Vintage Shell Chair by Pierre Guariche for Meurop, 1960s

Midcentury French designer Pierre Guariche was born into a family of goldsmiths in Paris in 1926. He studied at the École Nationale Supérieure des Arts Décoratifs de Paris under René Gabriel, graduating in 1949. Next he worked in the studio of Marcel Gascoin, one of his former professors, and joined the Union des Artistes Moderns (UAM), a collective dedicated to the promotion of progressive design principles founded by Robert Mallet-Stevens in 1929. Through the UAM, Guariche was able to experiment with materials and forms and exhibit his work at the Salon des Arts Ménagers and the Salon des Artistes Décorateurs.

Guariche’s work was soon noticed and put in production by Galerie MAI, Pierre Disderot’s lighting company, and the newly formed Airborne brand—which began editing Guariche’s Prefacto Series in 1951. That same year, Guariche began designing for Steiner—a collaboration that led to Guariche’s famous Tulipe Chair (1953), Vampire Chair (1954), and Amsterdam/Tonneau Chair (1954).

In 1954, Pierre Guariche founded the Ateliers de Recherche Plastique (ARP) in collaboration with his two designer friends, Michel Mortier (1925-2015) and Joseph-André Motte (1925-2013). The trio had met while interning with Gascoin, and together they created a range of modernist, affordable furniture for Huchers Minvielle and others.

In 1957, Guariche became the artistic director for Belgian manufacturer Meurop, where his work embraced more biomorphic silhouettes, as in the Mars Armchair (1965), Jupiter Armchair (1966), and Luna Armchair (1967).

By the late 50’s, Guariche focused increasingly on public and private commissions, like La Plagne and Courchevel winter resorts in France.

Guariche was awarded the René Gabriel prize in 1965. He passed away in 1995.

Belgian furniture manufacturer Meurop is best known for its successful production of 1960s  designs by Pierre Guariche (1926-1995), who was one of the most renowned French industrial and interior designers of the mid-20th century.

In the early 1960s, Guariche’s designs for Meurop centred around storage items  made from plywood, including teak-veneered dining tables , buffets , and shelves . Both the Shell Chair (1961) and the Polaris Chair (1965) marked a new era in Guariche’s career, as he abandoned natural materials such as wood in favor of synthetics and plastics. Referencing Charles & Ray Eames’ iconic side chairs, the Shell Chair, which was made from a light, yet strong piece of molded plastic, is thought to be representative of both a desire to produce affordable design through mass production, and a response to an increasingly consumerist society.

Capturing the zeitgeist of the 1960s, Guariche also created a number of space and astronomically-inspired chairs for Meurop, including the Mars Armchair (1965), Jupiter Armchair (1966), and Luna Armchair (1967), which also referenced apparent shapes seen in Arne Jacobsen's sculptured Egg Chair (1958). Riding on the coattails of his successful Mars Chair, Guariche became Artistic Director of Meurop in 1967.

Today, many of Meurop’s original pieces have been relaunched by contemporary furniture producers and retails stores, including the French chain Maisons du Monde.