MOMENTUM
November 10, 2025 – January 3, 2026

Momentum celebrates a pivotal decade in the history of French decorative arts, from 1965 to 1975—an era marked by innovation, new modes of living, and the emergence of a new generation of designers and interior architects.

The exhibition also marks nearly twenty years of activity for Demisch Danant, following the opening of our first gallery in Chelsea in October 2005. For two decades, we have championed a core group of French designers who were, at the time, largely unknown in the United States: Pierre Paulin, Maria Pergay, Michel Boyer, Joseph-André Motte, Jacques Dumond, and Étienne Fermigier, among others, as well as artists from the same period such as César, Sheila Hicks, Alain Jacquet, François Arnal, and Eugène Leroy. This exhibition is both a tribute to the designers and artists to whom Demisch Danant has been committed from the beginning, and an expansion of this narrative. We are also presenting works by designers we have introduced into our program in recent years, including Bernard Govin and Olivier Mourgue.

The exhibition is organized into sections focusing on groups of works by individual designers. For Michel Boyer, we present a unique desk commissioned by Élie de Rothschild for his office at the bank of the same name, accompanied by other models Boyer designed for the firm Rouve, such as a Formica low table and two trestle tables with aluminum bases—each emblematic of his design language. Pierre Paulin is represented by two models from the 1980s, including a desk designed for the American company Baker, along with a 1960s Pop-style chair produced by Artifort. The installation also includes artworks by Alain Jacquet and others, displayed in dialogue with the furniture.

Momentum reflects both the creative dynamism of this historical period and the continuous trajectory that has shaped the gallery’s program over many years.