Set Of 4 "scimitar" Armchairs Attributed To Boris Tabacoff—chrome-plated Steel And White Leather, 1970

A set of four armchairs from the so-called “Scimitar” model, attributed to Boris Tabacoff and associated with the Mobilier Modulaire Moderne collection, France, 1970s.

The model’s name comes from the scimitar, the curved saber used by Eastern cavalry, and refers to the design of the base: a flat-sectioned chrome-plated steel blade resting on the floor in a crescent shape, from which rises a single upright that supports the seat shell in cantilever, without any rear support. The same curve is repeated as a recessed line in the seat shell itself, between the backrest and the seat, where it forms a crescent-shaped cutout. A single motif, expressed in both solid and void.

Boris Tabacoff (1927–1985), of Bulgarian origin, settled in Paris in the 1950s and took over the studio on Rue de Seine founded by the sculptor Philippe Scrive. As the first designer from the postwar École de Paris to work with Plexiglas, he created furniture and objects for Pierre Cardin before his work was produced by Mobilier Modulaire Moderne, which began distributing his designs in 1971. The Scimitar dates from this period, when French furniture moved away from supporting legs in favor of cantilevers and exposed structures.

Material description. A single-piece, enveloping shell upholstered in its original white leather, with armrests extending from the backrest and flowing down toward the seat without breaking the line; only the assembly stitching interrupts the design. Flat chrome-plated steel base, with a single cantilevered beam resting on a crescent-shaped support on the floor. The structure retains a residual flexibility that allows the seat to function like a spring. Four examples, uniform in color and patina.