CHARLOTTE PERRIAND | En Forme desk

ash, aluminium and metal

Collection Louis Lataillade, France and thence by descent

For the En Forme desk exhibited at Formes Utiles, Objets de notre temps, Musée des Arts Décoratifs, Paris, 1949 :
Jacques Barsac, Charlotte Perriand, Un Art d'Habiter, Paris, 2005, p. 350
Charlotte Perriand, exhibition catalogue, Centre Pompidou, Paris, December 7, 2005 - March 27, 2006, p. 109
Mary McLeod, Charlotte Perriand, An Art of Living, New York, 2003, pp. 179 and 220
Jacques Barsac, Charlotte Perriand et le Japon, Paris, 2008, p. 189
Jacques Barsac, Charlotte Perriand, L'Oeuvre Complète, Volume 2, 1940-1955, Paris, 2015, pp. 173 and 250-251

Good overall condition. The wood presents with the usual scattered scratches, scuffs, small dents and with very few tiny chips. There are a few scattered cracks in the wood, including larger ones on the underside of the top, inherent to the aging process of the material. The legs presents with a few small chips and some wear and humidity traces at the bottom. The drawers presents with a few minute chips and a larger one on the back of the proper right drawer (approx length : 4,5 cm). The metal on the drawers presents with scattered scratches and some light soiling. All consistent with age and use. The desk is very slightly wobbly. Three very tiny holes on the proper left side of the top have been previously filled.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Louis Lataillade started working as a doctor at the Algerian Hammam Righa spa resort in 1937, before becoming health inspector and then director of the public health experiment center of Soissons in 1950. In 1958, he joined the European WHO office in Copenhagen, and became its representative in Turkey in 1963. He came back to Copenhagen to be the co-director of the WHO/Europe office from 1967 to 1972.
Louis Lataillade was a friend of Albert Camus and a writer himself. He is the author of Le Groupe Sud published at Gallimard, along with many medical articles, a biography of Abd el-Kader and several books of poems, among which Mots de Passe, published in 1948 and illustrated by his friend Maurice Jardot.
This friendship led Louis Lataillade to acquire a few pieces by Charlotte Perriand, like our En forme desk. Maurice Jardot was Daniel-Henry Kahnweiler’s associate and a close friend of Le Corbusier as well as Charlotte Perriand.