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Christie’s Auction Sets New Records for Pieces by Perriand, Paulin, and Royère

Collector Daniel Lebard’s remarkable trove of 20th-century French furniture realizes more than $35 million in Christie’s November sale

By Jill Sieracki
Modern living room with cream armchairs, a wooden table, and a wall art piece, featuring natural light through a large window.
Pieces by Pierre Paulin, Charlotte Perriand, Takis, and Antonin Kybal from Daniel Lebard’s collection of 20th century design that recently came to auction at Christie’s France. Photo: Courtesy of Christie's

“It started about 40 years ago by chance,” said collector Daniel Lebard about his trove of exceptional design pieces by Jean Prouvé, Charlotte Perriand, Le Corbusier, Georges Jouve, Pierre Paulin, and more, which recently came to market in a two-part sale at Christie’s in Paris. “It’s been an extraordinary adventure.”

Lebard’s collection started innocently enough when he fell in love with a piece by Prouvé and began to amass more of the designer’s simple, minimalist furnishings for his home and office. His developing interest in metallurgy then led him to the work of Mathieu Matégot and Serge Mouille, and the ensuing decades saw him accumulate one of the most impressive collections of design from the 1950s through ’70s ever assembled.

Red velvet sofa set with two matching armchairs in a white minimalist room.
Pair of Boule armchairs and sofa that realized €1,292,000 and €980,000 during Christie’s November auction. Photo: Courtesy of Christie's

In early November, Christie’s Paris auctioned more than 300 lots in a two-part sale that realized more than €31 million, more than twice its pre-sale estimate. Among the more than 51 lots by Prouvé was a pair of red velvet Boule armchairs, which fetched €1,292,000, the third highest price for a piece of the designer’s work.

Other notable offerings included a 1951 lighting library created by Charlotte Perriand, Jean Prouvé and Andre Salomon, which brought in €1,016,000, a pair of Elysée armchairs by Pierre Paulin, which quadrupled their estimate by achieving €200,000, and a 1985 Signal light by Takis that sold for €156,250 against a €60,000 high estimate.

“We are deeply touched to have honored Daniel Lebard’s lifelong passion and energy that is crystallized in this exceptional collection,” Flavien Gaillard, head of the design department at Christie’s France said in a statement. “With 24 new world auction records and 500 registrants from four continents, this very successful sale shows the immense quality of the selection that Daniel Lebard carefully gathered over 40 years.”

Vintage wooden lounge chair with a sleek, minimalist design and curved armrests in a bright, modern room.
This record-setting Jean Prouvé Kangaroo chair achieved €980,000 during Christie’s auction of the Daniel Lebard collection. Photo: Courtesy of Christie's
Modern black and red designer chair with sleek lines on a simple white background.
Christie’s auction of the Daniel Lebard collection included more than 50 lots by Jean Prouvé, like this circa 1930 chair that achieved €425,000. Photo: Courtesy of Christie's

Also setting records during the sale were Prouvé’s 1948 Kangaroo armchair, which went for €980,000, five times its estimate and the highest price for a Prouvé armchair sold at auction. Similarly, one of four sets of eight Métropole N. 305 chairs by the designer achieved achieved €325,000, more than eight times its estimate.

“The outstanding success of Lebard’s collection confirms his great intuition and his pristine avant-garde taste,” Cécile Verdier, president of Christie’s France, said in a statement. “We were honored to present such a landmark collection celebrating the icons of design after a very successful public exhibition in our Paris galleries. The results achieved today underline the strong appetite of international collectors for exceptional curated ensembles and the growing vitality of the Parisian market.”

Below, a look at several other highlights from the sale. 

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Christie’s Auction Sets New Records for Pieces by Perriand, Paulin, and Royère

Pair of Jean Royeru00e9 Boule armchairs and sofa that realized u20ac1,292,000 and u20ac980,000 during Christie’s November auction.

Photograph by Courtesy of Christie's

This record-setting Jean Prouvu00e9 Kangaroo chair achieved u20ac980,000 during Christie’s auction of the Daniel Lebard collection.

Photograph by Courtesy of Christie's

Christie’s auction of the Daniel Lebard collection included more than 50 lots by Jean Prouvu00e9, like this circa 1930 chair that achieved u20ac425,000.

