Eugène Vallin and the École de Nancy: Crafting a Legacy of Art and Innovation
Exploring the designer’s turn-of-the-century dining room suites for Éléonore Mauljean
Written by Frédéric Descouturelle, author of Eugène Vallin (1998)
Eugène Vallin, Drawings for the present ceiling light, Corbin-Mauljean, Watercolor and gouache on paper, 1905. Image: Private collection. The Nancy-based designer Eugène Vallin occupies a special place within the artistic movement of the École de Nancy. Born in 1856, Vallin inherited his uncle's carpentry business in 1881, which specialized in church furniture. His early friendship with the painter Victor Prouvé led him to meet Émile Gallé, to whom he supplied the carriage doors for his factory. At the same time, in 1895-1896, he built his new studio and his own house, the first in Nancy to feature both naturalistic decor inspired by Gallé and structural innovations.
Eugène Vallin’s personal style developed gradually, around the time of the 1900 Exposition Universelle, despite the fact that he did not participate in this landmark event. His work combined the grandeur of ecclesiastical furnishings, the rationalist principles of Viollet-le-Duc, and the integration of plant forms into furniture design. During the exposition, which solidified Gallé’s fame for both glasswork and furniture, another contemporary, Louis Majorelle, emerged with his own distinct stylistic approach and won a Grand Prix. Following the exposition, Gallé sought to showcase the vitality of these artistic tenets by founding the Association Provinciale des Industries d’Art (École de Nancy). The creation of this group brought together key figures such as Gallé, Majorelle, Vallin, and Daum with local craftspeople dedicated to the immersion in modernity. Vallin was the Association’s Vice President, while also managing his workshop of about twenty employees. His evolving style gained the support of several local cabinetmakers, including Jacques Gruber, Justin Férez, Laurent Neiss, and Hector Michaut, as well as architects Georges Biet, Lucien Weissenburger, and Louis Lanternier. Together, they shaped a distinctly local movement that was deeply rooted in Lorraine traditions as well as neo-medieval influences. Vallin’s significant contributions were both architectural as well as decorative, leaving a lasting mark on Nancy’s urban landscape.
The dining room that Vallin designed in 1902 for the Luxembourg industrialist Louis Dutreux was the starting point for a series of similar designs commissioned by the upper middle class of Nancy. Among these patrons were the children and sons-in-law of Antoine Corbin, founder of Magasins Réunis, a chain of department stores. They commissioned four dining rooms and two bedrooms by Vallin. The most opulent of these was the dining room of Charles Masson and Marie Corbin, completed between 1903 and 1906. It was located on the second floor of the family’s home on Rue Mazagran in Nancy, directly opposite their store. Redesigned during World War I, this dining room is now one of the centerpiece exhibits at the Musée de l’École de Nancy.
Éléonore Mauljean and Louis Mauljean pictured on their wedding day. Image: Private collection. On the third floor of the Corbin’s family home lived Éléonore Corbin Mauljean, daughter of Antoine Corbin, sister of Marie Corbin, and widow of Louis Mauljean (1858–1904), a career military officer who joined the family business through marriage. In 1904, Éléonore commissioned Eugène Vallin to create the present dining room, which was completed in 1905. Though slightly more modest than the others, the room featured a large table and buffet, likely accompanied by wainscoting and ceiling panels. It also included an impressive sideboard, twelve chairs, two consoles, and a chandelier sized between those made for Dutreux and Masson.
Like Vallin's other chandeliers, this one had a polished bronze frame adorned with three-dimensional frosted glass panels. A preparatory sketch shows that the glass, flower-shaped shades – likely made by Daum—were similar to Vallin’s other designs. The Mauljean dining room and the present ceiling light are one of the very few complete ensembles by Vallin that has remained intact. It was created at the height of his expressive period, where a plant’s organic growth—stylized through the gradual abstraction of local flora—was translated into stunning and dynamic lines.
Provenance
Éléonore Mauljean, Nancy, commissioned directly from the artist, 1904
Raymond Toupenet, Paris
Acquired from the above by the present owner, 1999Literature
Alastair Duncan, The Paris Salons 1895-1914, Volume III: Furniture, New York, 1996, p. 555 for a similar example
Frédéric Descouturelle, Eugène Vallin: Menuisier d'art de l'ecole de Nancy, Nancy, 1998, p. 235 for a drawing
Jean-Paul Midant, Art Nouveau in France, Paris, 1999, p. 91 for a similar example
Laurent Henart, Valerie Thomas, and Jérôme Perrin, L'École de Nancy: Art Nouveau et Industrie d'Art, exh. cat., Musée des Beaux-arts de Nancy, Nancy, 2018, p. 150 for a drawing of a similar example
Property from an Important Private Collection
147
Lot offered with No Reserve
Important ceiling light
circa 1905
Molded dichroic and blown glass, gilt bronze.
52 in. (132.1 cm) drop, 27 3/4 in. (70.5 cm) diameter
Glass likely executed by Daum Frères and Jacques Grüber, Nancy, France.
Estimate
$100,000 - 150,000 •
Sold for $53,340
Benjamin Green
Associate Specialist, Head of Sale, New York
bgreen@phillips.com
+1 212 940 1267
Design
New York Auction 11 December 2024
126
This lot is no longer available.
203
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