a passion for jean prouve at pinacoteca giovanni e marella agnelli

a passion for jean prouve at pinacoteca giovanni e marella agnellimetropole aluminum house, ca. 1949 metal aluminum and wood 8 x 12 mcollection laurence and patrick seguin image © galerie patrick seguin

the pinacoteca giovanni e marella agnelli presents ‘a passion for jean prouvé’, an exhibition devoted to the furniture and architecture of french designer jean prouvé. laurence and patrick seguin are now presenting a number of works from their private collection for the first time: around 40 pieces by the french metal worker, most of which are prototypes or extremely rare. one can see across prouvé’s practice, that he applies the same principles of functionality and rational fabrication in both his furniture and architectural practice. in his built designs, similar solid structures as seen in his smaller scale works, feature clever mechanisms for assembly and organization enabling both the furniture and constructions to be easily moved, disassembled and modified.

the works on display include the armchair designed for the university dormitory of nancy in 1932 to the light armchair created for the university of antony in 1954. additionally, the maison metropole has been mounted for the first time on the lingotto track. this aluminum construction from 1949 won a ministry of education competition for ‘mass-producible rural school with classroom and teacher accommodation’: a masterpiece of nomadic housing, which followed the portico principle patented by prouvé in 1939 of which the atelier built two of them–one in bouqueval near paris, and the other in vantoux in moselle, that are on show in this exhibition.

metropole aluminum house, ca. 1949metal aluminum and wood8 x 12 mcollection laurence and patrick seguin image © galerie patrick seguin

metropole aluminum house, ca. 1949 metal aluminum and wood 8 x 12 m collection laurence and patrick seguin image © galerie patrick seguin

metropole aluminum house, ca. 1949 metal aluminum and wood 8 x 12 mcollection laurence and patrick seguin image © galerie patrick seguin

colonial-type armchair N° 352, variation, ca.1952steel tube, aluminum sheet, galvanized steel sheet and woodcollection laurence and patrick seguin image © galerie patrick seguin

direction no. 353 swiveling office chair, 1951bent sheet steel, steel tube, sheet aluminum ‘diamond point’ motif, leatherette and woodcollection laurence and patrick seguin image © galerie patrick seguin

direction N° 352 office chair,1951bent sheet steel, steel tube, leather and woodcollection laurence and patrick seguin image © galerie patrick seguin

‘cité’ armchair, ca.1933sheet steel, leather and stretched canvascollection laurence and patrick seguin image © galerie patrick seguin

métropole No 305 chair, version with seat and backrest in aluminum, ca. 1953bent sheet steel, steel tube and sheet aluminumcollection laurence and patrick seguin image © galerie patrick seguin

cafétéria N°300 demountable chair, ca.1950bent sheet steel and molded plywoodcollection laurence and patrick seguin image © galerie patrick seguin

‘cité’ chair, 1932steel tube and solid woodcollection laurence and patrick seguin image © galerie patrick seguin

demountable wooden chair CB 22, 1947solid wood, molded plywood and aluminum tubecollection laurence and patrick seguin image © galerie patrick seguin

demountable wooden chair CB 22, 1947solid wood, molded plywood and aluminum tubecollection laurence and patrick seguinimage © galerie patrick seguin

fauteuil léger No 356, antony chair version with cushioned sheath in leatherette, 1955sheet steel, steel tube, molded plywood and leatherettecollection laurence and patrick seguinimage © galerie patrick seguin