a registered architect in France who founded UNIVERS INTÉRIEUR in 1990 and has since expanded his brand to include home goods and decor items. Chafik developed his ideas for the brand and graphic identity of the LE ROYAL MONCEAU building in Paris, collaborated with LANCME, created a resort for the launch of…
-
Marcel Goupy (1886 – 1980) French Ceramicist
Marcel Goupy was a painter, ceramist, decorator of glass and crystal, and designer known for his Art Deco style. Marcel Goupy was an important figure in the Art Deco era, making glass vases, decanters, and lemonade and liqueur sets.Read More →
-
Louis Rault (1847 – 1903) French sculptor, engraver and jewellery designer
Louis Rault (1847 – 1903) was a French Sculptor, engraver, silversmith and jewellery designer.Between 1868 and 1875, Rault worked in the Boucheron workshop on the Place Vendôme in Paris. At the end of the nineteenth century, he set up a workshop where he produced silver and jewellery in the Art Nouveau style.Read More →
-
Jean Goulden (1878 – 1946) French Artisan & Crafter
Jean Goulden was a French painter, musician, and crafter who lived from 1878 to 1946. During World War I, he found Byzantine enamels near Mount Athos in Macedonia. His Cubist pendulum clocks were some of his best pieces. Only 180 of his items are known to exist.Read More →
-
Andre Hermant (1908 – 1978) French architect and furniture designer
In 1936, he became a member of UAM (Union des Artistes Modernes); after World War II, he participated in the reconstruction of the port of Le Havre under the direction of architect Auguste Perret.Read More →
-
Pierre Balmain (1914 – 1982) French fashion designer
Pierre Balmain (1914 – 1982) was a French fashion designer and the influential postwar fashion house Balmain founder. He described the art of dressmaking as “the architecture of movement,” and he was known for his sophistication and elegance. LEARN MORERead More →
-
Serge Mouille (1922- 1988) French Lighting Designer
Serge Mouille was a French Lighting Designer; he was born and active in Paris. Mouille studied silversmithing, École des Artes Appliqués, Paris to 1941.Read More →
-
Maurice Dufrêne (1876 – 1955), French Decorative Artist
Maurice Dufrêne (1876–1955) was a French decorative artist who headed the Maîtrise workshop of the Galeries Lafayette department store. He designed many different types of decorative art, including metalwork, ceramics, glass, and fabric. His designs from 1910 onward are austere and neoclassical, reminiscent of the Louis XVI style.Read More →
-
Suzanne Guiguichon (1901 – 1985) French Furniture Designer
Suzanne Guiguichon was a French furniture designer and decorator. She was born and worked in Paris. Since 1929 she worked as a designer with Maurice Dufrene at the Galeries Lafayette design studio La Maitrise in Paris. Most of the furniture, clocks, lighting, fabrics, rugs, accessories Guiguichon designed anonymously.Read More →
-
Guillaume Saalburg French glassworker and engraver
Guillaume Saalburg was a French glassworker and engraver professionally active in Paris. Education He trained in a glass engraver’s workshop. Read More →
-
Suzanne Belperron (1900 – 1983) French Jewellery Designer
Suzanne Belporren was a French jewellery designer. Her career flourished in the 1920s and 1930s. Belperron produced numerous designs of sculptured jewellery for René Boivin’s Paris shop. She subsequently opened her own Paris shop called Herz-Belperron. Her designs often featured glass encrusted with gemstones.Read More →
-
Michele De Lucchi (b.1951) Italian architect and designer
At the Universita di Firenze, he experimented with new forms of art and film. In 1973, he created the Cavart group alongside Piero Brombin, Pier Paola Bortolami, Boris Pastrovicchio, and Valerio Tridenti, which was active in Architettura Radicale, filmmaking, written works, and happenings. Read More →
-
Pierre Paulin (1927 – 2009) French furniture designer
He was active in research for the government-sponsored Mobilier International. His first plastic object was the 1953 Chair 157 in polyester, ABS, and elastomers produced by Artifort of Maastricht. Around 1955, he was one of the first to work in elasticised fabrics for Thonet and subsequently for Artifort.Read More →
-
Pierre Guariche (1926 – 1995) french interior designer
Pierre Guariche was a French designer, interior decorator, and architect. He may be best known for the lights he made for Pierre Disderot in the 1950s. Guariche created the ground-breaking “tonneau” chair in 1953. He was searching for a contemporary, affordable alternative to the prewar modernists’ hard chic. Guariche founded the Atelier de Recherche Plastique…
-
40+ French Designers in the applied and decorative arts
The following posts are a selection of French Designers that I have posted about over the last year. French design styles incorporate the new and the old. It is bold and sophisticated. It is attention to detail, whether a brooch, a clock, fabric, or glass. Read More →
-
Martine Bedin (b.1957) radical architecture and design
Bedin was one of the founders of the avant-garde Memphis group in Milan in 1981. Also, she has worked as an architect, industrial designer and professor. Her work is held in many important museums and private collections. Bedin’s aesthetic is typically colourful and self-consciously kitschy.Read More →
-
Jan and Joel Martel (1896 – 1966) twin brothers and French sculptors
Jan and Joel Martel (1896 – 1966) were twin brothers and French sculptors. They were born in Nantes and active in Paris. Cement, glass, steel, mirrors, ceramics, lacquers, and synthetics were all used in their projects.Read More →
-
Jean Patou (1880 – 1936) 🎩 Fashion Designer
One of Patou’s most famous customers was the French tennis champion Suzanne Lenglen, whom he dressed both on and off the court. This lean and active young woman epitomised the 1920s “new woman.” She created a furore in 1921 when she wore Patou’s knee-length pleated skirt, which revealed much of her legs when she ran.…
-
Andre Salomon (1891 -1970) French Lighting Engineer
He was an engineer at Tompson before setting up the small electrical firm Perfécla (Perfectionnement de I’Ecla), regularly working with architects and designers, including Pierre Chareau, and André Lurcat, René Herbst, and architect Robert Mallet-Stevens. For the latter, he produced the widely published 1929 lighting fixture designed by Francis Jourdain in the form of a…
-
Pierre-Émile Legrain (1889 -1929) French Furniture Designer
He submitted cartoons in 1908 for Paul Iribe’s satirical reviews Le Témoin, L’Assiette au beurre, Le Mot, and La Baionnette. Iribe invited Legrain to collaborate with him on projects including furniture and interior design, jewelry for Robert Linzeler, and dress designs for Paquin.Read More →
-
Fernand Nathan French furniture desiger
A painter before becoming active as an interior architect, he was a cabinetmaker and designer of lighting, printed fabrics, and furniture. His furniture reflected the influences of Chippendale, Louis XVI, Directoire, Restauration, and Louis Philippe styles. Some of Nathan’s furniture was produced by Beyne.Read More →
