It's hard to wrap a 30-year career up into a single show. But such was the challenge of self-taught French designer Eric Schmitt upon choosing his pieces for his first ever UK solo exhibition, taking place at London’s Dutko gallery.
An eclectic vibe is felt immediately on entering the compact Mayfair space, the curation in which travels through various eras – from art deco to contemporary design movements – stopping at different European influences along the way.
Seating the delicate 1996 bronze and leather 'Chauffeuse Osselet' – an elegant deco piece – alongside modern black lacquered bronze and aluminium tables marks a real transition over time. ‘My work is a result of the sculptor I almost am, the architect I would like to have been and the designer I am not entirely,' Schmitt explains of the multifaceted works.
When discussing the sheer breadth of materials he utilises, the Frenchman reveals that he likes to combine craftsmen who have never worked together. For example, his bohemian glass arrives from where the experts lie, the Czech Republic, and he introduces this to Italian marble, creating something unique.
Standing out among the works is the 'Scale' dresser from 2008, that appears as an Italian radical design. Made entirely from marble scales, its remarkable, whimsical character shone in the white washed space.
Whether the pieces stand as sculpture, furniture, or artworks, their quality and stories are too strong and hard to consume in just one small art space. So it's not surprising that Schmitt’s show was launched alongside a monograph on his oeuvre. The eponymous tome is an intimate, humble testament that gives us an insight into the many phases of his life (he is both a horseman and music lover) that have shaped his world of design.
His work shifts through various artistic eras, from art deco to more contemporary design movements. Pictured: 'Roc' dining table, 2010
Pictured left: 'Stromboli' pedestal table, 2012 and 'Fuji' pedestal table, 2012. Right: 'Cordouan' floor lamp, 2015
‘My work is a result of the sculptor I almost am, the architect I would like to have been and the designer I am not entirely,' Schmitt explains of the multifaceted works
Pictured left: 'Chauffeuse Osselet', 1996. Right: 'Goodboy Console', 2011
INFORMATION
'Eric Schmitt' is on view at Dutko until 7 May. For more information, visit Dutko's website
-
Dimoremilano and Loro Piana channel 1970s cinema in decadent Milan displayAt Milan Design Week 2025, Dimorestudio has directed and staged an immersive, film-inspired installation to present new furniture and decor for Loro Piana
-
The new Google Pixel 9a is a competent companion on the pathway to the world of AIGoogle’s reputation for effective and efficient hardware is bolstered by the introduction of the new Pixel 9a, a mid-tier smartphone designed to endure
-
In Milan, MoscaPartners presents a poetic exploration of ‘migration’Alongside immersive work by Byoung Cho, MoscaPartners’ Milan Design Week 2025 display features an accessible exhibition path designed for visually impaired visitors
-
Artist Qualeasha Wood explores the digital glitch to weave stories of the Black female experienceIn ‘Malware’, her new London exhibition at Pippy Houldsworth Gallery, the American artist’s tapestries, tuftings and videos delve into the world of internet malfunction
-
Ed Atkins confronts death at Tate BritainIn his new London exhibition, the artist prods at the limits of existence through digital and physical works, including a film starring Toby Jones
-
Tom Wesselmann’s 'Up Close' and the anatomy of desireIn a new exhibition currently on show at Almine Rech in London, Tom Wesselmann challenges the limits of figurative painting
-
A major Frida Kahlo exhibition is coming to the Tate Modern next yearTate’s 2026 programme includes 'Frida: The Making of an Icon', which will trace the professional and personal life of countercultural figurehead Frida Kahlo
-
A portrait of the artist: Sotheby’s puts Grayson Perry in the spotlightFor more than a decade, photographer Richard Ansett has made Grayson Perry his muse. Now Sotheby’s is staging a selling exhibition of their work
-
From counter-culture to Northern Soul, these photos chart an intimate history of working-class Britain‘After the End of History: British Working Class Photography 1989 – 2024’ is at Edinburgh gallery Stills
-
Celia Paul's colony of ghostly apparitions haunts Victoria MiroEerie and elegiac new London exhibition ‘Celia Paul: Colony of Ghosts’ is on show at Victoria Miro until 17 April
-
Teresa Pągowska's dreamy interpretations of the female form are in London for the first time‘Shadow Self’ in Thaddaeus Ropac’s 18th-century townhouse gallery in London, presents the first UK solo exhibition of Pągowska’s work
