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Antoine Proulx is an extensive
collection of tables and case pieces where balance is often achieved
through asymmetry and cantilevered volumes. It is inspired by a
divergent array of subjects ranging from the paintings of Francis Bacon
and René Magritte to the ceramics and architectural facades of
the Czech Cubists. Antoine Proulx is luxury in its most honest
and contemporary form. It is furniture meant to be handed down to
future generations.
Click on the
image above: To view a graphic
montage celebrating Antoine Proulx's First Decade in
business as well as a study of the artists that have inspired the
different collections.
Antoine Proulx was founded in 1993 by Marc Desplaines who launched the U.S. corporation of renowned Japanese
fashion designer Yohji Yamamoto in New York City. The Antoine
Proulx collection of handcrafted furniture was designed by Marc out of
his frustration at not being able to find what he was looking for in
the market. As fate would have it, his brother Richard Desplaines
was already established as a master furniture maker with nearly 20
years experience producing one-of-a-kind pieces for designers and
architects. The two brothers cemented a design/build relationship
which would land their furniture in prestigious magazines such as Interior Design, Progressive Architecture, I.D., and the New York Times.
Marc,
who earned his B.A. in Economics and his MBA in Marketing from Clark
University, began his career in the fashion industry: first as a
department store buyer, then as the head of retail, wholesale, and
public relations for Yohji Yamamoto in the United States.
Utilizing his visual skills and business acumen acquired from frequent
world travel and multicultural relationships developed while with
Yamamoto, the Antoine Proulx collection of furniture began to take form
in Marc's head. While the collection is decidedly "American,"
there are references and flavors of bygone eras or far away
lands. Even the company name, Antoine Proulx, is derivative of
Marc and Richard's grandmother Antoinette Proulx whose father was a
builder of fine homes in New England at the turn of the century.
The brothers maintain that it is this legacy of fine craftsmanship that
they endeavor to continue.
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