The skier’s chalet
For their new exhibition on mountain furniture, Maison Verrsen focuses on the work of Henry Jacques Le Même. A leading architect in Megève, he invented the skier’s chalet in the 1920s.
Trained by Emile Jacques Ruhlmann in the creation of refined interiors, decoration projects, the design of elegant furniture and carpentry.
In poor health, he left Paris in 1925 and moved to Megève on the advice of a friend.
In 1926, he received an unusual commission. Baroness Noémie de Rothschild, who wanted to build a pied-à-terre in the emerging winter sports resort, entrusted him with her project. The architect was 28 years old. He invented a new form of housing, with great finesse in the details. From the 1930s onwards, commissions flooded in for chalets, children’s boarding houses, hotels, shops and interior design. His modernist house and studio in Megève has been a listed historic monument since 1995.
We will also be presenting rare pieces by Charlotte Perriand, from Méribel and Les Arcs in Savoie.
Le Même and Perriand never worked together, with the exception of a collaboration on a hotel project in 1936 in Haute-Savoie, but each in their own way, they championed the same approach to architectural integration in the mountains, with accommodation adapted to the needs of their new clientele of skiers.
Mountain furniture, from Henry Jacques Le Même to Charlotte Perriand.
"This type of dwelling is both functional and comfortable, spacious and compact, with a low environmental impact. The elegance of skier's chalets comes from the composition of their façades, their harmonious proportions and their location, which is carefully designed to blend in with the site and topography. Each one is unique, yet they share a common vocabulary established by variations in colour and geometry based on a range of graphic motifs. Woodwork, decorative fittings, floors and furniture are custom-designed to create coordinated interiors."Mélanie Manin and Françoise Very.
