NEW YORK, NY.- Sotheby’s 20th Century Design sale on 9 June 2015 will feature masterworks of decorative art and design spanning the last hundred years, led by two private collections of iconic French Art Deco Design. The collections include defining works by Jean Dunand, Pierre Chareau, Émile-Jacques Ruhlmann and Paul Dupré-Lafon. In addition to these extraordinary private collections, the auction is highlighted by prewar masterworks of American and European origin, Scandinavian design, midcentury French furniture and contemporary design, including an assemblage of works by Jean Prouvé, Alexandre Noll, Pierre Jeanneret and Claude Lalanne and cutting edge masterworks by Ron Arad, Maarten Baas and Nendo. Estimates range from a few thousand to $350,000. The pre-sale exhibition is open to the public on 5-8 June at Sotheby’s New York headquarters.

French Art Deco
The first private collection leading the auction features an Important Desk by Paul Dupré-Lafon with an estimate of $250/350,000. Made of rosewood, leather, nickel-plated brass, steel and glass, this circa 1929 desk exemplifies the designer’s approach towards linearity, form, proportions, functionalism and a use of fine materials.

The collection also offers a superb Low Table by Dunand (est. $120/180,000) with an astonishing intricate eggshell and lacquer decorative scheme.

The second private collection includes a Pair of Armchairs by Pierre Chareau circa 1924 with an estimate of $180/220,000. The deeply-sculptural form of the chairs reflects Chareau’s artistry in both architecture and design.

Another highlight of this collection is "Table Feuilles, Modèle Bas Aux Oiseaux Et Grenouilles," by Diego Giacometti, circa 1980, with an estimate of $250/350,000 The patinated and gilt bronze and glass table evokes Giacometti’s inventive approach by combining striking figural ornamentation and naturalism of subject and medium that bridges sculpture with furniture.

Scandinavian Design
A remarkable selection of Scandinavian design from a visionary private collection features groundbreaking designs by Finn Juhl, Hans Wegner and Poul Henningsen. Highly architectural, the pieces span Scandinavian design from early 1920s to 1960s.

Poul Henningsen’s “The House of the Future” Ceiling Light from 1959 is one of an edition of 20 lights that had been installed in The House of Tomorrow, an ultramodern home built as an exhibition space in Copenhagen in 1959. The fluorescent painted aluminum and metal fixture with a palette of reds, yellows and whites was designed to appear floating in space, using the interplay of darkness and light. Eighteen examples of the model remain, and two are in the permanent collection of the producer, Louis Poulsen. The estimate for the present example is $200/300,000.

American Design
American design highlights include an extraordinary Lava Vase by Tiffany Studios (est. $60,000/80,000) and a set of six original windows designed by Frank Lloyd Wright for the Francis W. Little House in Waysata, Minnesota, which together carry an estimate of $80,000/120,000.

In the early 1900s, Louis C. Tiffany’s implemented the “Lava” glass technique to mimic the essence of flowing lava, combining his love of nature and some of his most influential aesthetic ideas. Tiffany spent time traveling in Italy during the mid-19th century and it is possible that he was inspired to create the “Lava” series by the volcanic eruption of Mount Etna in Sicily. His technique may have been influenced by 17th century Japanese raku-fired pottery as he was an avid collector of Japanese artifacts. The vases are rare and few were made due to the challenging method used to create them: manipulating molten favrile glass to produce uneven, organic shapes and surfaces to simulate the look of volcanic rock. The present vase dates back to the firm's earliest explorations of the technique and is further distinguished by the fact that it has remained in the same family since the period.

Art Deco
An Art Deco highlight is an extremely rare Carpet by René Crevel with an estimate of $100/150,000. Crevel , trained as painter, collaborated with Paul Follot to design modernist tapestries for the 1925 Exposition des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Moderne in Paris. Tragically, Crevel took his own life just before his 35th birthday, and left behind only a small number of masterworks in the disciplines of ceramics, tapestry design and the literary arts. The present lot demonstrates Crevel’s boldly innovative aesthetic and artistic expertise in this magnificent large scale carpet.