Charlotte Perriand, Influencer of Her Time

by SweisKloss
June 10, 2021

Imagine if there was social media in the early years of the 20th century. French architect and design icon Charlotte Perriand would have blown up Instagram like nobody’s business. She had personal style and a bold personality. Combine that with her incredible design of furniture, interiors and architecture, and she would have been a clear influencer of her time. She was definitely a pioneer for women in modernist design.

For those who know Perriand’s name, one will recognize that she was closely linked to her male counterparts Le Corbusier, Pierre Jeanneret and Jean Prouvé. Although she would go on to work for 10 years at Le Corbusier’s studio, the initial interview process was rocky when he looked at several of her drawings and said, “We don’t embroider cushions here.” Then, he dismissed her.

Perriand was undeterred. She invited him to view her Bar sous le toit (“Bar under the roof”) at Salon d’Automne. Her work used aluminum and nickel, light and space in an innovative, modern way. Le Corbusier was impressed and offered her a job. Out of this 10-year studio collaboration came some of the most famous furniture pieces to date, such as Perriand’s Chaise Longue. She was also instrumental in the interior design and kitchen plan at the housing complex in Marseille, Unité d’Habitation.

Source: mdbarchitects.com (Charlotte Perriand photographed on her Chaise Longue)

Source: gagosian.com and cassina.com (I Maestri Collection)

By far Perriand’s largest and most renown architectural project was when she led a collective of young architects to design Les Arcs ski resort in Savoie. Her love of incorporating a built environment into the natural environment can be seen here. According to a Dezeen article, “The resort was intentionally masterplanned to be entirely car free, and each building was carefully adjusted to have as minimal a visual impact on the mountain landscape as possible.”

In a world dominated by male architects, Perriand made her mark and created memorable design along the way. High creativity was a fundamental part of who she was, yet functionality was important to the way she designed; she loved making spaces that allowed all elements to interconnect and engage people within that space. She pushed modernism and spun it on its axis many, many times.

We could fill a series of blogs of Perriand’s influences and accomplishments. But let’s simply say this…she was just all around really cool. And we aren’t the only ones to think so. Coming up on June 17th, Architecture + Design Film Festival is presenting a documentary film about her life and work, Charlotte Perriand: Pioneer in the Art of Living. Click here for more information.