Fan-shaped Wall Sconce

1924-1925
Jacques-Emile Ruhlmann

Hailed as the genius of art Deco, Jacques-Émile Ruhlmann really became known at the International Exhibition of the Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts of Paris in 1925. Invited to design his own pavilion, Ruhlmann joined forces with the architect Pierre Patout and well-known artists to present a wealthy, elegant and ideal collector’s home. The sophisticated modernism displayed, also in the use of precious materials, exemplifies the excellence of “French taste” as opposed to the purism and austerity of Le Corbusier in his ascetic and radical Pavilion of the New Spirit. Ruhlmann attached particular importance to illumination as a way of enhancing interiors with carefully calibrated light while also constituting a decorative element in its own right. This fan-shaped sconce with an alabaster shade to provide a soft glow presents a fine contrast with its bronze mounting, whose pebbled motif became a hallmark of Ruhlmann’s work during the 1910s.