A look into Aline Chastel’s library, featuring work by Georges Jouve, Pierre Legrain, Valentine Schlegel, Alexandre Noll, Les Lalannes, Alberto Giacometti, Picasso, and Jean Royère. Photo: Antoine Lippens.
The Paris Home of Aline Chastel Brings Together Masters of Mid-20th Century Decorative Arts and Contemporary Designers with a Twist
From an ebony bowl by Alexandre Noll to a celestial globe by Serge Roche; for the gallerist, collecting art is like a love story
- By Malin Ebbing
- Living With Art
Stepping into Parisian gallerist Aline Chastel’s universe is a mesmerizing experience. Natural light from the surrounding terrace—that overlooks the Tuileries Gardens and the Louvre—along with stunning wooden floors perfectly frame her collection, which consists of exceptional French decorative art pieces from the mid-20th century, such as Jean Royère, Line Vautrin, and Georges Jouve. There is also a fun contemporary design twist, with names like Aline Hazarian; as well as a dash of exquisite artworks from instantly recognizable artists like César and Tinguely.
The captivating interior details of the home dating from 1840, are enhanced with a color palette in different shades of gray, dark green, and light pink. “I worked together with the interior designer Jacques Garcia. We changed the colors and restored the windows but kept all original details, such as the wooden floor and the moldings.” Chastel adds, “Garcia chose all the marvelous hues. The kitchen, for instance, is English green, and my bedroom is completely pink. Pink is so comfortable; it’s like being in a quiet bubble.” Another playful addition to her home is the restroom, where Chastel’s friend Raphaël Schmitt has made a fresco of green leaves on the purple walls.
“So Parisian, so chic, and so
inspirational,” is Chastel’s description of this 19th-century gem, located in
the heart of Rue de Rivoli, which she uses as a combined home and showroom. She
explains, “It’s perfect for our collectors and clients since it’s only a short
walk from here to the gallery.” Chastel co-founded Galerie Chastel-Maréchal
with Laurent Maréchal, and it has been situated in Saint-Germain des Prés
since 1994.
Aline Chastel in her Paris home. On display, Serge Roche’s Celestial Globe (c. 1934) and various mirrors by Line Vautrin. Photo: Antoine Lippens.
Chastel started her collection when she was a young dealer. “My first object was an art deco lamp by Édouard-Wilfred Buquet. I kept this first acquisition all these years, and it’s still my bedside table lamp today. I found it in a small antique shop here in Paris.” Another early find was a table by Serge Roche, which Chastel discovered with her partner Laurent Maréchal at the Paul Bert flea market in the early ’90s. “We had a couple of friends who said, ‘Look, we just saw a French table and mirror with lion feet inside a van.’ We immediately thought— and dreamed—that it could be Serge Roche. We ran over there, and it was! Curiously enough we had seen documentation of this exact table in the magazine Plaisir de France just a week before the discovery. It was like a true treasure hunt.”
Chastel compares her collecting
philosophy to a love story: “Acquiring a work of art is like an encounter. You
don’t know exactly why, but you need to buy it and seeing it every day in your
home will make you happy.” Chastel continues, “Of course, it’s not without
knowledge. Even when my partner Laurent and I were young, we took the time to
go to the library in the Musée des Arts Décoratifs to do research.”
Oeuf armchairs by Jean Royère (c. 1950) in Chastel’s living room. Photo: Antoine Lippens.
In Chastel’s library, a ceramic lamp by Georges Jouve (c. 1950), bronze boxes by Line Vautrin (c. 1940–50), and a vase by Pierre & Vera Székely (c. 1950) on a sideboard by Eugène Printz (c. 1940). Above, Roi Soleil by Line Vautrin, c. 1965. Photo: Antoine Lippens.
Chastel describes her interior style as being very close to the focus of her gallery, and her passion for rediscovering French designers from the 1930s–’70s is reflected in several highly desirable design classics in her home. Among them Egg, the iconic chair by Jean Royère. “In the 1950s, Royère, who was completely autodidact, created a large spectrum of totally new and unexpected pieces with a lot of humor, which I find both light and refreshing; this shape of a cut egg is very representative of his work.”
A part of the collection that steers away from her specialty as a gallerist is the impressive selection of French ceramics from the postwar period, including names like André Borderie, Valentine Schlegel, and Georges Jouve. “What I love about these ceramic masterworks is the free, organic shape, the color, and the material they used. The experimental approach to it all.”
Expansion N°46 (1973) by César and a Santal chair (2024) by
Bahman Dadkhah in Chastel’s study. Photo: Antoine Lippens.
In Chastel’s living room, Sphère table lamp (c. 1950) by Jean Royère on the mantle; next to it, Le Cerf Couché (c. 1966) by Janine Janet. On the Pan coffee table (2024) by Aline Hazarian, Valentine Schlegel’s L’Oiseau Blanc (c. 1960). Photo: Antoine Lippens.
Over time, Chastel’s collection
has evolved from exclusively being dedicated to decorative art to also include
several remarkable fine artworks, where Jean Tinguely, César, and a drawing by
Giacometti are some of the highlights. “When I bought Expansion by
César, I had already fallen in love with his artworks during an exhibition at
Fondation Cartier that I had seen years earlier with my son. And my dream was
to one day be able to acquire a work.” In the last five years, her collecting
focus has additionally been on the big designer names of the ’80s, such as
Philippe Starck, Paolo Pallucco, and Martin Szekely. At the top of Chastel’s
“wish list” of artists to add to her collection sit Louise Bourgeois and Yves
Klein: “I particularly love the drawings by Bourgeois and her theme. I also
adore her soft works in fabric.”
Chastel’s dining room, including a pair of Fleur table lamps by Pierre Chareau (c. 1920), Joy de Rohan Chabot’s
Les Etoiles Vertes (2022), and a 2021 Saris console by Aline Hazarian. Photo: Antoine Lippens.
When asked about her favorite artworks, Chastel mentions the Ebony Bowl by Alexandre Noll: “Noll is an excellent example of an artist whose objects are also sculptures; he is so talented.” Another object that is dear to her heart is the celestial globe by Serge Roche from 1934: “When I received the photo from a dealer of this piece, I thought that I was dreaming. The globe appeared at a small auction in England, and it was a real discovery, something in his design production that was completely new to me.”
What is her advice to future
collectors? “Buy only the pieces you love, and find a direction, a theme to
make sense of the group of objects. Collecting is not only acquiring, but also
creating something vibrant. The art market is a real market with beautiful
things, but it’s also very complex. So, my advice is to buy from serious
dealers and work closely with an advisor who can bring their experience and
vision.”
Copyright on works of visual artists affiliated to a CISAC organization has been arranged with Pictoright in Amsterdam. © c/o Pictoright Amsterdam 2025.
