Sale information
At the moment of reckoning, calmly, recalling every moment, Edgar Brandt is said to have declared "Don't worry about my life, the circumstances of my path, but look at what I've done, what I've laid, what I'm leaving behind." True to this approach, the MILLON Decorative Arts department will present rare and carefully selected works for the 3rd edition of its "Masters" sale.
Ceramic works first, with a precious iridescent vase from the Hungarian Manufacture of Vilmos Zsolnay, and a remarkable lamp by Georges Jouve, evocative of a cairn and clad in the iconic black of its creator.
A rare "Religieuse" floor lamp by Pierre Chareau will also be up for auction. Purchased in 1993 from Millon & Robert at the sale of the Jean-Claude Brugnot Collection, this iconic work has remained with its current owner ever since, returning to the fold 30 years later.
The child of another great French decorator, a superb chest of drawers by André Arbus adorned with a bronze by Vadim Androusov will summon the voice of Georges Braque to whisper to us how "democracies have replaced pomp with luxury".
Further testimony to the creativity of French decorators in the 1920s-1930s, pieces by Albert Rateau designed to decorate Jeanne Lanvin's home in Le Vésinet will be offered for sale during the event. "Rarely has luxury been so much at the service of an escape from materiality", reads the reference book on the artist. We bow to the aphorism's aptness.
The magic of Art Nouveau glass will also be embodied by two precious vases by Emile Gallé with glass marquetry decorations, one of which was presented by the Nancy master at the 1900 Exposition Universelle. From the same private collection, a vase and a bowl by Décorchemont will attempt to match the world records and vice-records held by Millon for works by the artist.
The animal figure (particularly dear to MILLON's 20th-century Decorative Arts department, which created the "Bestiaire" sales for it in 2018) will also be in the spotlight, starting with an exceptional sculpture of a "Lioness seated head to the left" by Georges Lucien Guyot. Remaining in the family of the current owner for several generations, this large-scale work served by a superb Susse cast illustrates wonderfully what Jean Dorst said of the sculptor's art as "the happy compromise between the veracity of proportions and forms and the free interpretation that is the artist's right and duty".
More modestly sized, Diego Giacometti's "Tête du chien Willy" ("Willy the dog's head") responds to the wild lioness with the very domestic tenderness of its allegiance, since the sculptor created it to immortalize the beloved dog of his friend Georges Gruber.
Also on display will be a rare dinanderie tray table by Jean Dunand, champion of French Art Deco, whom critics in his day described as "a chiseler of sensations, a hammerer of harmonies".
Finally, between sculpture and design, this "Masters" sale also boasts a "Homme" chair by visual artist Ruth Francken, an equivocal and fascinating creation, iconic of the 70s, which is also the best-known work by a confidential artist.
Through these rare works, Millon's 20th-century Decorative Arts department hopes to highlight "corners of creation seen through a temperament", and thus pay tribute to the creative genius of its discipline as much as to the collectors who have placed their trust in it.
See you on November 7, 2023 to discover all these works.
