In 1978, at 6 rue Pavée in Paris, Andrée Putman brought her passion for decorative arts to life by founding Ecart. The company was established with a clear mission: to reissue furniture and objects from historical creators of the early 20th century, many of whom had been largely forgotten. Located in a showroom set up in a former warehouse, Ecart positioned itself as a pioneer in what it called an “archaeology of modernity.”
From the beginning, Andrée Putman focused on reissuing iconic works by major names in design and decorative arts, whose timeless elegance contrasted with the dominant aesthetics of the 1980s, characterized by the Memphis Group and Starck’s minimalism. She chose to revive the creations of Mariano Fortuny, Eileen Gray, Jean-Michel Frank, Robert Mallet-Stevens, Michel Dufet, Pierre Chareau, and Jacques-Henri Lartigue, among other influential figures. Guided by a meticulous eye, aesthetic intuition, and extensive archival research, she carefully selected furniture, lamps, rugs, and objects from period reviews and antique dealers. Each piece was analyzed in detail to understand its mechanisms and functions, allowing it to be revitalized for contemporary society.
