Jacques Adnet
1900 – 1984
Born in Châtillon-Coligny, France in 1900 Adnet and his twin bother both went into the design world together and studied at the Municipal School of Design and then onto the École des Beaux-Arts Paris. The brothers worked together for some time at the Studio La Maitrise, where they were introduced to Maurice Dufrene, the Art Déco designer. The brothers continued working together until 1928, his brother, Jean continued his work with Maitrise while Jacques, at the age of 28, became director of the Compagnie des Arts Français a post he would hold until 1959, he then went on to become the director of the École Nationale Supérieure des Arts Décoratifs.
Jacques design style became synonymous with an art-deco theme with chairs, mirrors and some spectacular lamps - Quadro VII Lamp a brilliant example. He pushed all the boundaries in terms of choice of materials with the use of wood, metal, glass and interestingly leather, often combining several of the materials which gave his unique style.
Throughout his hugely successful career some notable highlights include working on the interiors for Paris’s UNESCO headquarters and designs for the French President Vincent Auriol. In the 1950’s Jacques embarked on a collaboration which would last over a decade with the world famous Hermès, making high end leather covered furniture. Jacques passed away in 1984, his designs today are still as fresh and modern as they were back then.
