Eileen Gray

Eileen Gray (1878–1976) was born on 9 August 1878 near Enniscorthy, County Wexford, Ireland. She studied at the Slade School of Fine Art in London from 1900, moved to Paris in 1902 and trained in lacquer work, first with Dean Charles in…

Biography

Background

Eileen Gray (1878–1976) was born on 9 August 1878 near Enniscorthy, County Wexford, Ireland. She studied at the Slade School of Fine Art in London from 1900, moved to Paris in 1902 and trained in lacquer work, first with Dean Charles in London and then with the Japanese craftsman Seizo Sugawara, with whom she opened a lacquer workshop in 1910.

Signature Style

Gray moved from luxurious lacquer, exotic woods and furs towards simpler, more industrial forms in the mid-1920s. Her tubular-steel furniture, revolutionary at the time, is now regarded as classic, and she favoured lightweight, functional, multi-purpose pieces she called "camping style".

Notable Works

Rue de Lota apartment (from 1917) with the Bibendum chair and Pirogue day bed
Jean Désert gallery, Paris (1922–1930)
Villa E-1027, Roquebrune-Cap-Martin (begun 1926) and Tempe à Pailla, Menton (1931)
Adjustable Table E1027, taken into MoMA's design collection in 1978

Legacy

She was named Royal Designer for Industry in 1972. In 1973 she transferred the rights to her designs to Aram Designs Ltd., London; ClassiCon is the sole worldwide licensee. The Centre Pompidou honoured her with a major retrospective in 2013. She died in Paris on 31 October 1976.