MANNER OF ADRIEN AUDOUX AND FRIDA MINET: A SISAL WEAVE BEECH ELBOW CHAIR

Adrian Audoux and Frida Minet were a French Modernist designer-duo who were extremely productive during the 1940s & 50s. Their design ethic was based upon new, accessible materials and technologies, representing the realities of modern life. They were members of the Union des Artistes Modernes (UAM), established in 1929 by a group of Modernist designers including, among others, Charlotte Perriand, Francis Jourdain, Louis Sognot and Pierre Chareau. This group was founded as a reaction to the design ethos of the Societé des Artistes Decorateurs (SAD) of which many of the UAM designers were originally members, where there was a tendency to cater to the wealthy elite of Paris and members of the SAD (Follot, Dufrene, Herbst etc.) created expensive pieces to satisfy the lavish taste of their clientele.

Audoux Minet's playful, innovative use of materials such as rope and tubular metal created a fresh approach to design which was accessible to a broader demographic and simple frames clad in woven abaca (hemp rope) became their hallmark. They had a retail outlet in Golfe-Juan, a Provencal coastal town bordering Vallauris, where Picasso was working at the time. This was a hotbed of artistic creativity and a destination for affluent, design-hungry travellers.