Jean Gregorieff, for Roche Bobois

JEAN GREGORIEFF (France, 1931), for Roche Bobois, ca. 1970's.
Coffee table. Mid Century style.
Glazed ceramic.
Chromed steel frame.
Measurements: 36 x 87 x 41,5 cm.

This coffee table, designed by Jean Gregorieff in the seventies, perfectly reflects the creative spirit of the time: a synthesis between art, design and functionality. The rectangular top is made up of ten tiles arranged in two rows, where Gregorieff deploys his characteristic visual language. On an ochre band, a stylized and completely geometrical flower appears: a cup-shaped tulip, with an elongated stem and elliptical leaves that culminate in a base with a blunt profile. The rest of the board is enameled in a deep blue tone, which intensifies the chromatic contrast. The work reveals the artist's quest to unite the artisanal and the modern, the pictorial and the sculptural finish.

Jean Gregorieff stands as an essential figure of 20th century art and design in France. He began his career in 1947 in the world of lithography, training in drawing, painting and sculpture during the evenings while working in a printing workshop. In 1959, he moved to Vallauris, the Côte d'Azur ceramic center that attracted artists such as Picasso, where he learned the techniques of the potter's wheel and pottery. During the 1960s and 1970s, his creativity diversified, producing frescoes, furniture, swimming pool decorations and architectural collaborations. However, his name is especially linked to the coffee tables he designed in collaboration with the prestigious firm Roche Bobois. Today considered true collector's gems, these tables marked a before and after by fusing craftsmanship with modern design. They are characterized by their ceramic tops, composed of glazed and hand-painted tiles, and combined with chromed steel or wood structures.