Eileen Gray
Architect and Designer

Born in Ireland and from an affluent and artistic family background, Eileen Gray studied at the Slade School of Fine Arts (1898). In 1902, she moved to France and studied drawing at the Académies Colarossi and Julian, Paris. Later, she trained in the art of lacquer with the Japanese craftsman, Sougawara. She spent much of World War I in London and only returned to Paris in 1918. Prior to, she had worked solely as a furniture designer; however, in that year she began to work on interior design. In 1922, she opened the Galerie Jean Désert as a showcase for her own work. The same year she also came into contact with the De Stijl movement. From 1926 onwards, she worked as an architect and exhibited several architectural projects in Le Corbusier's Pavillon des Temps Nouveaux at the 1937 Paris Exhibition.