andrée putman at hôtel de ville, paris

andrée putman at hotel de ville hotel de ville, paris france on now until febuary 26, 2011

hotel morgan in 1984 and its later redesign in 2008 left: © deidi von schaewen right: © nicolas koenig courtesy of morgans hotel group

parisian ‘style ambassador’ andrée putman is being honored with a retrospective exhibit, the first of its kind to be held in france.

known for her famous checkerboard designs and graphic interiors, putman first made a name for herself with the morgan hotel in new york, followed by numerous hotel collaborations and the refurbishment of concorde aircrafts. spanning fifty years, her career has come to include private and commercial interior design as well as furniture, objects and her famed ‘milky way’ piano.

the exhibit, which is free to the public, showcases examples of her iconic designs – including recreated interiors of the infamous black and white washroom at the morgan hotel originally designed in 1984 and the concorde interior which followed – work in progress,  process work and the work of artists and designers who have influenced her over the years including robert mallet-steven’s 1930 ‘steel chair’.

‘milky way’ piano see more here © marc abel

guerlain, champs-élyséees, paris, 2005 © eric laignel

left: ‘crescent moon’ right: ‘banc éléphant’ © archives andrée putman

‘croqueuse de diamants’ © archives andrée putman

private apartment, san sebastian © deidi von schaewen

concorde © deidi von schaewen

andrée putman © xavier béjot/ tripod agency