The Jewish Museum to Present First U.S. Exhibition Devoted to Legendary French Designer and Architect Pierre Chareau

New York, NY – In November 2016, the Jewish Museum will present the first U.S. exhibition focused on French designer and architect Pierre Chareau (1883-1950). Showcasing rare furniture, light fixtures, and interiors, as well as designs for important projects in Europe and America, including the famous Maison de Verre in Paris and the Robert Motherwell House in East Hampton, Long Island, the exhibition will bring together rarely-seen works from major public and private collections around the world. Pierre Chareau: Modern Architecture and Design will be on view from November 4, 2016 – March 26, 2017.

Pierre Chareau rose from modest beginnings in Bordeaux to become one of the most sought after designers in France. Creating custom furniture and interiors for an elite clientele that included leading figures of the French-Jewish intelligentsia, Chareau uniquely balanced the opulence of traditional French decorative arts with the clean lines and industrial materials of Modernism. Through his highly distinctive artistic language, Chareau established himself at the intersection of tradition and innovation, becoming a major figure in 20th century design. The exhibition at the Jewish Museum will place Chareau in the context of the interwar period in Paris, highlighting his circle of influential patrons, engagement with the period’s foremost artists, and designs for the film industry. The architect’s active patronage of the arts—and his collection of paintings, sculptures, and drawings by significant artists such as Lipchitz, Mondrian, Chagall, and Modigliani—will be another important aspect of Pierre Chareau: Modern Architecture and Design at the Jewish Museum.

The exhibition will also explore the enduring consequences of Chareau’s flight from Nazi persecution, the dispersal of many of his pieces during and after World War II, and his attempts to rebuild his career while in exile in New York during the 1940s.

Pierre Chareau: Modern Architecture and Design is one of several major design exhibitions at the Jewish Museum this year, following Isaac Mizrahi: An Unruly History (through August 9) and Roberto Burle Marx: Brazilian Modernist (on view May 6 – September 18). “Design exhibitions are central to the Jewish Museum’s program, reflecting the range of our collection as well as the diversity of art and Jewish culture,” said Claudia Gould, Helen Goldsmith Menschel Director. “We are also incorporating a contemporary perspective by commissioning new work and collaborating with leading architects, designers, and artists to enliven these exhibitions, creating dynamic experiences for our visitors.

Pierre Chareau: Modern Architecture and Design is organized by the Jewish Museum in collaboration with The Centre Pompidou. The exhibition is organized by Esther da Costa Meyer, Professor, History of Modern Architecture, Princeton University. Exhibition design by Diller Scofidio + Renfro.

Support
Pierre Chareau: Modern Architecture and Design is made possible by The Jerome L. Greene Foundation.

Additional support is provided by The Peter Jay Sharp Exhibition Fund, Tracey and Robert Pruzan, Susan and Benjamin Winter, The Grand Marnier Foundation, Marie-Josée and Henry Kravis, the Leon Levy Foundation, and Bloomberg Philanthropies.

The publication is made possible in part by endowment funds from the Dorot Foundation and funds from the Barr Ferree Foundation Fund for Publications, Department of Art and Archaeology, Princeton University.

The Jewish Museum gives special thanks to the Cultural Services of the French Embassy.

About Diller Scofidio + Renfro
Diller Scofidio + Renfro integrates architecture, the visual arts, and the performing arts.  Founding Partners Diller and Scofidio are recipients of the MacArthur Foundation “Genius” award. DS+R’s architectural work includes The High Line and Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts renovation and expansion in New York City; The Broad in Los Angeles; and the Institute of Contemporary Art in Boston. The studio’s independent works have been exhibited at leading cultural institutions around the globe, including the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art; the Venice Biennale; the Swiss National Exposition; Palais De Tokyo in Paris; the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Whitney Museum in New York.