ÉMILE-JACQUES RUHLMANN (1879–1933)
‘Jette-habits’ Clothes Rack, circa 1925
oak, patinated metal
41 ½ x 47 ½ x 18 in. (105.5 x 120.7 x 45.7 cm)
ÉMILE-JACQUES RUHLMANN (1879–1933)
‘Jette-habits’ Clothes Rack, circa 1925
oak, patinated metal
41 ½ x 47 ½ x 18 in. (105.5 x 120.7 x 45.7 cm)
Geneviève and Pierre Hebey, Paris Millon & Robert, Paris, Hebey Les Ruhlmann de Geneviève et Pierre Hebey, 28 October 1999, lot 49 Acquired from the above by the present owner
F. Camard, Ruhlmann, Paris, 2009, p. 429
The present lot was thoughtfully named ‘Jette-habits’ or ‘clothes throw-on’, by Ruhlmann. As a man who devoted himself to aesthetic perfection, he jests at the connotation of the object’s purpose, intentionally replacing the conventional ‘valet muet’ with a casual and conversational title. The form of this clothes rack is unusual with the horizontal cylindrical rods and shelves that are designed to hang clothes. To one side, an umbrella-stand bar is outfitted with a small dish at the bottom. We typically see clothes racks as vertically oriented objects, this new understanding of the object is both functional and inquisitive.
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