PRESENTATION
Located in the very heart of Paris, in Saint-Germain-des-Prés, Galerie Marcilhac exhibits the works of the most emblematic decorators and designers of the Art Déco period. Jean Dunand, Pierre Chareau, Jacques-Emile Ruhlmann, Raymond Subes, Edgar Brandt, Marc du Plantier, Jean-Michel Frank, Jacques Adnet, Eugène Printz, Pierre-Emile Legrain, Louis Süe and André Mare : all the greatest figures who took part with strength and talent in what had been called the "Art Déco style" are represented. Each historical piece testifies to the exigency of luxury and reflects the craftsmanship inherited from past centuries as well as the innovative spirit of the inter-war period. The combination of rare woods and precious materials and the interest in Far Eastern techniques, such as the lacquer art or copper work, allows a high level of perfection to be achieved. Largely influenced by Cubism, this predilection for geometric forms not only gives these works style and elegance but also enables them to take their place with refinement in today's interiors. Committed to promote and preserve 20th century decorative arts, Félix Marcilhac Jr. has regularly set up retrospective exhibitions. He thus paid tribute to decorator Marcel Coard in 2012, glassmaker Maurice Marinot and lacquerer Gaston Suisse in 2013, sculptor Chana Orloff in 2016 and animal painter Paul Jouve in 2017. More recently, 2020 exhibition Jean Dunand, maître laqueur was heavily symbolic and paid a double tribute to Félix Marcilhac Sr. and to his research on the artist, updated by Amélie Marcilhac. Félix Marcilhac Jr.'s constant search for novelty led him to create a symbiosis between ancient works from the 1920s and 1940s and more contemporary pieces that share the same virtuosity of execution, technical innovation and sobriety of line. Thus, works by Jean Royère, Line Vautrin, the Lalannes and the Giacometti brothers are exhibited alongside the Art Deco setting. Galerie Marcilhac supports contemporary artists offering them a privileged exhibition space. Since 2012, Kelli Bedrossian's bronze and plaster sculptures - which bear witness to a stylistic filiation to Cubism - have engaged in dialogue with works of art by other sculptors such as Joseph Csaky or Gustav Miklos. For many years, the gallery's active participation in the most important international events in Paris, London, Geneva and New York has enabled itself to present a selection of the most refined works each year and to reaffirm its aura with an international clientele.
HISTORY
Galerie Marcilhac was founded in 1969 by Félix Marcilhac Sr.. It has been ever since recognized as one of oldest Parisian galleries devoted exclusively to 20th century French decorative arts. As a passionate and inveterate collector, Félix Marcilhac Sr. became an internationally renowned specialist and an undisputed figure in the Parisian art market. He revealed his vision of work as follows: "When I covet an object, nothing else exists but the reality of my desire, the object and me.". This intimate triptych guided him in the writing of several catalogues raisonnés devoted to glassmakers René Lalique and Maurice Marinot, sculptors Joseph Csaky, Gustav Miklos, Edouard-Marcel Sandoz and Chana Orloff, orientalist painter Jacques Majorelle and Paul Jouve, not forgetting the plural work of Jean Dunand. Not to mention furniture makers, since he dedicated writings to André Domin and Marcel Genevrière - founders of the Maison Dominique - and to André Groult, a singular artist renowned for his furniture in shagreen. Marcilhac Sr.'s researches made him a specialist of Art Nouveau and one of the major players in the discovery of Art Deco. As the father of four, he passed on his passion to his son, Félix Marcilhac Jr., whom he introduced to the profession of dealer at an early age and warned: "An object cannot be inherited, it must be earned". Félix Jr. therefore gained experience and joined him in 2005 as gallery director. He developed the gallery's activities and propelled it to the forefront of the international scene by offering it a choice position in the art market. With its long history and reputation, Galerie Marcilhac continues to confirm its role; it initiates neophyte collectors and satisfies the most experienced ones, inspires decorators and collaborates with museums by offering them singular and unique works since its creation and for many years to come.
