Émile Jacques Ruhlmann (1879–1933)

Born in Paris in 1879, Ruhlmann was the son of a painter and contractor. At the age of 21 he joins the family business which was founded in 1827. After his father’s death in 1907, he takes control of the firm.

In 1913 Ruhlmann creates a new department which includes furniture design and interior decoration, designing everything from furniture to wallpaper and carpets, even light fixtures. Ruhlmann realizes, however, that it will take time to establish the interior design part of the firm. So in 1917, Ruhlmann merges with another existing renovation firm, this is the birth of Etablissements Ruhlmann et Laurent. The prosperity of Etablissements Ruhlmann et Laurent is Ruhlmann’s security and freedom, allowing him to direct his energy and vision into the creation of interiors and furnishings of the highest quality. Employing a team of more than 100 skilled workers and assistants in this division alone.

By the 1920s he had become the most prestigious designer of his day and was highly sought after. Supplying Unique pieces to only the wealthiest clients of the time. In 1924, Ruhlmann decorates the famous and fashionable Restaurant Drouant, creating a chair, called modèle Drouant, which remains one of his most successful designs.

He participated in the Exposition Internationale des Arts Decoratifs et Industriels of 1925 and at his own expense, designed and built a temporary Pavilion called the “Hotel du Collectionneur.” It was the perfect environment to showcase his distinctively elegant, and unabashedly luxurious pieces. It is this exhibition that the term Art Deco is coined from. From this Ruhlmann goes on to fill commissions for the Île de France (1927), Maharaja of Indore (1929), and even one order from the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.

In 1930 Ruhlmann graciously designs the furnishings for the Cité Universitaire student rooms, at no charge. As Florence Camard, an expert on Ruhlmann, says: “Ruhlmann could create simple and affordable furniture, without compromising his design and philosophy” That same philosophy will lead him to create yet another unexpected interior. Taking everyone by surprise at the 1932 Salon des Artistes Décorateurs he builds an idealized version of his own country house. Aptly named “Le rendez-vous des pêcheurs de truites,” the retreat was entirely furnished with cherry wood furniture devoid of any precious veneer or ornaments and covered in simple fabrics, even caned seats. He was offering a more rustic approach, or even novel approach. His oak and cane chair from this interior pre-dates Charlotte Perriands’, now famous, design by three years.

One of Ruhlmann’s last commissions in 1933, the year of his death, was the Villa Bosman in Brussels, Belgium. After learning he is fatally ill, he responds in typical Ruhlmann fashion, planning everything, including the voluntary dissolution of the firm at his death. Ruhlmann even designs his own funeral monument, and has it executed by Alfred-Auguste Janniot.