Walnut and Cactus Leather Chaise from Luteca, Available Now

Michael van Beuren was born in New York and studied architecture at the Bauhaus under Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Josef Albers until its closure in 1933. He moved to Acapulco at the end of 1936, where he oversaw the design of the interiors of the bungalows at the renowned Flamingo Hotel in 1937, and quickly became a formative member of the Mexican Modernism movement.

By 1938, van Beuren began focusing on furniture design, working with a fellow Bauhaus colleague, Klaus Grabe, to create modern and affordable pieces. Inspired by the local culture and craftsmanship, the duo applied Bauhaus design principles to popular Mexican mainstays, such as woven reclining chaises and wooden dining chairs.

The approach was a success — Grabe, Morley Webb and van Beuren were named among the winners of a 1941 competition organized by the Museum of Modern Art that focused on designer teams from the United States and Latin America called “Organic Design in Home Furnishings.” This award catapulted them to wide renown.

In the following years, van Beuren founded his furniture label Domus, which became synonymous with well-crafted, modernist design that garnered fans both in Mexico and America. Along with his own designs, Domus also produced work by Clara Porset, a friend and contemporary of van Beuren’s. However, by 1951, the company’s move toward more mass manufacturing meant that van Beuren’s earlier designs were no longer being produced.

Find vintage Michael van Beuren furniture on 1stDibs.

(Biography provided by 7710 Gallery)

Luteca produces handmade, contemporary and modernist furniture, inspired by the rich legacies of Mexico and Latin America. Headquartered in France, with production mainly in Mexico, it stands at the design crossroads of Mexican heritage and European innovation, bringing together diverse cultural strands and historical influences to create furniture with a uniquely tropical soul animated by a global, cosmopolitan spirit. Deeply rooted in the artisanal craft traditions that inspired the work of Mexico's leading modernist designers of the 20th century, our aim is to bring the warmth of Latin American culture into beautiful spaces around the world by uniting the artistry of ancestral craft with the best in contemporary European and American innovation.