André Groult
1884 – 1967
André Groult was a major French interior designer and cabinetmaker of the Art Deco period. Steeped in the great tradition of 18th-century French furniture while reinventing it through a modern lens, he distinguished himself through curved, feminine creations adorned with lavish materials such as shagreen (galuchat), mother-of-pearl, and ivory. Designer of the iconic shagreen chest of drawers created for the landmark 1925 Paris Exhibition, he embodies the most refined and poetic expression of interwar French luxury.
Biography
A self-taught designer passionate about 18th-century French arts, he opened his decorating firm in Paris around 1907. His 1907 marriage to Nicole Poiret, sister of famed couturier Paul Poiret, placed him at the center of the Parisian avant-garde; his home became a vibrant salon attended by figures like Marie Laurencin, Marcel Duchamp, and Francis Picabia.
In 1915, he designed his crowning achievement: a anthropomorphic chest of drawers with voluptuous lines evoking the female bust. Upholstered in green-gray half-pearl shagreen and trimmed with ivory, this piece instantly became an enduring icon of modern decorative arts.
At the 1925 International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts in Paris, he created the "Chambre de Madame" within the French Embassy Pavilion. His furniture ensembles, defined by delicate hues and harmonious curves, achieved overwhelming critical acclaim and drew a sophisticated international clientele.
Resisting rigid functionalism and the rise of tubular steel in the 1930s, he remained dedicated to rare woods (ebony, amaranth), lacquered beechwood, parchment, and fine textiles. His creations are now preserved in major museums, including the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris.
"André Groult softens Art Deco geometry with the grace of the curve; he does not merely construct a piece of furniture, he dresses a feminine form in precious materials.”
