Jean Royère

Do you own a work by Jean Royère and would you like to know more about its value? Our Experts will carry out a free appraisal of your work, to provide you with an estimate of the market price, then assist you to sell at the best price.

Rating, estimation and price of Jean Royère furniture

Furniture estimate: 8,000 – 1,200,000 €.

Average selling price of a light: 2,000 – 100,000 €.

Price of a drawing by the artist: 50 – 1,000 €.

If you would like to have a work by Jean Royère appraised, our experts are at your disposal.

Career change and new training

Jean Royère was a French decorator born in 1902 in Paris, who died in 1981 in Pennsylvania.

At the age of 29, Jean Royère, a self-taught man, left his job in import-export to become a decorator. Without any formal training, he began his career in cabinetmaking workshops at the Faubourg Saint-Antoine, and in 1933 he received his first commission for the Carlton Ball on the Champs-Élysées. This opportunity allowed him to collaborate later with Pierre Gouffé, who entrusted him with the direction of the contemporary section of his workshops in the Faubourg Saint-Antoine until 1942. He regularly took part in the major Parisian salons, including the Salon d’Automne and the Salon des Artistes Décorateurs.

Showing great admiration for Jacques Emile Ruhlmann, he was inspired by his taste for precious materials such as Macassar ebony and rosewood. His work was also identifiable by his use of bright colours and organic shapes, marking a turning point for the time with his series of luminaires, notably the one representing lianas in metal tubes.

The time of recognition

Jean Royère was consecrated as one of the great decorators of his time at the 1937 Paris International Exhibition. But he belonged to a movement for whom the tensions between the Union des Artistes Modernes and the Société des Artistes Décorateurs were no longer as great. He also discovered the modernity of Italians and Scandinavians before his French compatriots, which inspired him in his creations.

After the Second World War, he founded his own company and opened agencies in many countries in the Middle East such as Lebanon, Egypt and Syria and in Latin America such as Peru, where he became the official decorator for leaders such as King Farouk or the Shah of Iran, whose palaces he decorated. He is exhibited in galleries in Beirut and Tehran.

In 1980, Jean Royère bequeathed his complete archive collection to the Musée des arts décoratifs de Paris. He then moved permanently to the United States where he would end his life.

It was at the Sotheby’s Important Design auction in May 2018 that a piece of Jean Royère’s living room furniture sold for $1.8 million in New York City. The furniture was bought for six times the estimated price. A year earlier, Christie’s had sold two polar bear armchairs by Jean Royère for 1 million Swiss francs in Paris.

Main works

Swivel office chair

‘Ruban’ coffee table

‘Eléphanteau’ armchair

Appraising and selling a work by Royère

If you own a furniture or any other sculpture by Royère, ask for a free estimate via our online form.

You will then be contacted by a member of our team of experts and auctioneers to give you an independent view of the market price of your furniture. In the event of a sale, our specialists will also advise you on the various options available to sell your work at the best price.