Prouv\u00e9 trained as an artisan blacksmith and his intimate knowledge of metal remained the foundation of his work and career. Aware of the limitations of ornamental and wrought-iron work and keen to embrace the modern movement, he moved on to steel and aluminium, folding and arc-welding. In 1931 he established the Atelier Jean Prouv\u00e9, where he began to produce light-weight metal furniture of his own design, as well as collaborating with some of the best-known designers of his time, including Le Corbusier and Charlotte Perriand. Furniture production became a core part of his business. He favored the public sector in the growing areas of health, education and administration, which reflected a social ideal but also offered the economies of scale. By 1936 he was producing a catalogue of standard models for hospitals, schools and offices. The potential for mass production inspired Prouv\u00e9 to develop and patent industrial products using folded sheet metal for the construction of buildings. These included movable partitioning, metal doors and elevator cages. The onset of WWII and the age of austerity that followed marked a period of enforced experiment for Prouv\u00e9 and in 1947 he moved his operations to Max\u00e9ville, just outside Nancy. With his own design studio, he could combine research, prototype development and production and at Max\u00e9ville he set about fulfilling his ambitious plan to alter the building process from a craft-based practice to that of a mechanized industry, producing not only houses, prefabricated huts, doors, windows, roof elements and fa\u00e7ade panels but also a production line for furniture based on his own designs.<\/p>","link":"https:\/\/www.patrickseguin.com\/en\/category\/designers\/jean-prouve\/inventory-jean-prouve-architecture-elements\/","name":"Architecture elements","slug":"inventory-jean-prouve-architecture-elements","taxonomy":"category","parent":173,"meta":[],"acf":[],"z_taxonomy_image_url":"https:\/\/www.patrickseguin.com\/wp-content\/plugins\/categories-images\/assets\/images\/placeholder.png","yoast_head":"\n