Charlotte Perriand: Five Bookcases and What Sets Them Apart
Over nearly seventy years of practice, Charlotte Perriand (1903-1999) designed a body of wall storage that is much sought after today on the twentieth-century French design market. Five bookcases make up most of it: Nuage, Mexique, Rio, Tunisie and Cité Universitaire. All rest on the same grammar (boxes, shelves, aluminium uprights), but each answers its own commission, place and production constraints. Before buying, it is worth understanding these distinctions, because the price varies enormously depending on whether the piece is a 1950s Steph Simon production, a recent Cassina reissue, or a piece attributed without certain provenance.
Nuage (1952-1956): the basic model
The Nuage bookcase was developed by Perriand from 1952, first for her own interiors and then for the Maison du Brésil at the Cité Universitaire in Paris (1959). The principle is simple: boxes, suspended or set down, separated by folded aluminium uprights that act as supports, and wooden shelves. The bookcase is composed almost like a game, since the modules exist in several widths and the uprights in several colours.
Produced by: Ateliers Jean Prouvé (1952-1956), then edited by Galerie Steph Simon (1956-1974).
Reissued by: Cassina, in the "I Maestri" series and then "Cassina Simon Collection", from 2012 for the Nuage version with uprights.
What drives the price
An original Nuage edited by Steph Simon, with good provenance, sells for considerably more than a new Cassina reissue, and the gap depends on the dimensions and the colours of the uprights. A piece attributed without provenance falls somewhere in between, and its price depends heavily on the expertise behind it.
Mexique (1952-1956): the bookcase for student rooms
Conceived for the Maison du Mexique at the Cité Universitaire internationale in Paris, the Mexique bookcase is the most vertical version of the system. It was designed for student rooms, with a minimal footprint and as much usable height as possible. The aluminium uprights, folded and painted, come in strong colours (red, yellow, black) that contrast with the neutral tone of the boxes and of the fir or oak shelves.
The original production was carried out between 1952 and 1956 to equip the Maison du Mexique in full. Most of the pieces that appear on the market today come from the gradual clearing of the rooms from the 1990s onward.
Point of caution: many "Mexique bookcases" offered for sale are in fact reconstructions that combine authentic elements with remade parts. A piece with documented provenance (room number, period photograph) sells for considerably more than a reconstructed one.
Rio: the Maison du Brésil commission
Developed for the Maison du Brésil at the Cité Universitaire, completed in 1959 under the direction of Lúcio Costa and Le Corbusier, the Rio bookcase answers a particular climatic and cultural context. The woods are lighter, the proportions more horizontal, and the aluminium uprights take on warm tones. It is the rarest of the five, since the original commission was limited to equipping the residence.
On the market: authenticated pieces are very rare and mostly come up at public auction.
Tunisie (1952)
Designed for the rooms of the Maison de la Tunisie at the Cité Universitaire in Paris, the Tunisie bookcase is distinguished by its closed boxes in painted folded sheet steel (rather than wood) and by its compact proportions. The aluminium uprights are noticeably squatter.
It is, with Rio, the least common on the market, and the one in which the combination of wood, metal and painted sheet is most pronounced.
Cité Universitaire (1959-1960)
Under this generic name circulate pieces produced for the various houses of the Cité Universitaire internationale (Maison du Brésil, Maison du Mexique, Fondation Deutsch-de-la-Meurthe for certain refurbishments). They share the grammar of the Nuage, Mexique and Rio but show variations in joinery and colour that correspond to choices made house by house.
Difficulty: the name "Cité Universitaire" is sometimes used as a commercial catch-all. A genuine Cité Universitaire piece should ideally come with a provenance specifying the house it came from.
Steph Simon or Cassina: what changes
Steph Simon held exclusive rights to edit the Perriand and Prouvé pieces from 1956 to 1974. These productions are recognised by:
- shelves in solid fir or untreated oak (not laminated);
- hand-painted aluminium uprights, with slight irregularities;
- a discreet stamped marking, sometimes absent.
Cassina took over the edition rights in the 2000s and 2010s. Its reissues are:
- more uniform, because industrially made (laminated wood, spray-booth lacquering);
- numbered and supplied with a "Cassina I Maestri" certificate;
- well made, but without the patina of a Steph Simon production.
Both productions are legitimate. The market treats them differently, and an authenticated Steph Simon Nuage generally sells for several times the price of an equivalent recent Cassina.
Buying with patience
Approaching Charlotte Perriand through her bookcases means entering a system of variations in which each piece is both singular and connected to the others. For the buyer, patience matters more than taste: it is better to spend six months looking for a Mexique with good provenance than to buy a flattering reconstruction in three days. The five models described here do not cover everything (the teak variants, the Les Arcs bookcases and certain private commissions would have to be added), but they account for most of it.
Frequently asked questions
Is a Perriand bookcase without provenance authentic? It is not necessarily false, but it is harder to attribute with certainty, and therefore to value. The opinion of a specialist (Artcurial, Galerie Downtown, Galerie Patrick Seguin) then becomes essential.
Should I choose a Cassina reissue instead? It is a matter of use and budget. A reissue is new, numbered and certified; a Steph Simon production has its patina and its history, and costs considerably more. Either way, a bookcase is bought to be used, not with resale in mind.
Can original Nuage bookcases still be found at more accessible prices? Rarely, and generally with compromises: partial configuration, repainted uprights, uncertain provenance.
How can a Steph Simon aluminium upright be told from a Cassina one? The Steph Simon upright shows a manual fold with fine irregularities and brush-applied paint. The Cassina upright is cleaner and lacquered in a spray booth.
Who handles Perriand expertise in France? Artcurial, Piasa and Tajan for public sales; the Downtown, Patrick Seguin and Jousse Entreprise galleries for dealer expertise.
Further reading
By
LAPIERRE MARKET
