Marc Du Plantier, a renowned decorator of the first half of the 20th century, was trained at the ‘École nationale supérieure des beaux-arts’ and the ‘Académie Julian’, where he developed an artistic sensibility and an eye for form that would define his later work. His career began in 1928, but it was in 1930s Paris that he truly flourished, embodying a neoclassicism infused with modernity

Above :

Marc Du Plantier

(1901 – 1975)

Console

Spain, circa 1940
Brass, iron, gilded bronze, opaline glass and painted wood.
H : 82 cm / L : 126 cm / P : 40 cm

In 1939, on the brink of a troubled Europe, he left France for Madrid, a move prompted by a professional opportunity through a French client. Over the next decade, in a country recovering from civil war, he revived ransacked palaces, blending Spanish craftsmanship—ceramics, wrought iron, and Iberian textiles—into his designs. One of his most notable works from this period is the console created for the apartment of Prince José Eugenio de Bourbon of Spain. This piece synthesizes structured lines with ornamental opulence: a sober black opaline top contrasts with a sculptural base featuring intertwining gilded metal vegetal motifs, almost baroque in their lushness. The rectilinear lacquered wood base reinforces the overall balance, making the console a testament to Marc Du Plantier’s exploration of aesthetics and functionality in a princely commission.

Bibliography :

Yves Badetz, Marc Du Plantier, 2010, éditions Norma, Paris. (pp. 198, 200)