Seasonal Splendor: Billings’ December 13th, 2025 Winter Design Auction

Modern Design, incorporating the finest aspects of the machine age to contemporary elements, remains timeless in its appeal, aesthetics, and ability to bring a space to life in magical ways. Billings, of Los Angeles, California is presenting its 376 lot Winter Design auction on Saturday, December 13th, 2025, starting at 1:00PM EST. This premier event includes fantastic selections of midcentury, post-modern, California craft, and European furniture and decorative items from some of the most recognized 20th century designers, manufacturers, and artists. Here are some highlights that caught the eye of the Auction Daily editors. 

The top lot in this well curated, pre-holiday sale is #42, a pair of Pierre Jeanneret lounge chairs, estimated at $15,000-$20,000. These handsome, angular chairs were produced around 1955 and are made from dark stained teak with woven ratan backs and seats. Each has stenciled marks and measures 27″ H x 21″ W x 29-1/2″ D with a seat height of 13″. They were made in in France and India and designed for the M.L.A Flats Building on the campus of Punjab University, located in Chandigarh, India.

This sale offers premier selections of important chairs and associated seating. Lot #13, six dining chairs also by Pierre Jeanneret, is estimated at $12,000-18,000. These dark stained teak chairs have their rectangular seats and backs upholstered in cream, tan, chestnut, or dark brown leather or fabric. They were made around 1958 in France and India, also for use at Punjab University. Each has a stenciled mark and measures 32-1/2″ H x 17-1/2″ W x 20-1/2″ D, with a seat height of 19″. 

Chandigarh – the capital of the Northern Indian states of Punjab and Haryana – is best known as the location of a midcentury design project lead by architects (and cousins) Charles-Édouard Jeanneret (1887-1965) and Pierre Jeanneret (1896 –1967). This team directed Chandigarh’s urban planning, including its Capitol Complex and High Court and Secretariat and Legislative Assemblies, as well as the city’s outdoor gardens, parks, and monuments. Pierre Jeanneret also designed much of the furniture for these buildings to complement their forms, spaces, and settings. These midcentury chairs, tables, and desks have become very much in demand with furniture enthusiasts over the years, and usually do extremely well at auction. 

Fine lamps and lighting also feature prominently at this event. Lot #11, a Georges Jouve table lamp, is estimated at $7,000-9,000. This midcentury example measures 15″ H x 11-3/4″ W x 10-1/2″ D. It is made from blue-green glazed stoneware and brass, with a distinctly handmade presentation and heart shaped body. The fixture is topped with a textured, tan paper shade. This table lamp was made in France and is incised with artist’s cipher on its bottom. 

Georges Jouve (French, 1910-1964) was an important 20th century ceramic artist. He opened his studio in Paris in the mid-1940s and participated in numerous high profile international exhibitions over the next several decades. Bonham’s sold a pair of remarkable green glazed Caryatide pillars made by Jouve in 1946 for £127,400 as lot #1 in their Design and Contemporary Ceramics sale held in April, 2024. 

Also on offer through Billing’s December sale are a number of midcentury-era shelving and storage units. Lot #134, a large bookshelf by Robert Darling, is estimated at $7,000-9,000. This geometric and organically themed piece was dates from 1965 and was produced in the artist’s studio from layered, rough-hewn redwood slatting. It measures 77-1/2″ H x 96″ W x 18-3/4″ D and is an eye-catching piece of art all unto itself. 

Although little is available personally about the designer Robert Darling, examples of his work do occasionally appear at auction. Those found have a similar aesthetic to the bookshelf on offer in December, and feature clean, sharp lines; angular alignment; and partial slat work construction. On September 27, 2025, Billings sold a 64″ H × 95-1/2″ W × 19″ D walnut bookshelf by Robert Darling for $18,480 as lot #15 in their BILLINGS at Ten event. 

This sale rounds out with extensive selections of tables, rugs, decorative items, and other category-spanning furnishings. Lot #181, an Art Deco flatweave rug, is estimated at $4,000-6,000. This primarily tan, brown, and salmon hand-woven wool example was made around 1950 and measures 86″ x 124″. 

For more information on Billings’ Winter Design sale to be held on Saturday, December 13th, 2025 at 1:00PM EST, please see https://bid.billingsauction.com/auctions/billings/winter-design-20336.

Captions, all images from Billings. 

• Lot #42, a pair of Pierre Jeanneret lounge chairs, is estimated at $15,000 – $20,000.  
• Lot #13, six dining chairs also by Pierre Jeanneret, is estimated at $12,000-18,000.  
• Lot #11, a Georges Jouve table lamp, is estimated at $7,000-9,000.  
• Lot #134, a large bookshelf by Robert Darling, is estimated at $7,000-9,000.  
• Lot #181, an Art Deco flatweave rug, is estimated at $4,000-6,000.