Photograph by Courtesy of Christie's

Jean Prouveu0301u2019s Presidency N. 201 desk sold for u20ac596,000 in the Christie’s auction of the collection of Daniel Lebard.

Photograph by Courtesy of Christie's

Pieces by Serge Mouille, Charlotte Perriand, and Jean Prouvu00e9 from Christie’s auction of the collection of Daniel Lebard.

Photograph by Courtesy of Christie's

Roger Tallon’s Module 400 table and chairs from Christie’s November auction of the collection of Daniel Lebard.

Photograph by Courtesy of Christie's

Mathieu Matu00e9gotu2019s Butterfly chair sold for u20ac206,250 in Christie’s auction of the Daniel Lebard collection.

Photograph by Courtesy of Christie's

Jean Prouvu00e9’s Trapeze table realized u20ac1,100,000 in Christie’s sale of the collection of Daniel Lebard.

Photograph by Courtesy of Christie's

Four lots of Jean Prouvu00e9’s Metropole N. 305 chairs brought a collective u20ac1,763,500 during Christie’s auction of the collection of Daniel Lebard.

Photograph by Courtesy of Christie's

Pieces by Jean Prouvu00e9 from the collection of Daniel Lebard that recently sold at Christie’s France.

Photograph by Courtesy of Christie's

This record-setting table by Charlotte Perriand and Jean Prouvu00e9 sold for u20ac1,016,000 in Christie’s sale of the collection of Daniel Lebard.

Photograph by Courtesy of Christie's

This record-setting table by Charlotte Perriand and Jean Prouvu00e9 sold for u20ac1,016,000 in Christie’s sale of the collection of Daniel Lebard.

Photograph by Courtesy of Christie's

Charlotte Perriand’s 1958 Nuage library and storage cabinet sold for u20ac450,000 in Christie’s auction of the collection of Daniel Lebard.

Photograph by Courtesy of Christie's
Red velvet sofa set with two matching armchairs in a white minimalist room.
Vintage wooden lounge chair with a sleek, minimalist design and curved armrests in a bright, modern room.
Modern black and red designer chair with sleek lines on a simple white background.
Curved wooden desk with red drawers and black legs on a white background.
Modern living room with a minimalist design, featuring a contemporary light fixture, sleek furniture, and a wooden divider.
Modern dining room with a sleek metallic table and chairs, abstract art on the wall, and bookshelves in the background.
Modern chair with brown leather backrest and metal legs in front of a large chalkboard in a minimalist room setting.
modern living room with black table, contemporary art on walls, bookshelves, and bright natural light through curtains
Modern dining room with a large table, green chairs, and colorful art on white walls, illuminated by natural light.
Mid-century modern office with wooden desk, red accents, and large windows overlooking a tree-filled view.
Contemporary dining room with wooden table, chairs, bench, large bookshelves, and framed artwork on the wall.
Modern wooden bench with sleek metal frame and backrest, designed in a minimalist style against a plain background.
Modern minimalist office interior with wooden desk, chair, wall-mounted shelves, and small cabinet on a white background.
Red velvet sofa set with two matching armchairs in a white minimalist room.
Vintage wooden lounge chair with a sleek, minimalist design and curved armrests in a bright, modern room.
Modern black and red designer chair with sleek lines on a simple white background.
Curved wooden desk with red drawers and black legs on a white background.
Modern living room with a minimalist design, featuring a contemporary light fixture, sleek furniture, and a wooden divider.
Modern dining room with a sleek metallic table and chairs, abstract art on the wall, and bookshelves in the background.
Modern chair with brown leather backrest and metal legs in front of a large chalkboard in a minimalist room setting.
modern living room with black table, contemporary art on walls, bookshelves, and bright natural light through curtains
Modern dining room with a large table, green chairs, and colorful art on white walls, illuminated by natural light.
Mid-century modern office with wooden desk, red accents, and large windows overlooking a tree-filled view.
Contemporary dining room with wooden table, chairs, bench, large bookshelves, and framed artwork on the wall.
Modern wooden bench with sleek metal frame and backrest, designed in a minimalist style against a plain background.
Modern minimalist office interior with wooden desk, chair, wall-mounted shelves, and small cabinet on a white background.