As the world (above a certain age) mourned the death of Alain Delon at the weekend, a small corner of the design industry lamented the loss of a true – if brief – talent, too. Delon was rightly more celebrated for his cinematic ventures and insouciant charm, but a collection he designed in the 1970s for the rarefied French design house, Maison Jansen, shows a deft talent for translating his flair into furniture.
French actor Alain Delon, circa 1960
In Delon’s collection, available to buy today via 1stDibs, we find all the best hallmarks of Seventies design that have re-emerged en vogue of late: smoked glass tables; brass deco-style bookcases; louche curves everywhere; over-upholstered lounge chairs and sofas, ripe for seduction. There’s even a white lacquered credenza and a mirrored console. No leopard print, though.
Maison Jansen is also sadly no longer with us. Once considered a pioneer for taking their designs beyond national borders and into the world at large, they went so far as to furnish rooms for the royal families of Belgium, Iran and Serbia, and fitted out the Red Room at the White House under John F. Kennedy’s tenure as POTUS. Despite such giddy heights of decor status, the esteemed maison closed its doors for good in 1989.
A deeper dig on Delon’s own design credentials reveals he also attended Salone del Mobile in 1975, with a range designed this time for the Udine manufacturer Vittorino Sabot. According to a fair attendee (reported decades later in 2015) Delon duly took his place on the company’s stand: “like any average small-medium entrepreneur”. Alas - the reviewers of the time were less kind. Delon’s Sabot collection was reviewed in La Stampa thus: “Silk and boar leather, black and white, polished brass, copper and steel on light briarwood. The impression is that of being in the wrong place; instead of a house, we’re on a movie set, a make-believe luxurious and unscrupulous environment.” It sounds like heaven. RIP Monsieur Delon.
-
‘Nothing just because it’s beautiful’: Performance artist Marina Abramović on turning her hand to furniture designMarina Abramović has no qualms about describing her segue into design as a ‘domestication’. But, argues the ‘grandmother of performance art’ as she unveils a collection of chairs, something doesn’t have to be provocative to be meaningful
-
First look: Commune Design’s Muffin collection looks good enough to eatLos Angeles design practice Commune and London’s George Smith celebrate a decade of collaboration with a new furniture range
-
One to Watch: Haus of Hommeboys’ new furniture is inspired by the golden hues of California and its ebony veining left by wildfiresHaus of Hommeboys, by Austin Carrier and Alex Mutter-Rottmayer, is a custom millwork and cabinetry studio, and furniture atelier creating ‘objects that feel worthy of being called art ’
-
Year in review: top 10 furniture launches of 2022, selected by Wallpaper* design editor Rosa BertoliTop 10 furniture launches of 2022, as picked by Wallpaper’s Rosa Bertoli, from office furniture to sustainable initiatives and new collaborations
-
Meet Æquō, the Indian design gallery presenting the antiquities of the futureFounded by Tarini Jindal Handa, Æquō offers an insight into the multiple personalities of Indian craft
