Charlotte Perriand

French, 1903-1999. Most know Charlotte Perriand's iconic designs yet they do not know they are her work. Having a talent for drawing at an early age, her parents encouraged her to pursue drawing and design in school. Inspired by the Machine Age, Perriand began designing furnishings with steel and other modern austere materials, very similar to the aesthetic of Le Corbusier. She was initially dismissed by Le Corbusier until he saw her work then hired her immediately.

They created the famous Le Grand Confort line of furniture together with Le Corbusier's cousin, Pierre Jeanneret. Perriand moved on to work with Jean Prouve creating architectural elements and furniture with modern materials in avant-garde shapes. For a time during World War II, Perriand was living in exile in Vietnam where she connected with local artisans and craftsmen working with natural materials and began incorporating wood and jute into her modern furniture designs.