of the Pavilion Le Corbusier in Zurich. Cassina,
with whom Perriand started a working relationship
in 1964, not only provided pieces from its Perriand
collection, made expressly in the finishes and colours
used at the time, but replicated the metal cabinets
that doubled as partitions between the drawing room
and the rest of the space, and produced new replicas
of several pieces, including a double bed and a daybed.
In a departure from standard museum practice, visitors
are encouraged to use the furniture in the recreated
living space.
The show took four years to plan and execute.
Aside from the usual research and careful negotiationwith private collectors, galleries, estates and over
40 different international museums to coax essential
works, it also involved complex restoration work
and the recreation of total environments. In this the
foundation collaborated closely with Pernette Perriand,
who had worked alongside her mother and now manages
her estate, and Pernette’s husband Jacques Barsac,
Perriand’s biographer.
Within a partial reconstruction of the 1955 Synthèse
des Arts exhibition in Japan, ‘you will really see how
Perriand straddles disciplines’, says chief curator Olivier
Michelon. ‘You will see a table, but also tapestries by
Le Corbusier and Léger, a drawing by Hartung, and so
on. She had a specific vision of art and space. The art
alone could have warranted its own show, but here you
get to see it in a real context.’
Claverie hopes visitors to the show will come
to recognise Perriand as a pioneer of modernity, who
touched on every aspect of our lives. ‘She elevated
the place of the woman in society, highlighted our
relationship with the environment and nature, and
championed the integration of the artist and art.’
In a life that bookended the 20th century, Perriand
never stopped creating. More than a designer, she
was a visionary who was committed to changing the
world softly. And our way of living today would not
be the same without her. ∂
‘Charlotte Perriand’ is at Fondation Louis Vuitton from
2 October-4 February, fondationlouisvuitton.com‘Perriand elevated the place of the
woman in society, and championed
the integration of the artist and art’
LEFT, THE MODEL KITCHEN
AND ITS SPACE-SAVING
ACCESSORIES. PERRIAND WENT
ON TO DESIGN THE PROTOTYPE
KITCHEN FOR LE CORBUSIER’S
FAMOUS UNITÉS D’HABITATION
BELOW, THE ‘LC3’ ARMCHAIR,
REPRODUCED BY CASSINA
IN THE ORIGINAL FINISHES118 ∑
Design