The Men Behind the Name
Christian Darnaud-Maroselli and Jean de Merry founded the namesake furniture line, Jean de Merry, in 2001 with a mission to uphold the craft of a bygone era. From a small French town where successive generations of de Merry’s family had operated a leather tanning business for four centuries, to creating a visionary home collection handcrafted at their Los Angeles atelier. Jean de Merry has grown into a French deco-inspired, artisanal line that sparks the imaginations of its clients, producing pieces that are timeless, unexpected and anchored by quality and craftsmanship. For the due, emphasis on the process has always been key to creating beautiful yet integral pieces. To create Jean de Merry seating, lighting, case goods and decorative art, de Merry and Darnaud-Maroselli transferred their knowledge of age-old, French techniques for application on woods, leathers, shadgreen, parchment and bronze to a new generation of American craftsmen. “It’s all in the method,” says de Merry. “We are applying very special methods to our materials.”
Jean de Merry has grown into a French deco-inspired, artisanal line that sparks the imaginations of its clients, producing pieces that are timeless, unexpected and anchored by quality and craftsmanship.
The Jean de Merry collection exhibits a yin-yang quality – the richness of materials, lending the furnishings a feminine allure while the lines create a more masculine one. “What appeals to us most is the balance of male and female characteristics in the pieces,” says Darnaud-Maroselli. Hints of the works of various historical designers whom both admire – Eileen Gray, Jean-Michel Frank, Billy Haines, Serge Roche and Paul Laszlo find their way into Jean de Merry’s creations. As de Merry puts it, “the end results are wholly new designs rooted in older forms and based on traditional ways of manufacturing.”
Today, the duo find their vision growing exponentially, as their products outfit top-flight projects ranging from the Bergdorf Goodman restaurant in New York, multitudes of high-end residential properties around the world and prestigious hotels like the Peninsula in Chicago and new York, The Beverly Hills and Bel-Air hotels in Los Angeles, The Crown Hotel in Melbourne, to high-end fashion boutiques like Dior and Tiffany’s.
Representing the epitome of de Merry’s and Darnaud-Maroselli’s style, the new Jean de Merry Los Angeles flagship moved in the heart of the Design Mecca at the Pacific Design Center, offering visitors a 10,000 Sq. Ft. space with subtle palettes, discreet, sophisticated finishes and sleek lines, to create a harmonious, artful juxtaposition to the beauty of their handcrafted collection. In addition to their Los Angeles flagship, Jean de Merry has outposts in New York, Chicago and Dallas. The collection is also represented in numerous multi-line showrooms including: Atlanta, San Francisco, Boston, Denver, and Scottsdale as well as internationally in Dubai, Toronto and Moscow.
With a strong appreciation and respect for beauty, pedigree and integrity, de Merry and Maroselli have created a stunning collection that embodies the classic elements of design while still being original and personal. Never modish but always stylish and relevant, these pieces are the heirlooms of the future.
