Jean Prouvé

Jean Prouvé combined technology and design like no other. His furniture and buildings look like precise machines – functional, light and clearly constructed. As a designer with creative sensitivity, he developed a modern design language that was conceived from the material itself.

Jean Prouvé (1901–1984) was a French designer who could never be clearly assigned to a single field. Whether furniture, façades or entire buildings – his designs are characterized by industrial production, engineering-like thinking and great creative care. He was never concerned with ornamentation, but always with function, construction and efficiency. Prouvés furniture – often made of steel, aluminum or plywood – appears light, stable and straightforward. His Standard Chair, for example, which makes the distribution of forces in the chair visible, is famous. His prefabricated buildings also show his attitude: design as a response to real needs – intelligent, robust and accessible.