I first met Princess Niloufar in Iran in the early 1970s, while working for her mother-in-law, Princess Ashraf. After the revolution, our paths crossed again in Paris, and in 1975, she and her husband, Prince Shahram, purchased an island in the Seychelles. That is where our friendship began. Niloufar has always had a taste and sensitivity that have deeply touched and inspired me. Reinventing her Parisian interior, originally designed by Renzo Mongiardino, was never a simple project: it was a delicate dialogue between her world and mine, a play of nuances between works of art and furniture, enriched by her own creations. Over time, this bond has grown into a deep friendship, born of our shared passion for art, beauty and the emotions that places can evoke. Jacques Grange

Jacques Grange et la Princesse Niloufar Pahlavi

The first Berceau table was designed by Diego Giacometti around 1963 for film producer Raoul Lévy. Following this first version, he designed a second version, circa 1975, with a variation on the legs, which were inspired, in a simplified interpretation, by the animal hooves found on ancient Roman furniture. The Berceau table is one of Diego Giacometti's signature pieces of furniture. It perfectly embodies the artist's elegant and refined style, which draws on references from antiquity. The arched shape of the table recalls the silhouette of a suspended cradle, with the glass top resting delicately on the sleek bronze structure, its oblique lines meeting in the centre like metal tension rods. Its only decorative element, a small bowl in the centre of the base, aptly emphasises the sobriety of the overall design. It was in the 1980s that the Princess Niloufar Pahlavi purchased directly from the artist a second version of the Berceau table. The Berceau table, second version fitted perfectly into the décor of his property, designed by Lorenzo Mongiardino and then Jacques Grange, where it coexisted harmoniously with furniture and works of art from different eras and civilisations.

Diego Giacometti

Pierre Tal Coat, Mark Tobey, Alain Jacquet, Robert Wilson or Jean Messagier: five artists, five distinct trajectories, yet united by a shared desire to move art beyond its traditional boundaries. Each, in their own way, refuses to remain within the realm of stable representation; instead, they search for a writing of the world—through sign, gesture, diverted image, stage space, or the breath of nature. Tal Coat treats the canvas as a telluric surface: his forms emerge from the memory of stones, animals, elemental forces. Tobey makes space vibrate by covering it with calligraphic networks that evoke both Eastern mysticism and urban energy. Messagier, heir to a free and poetic painting, extends this exploration by opening his landscapes to the infinity of the sensible, where forms seem to drift like flows of light and wind. With Jacquet, the image shifts in status: it becomes a critical and ironic play on the signs of consumer society and mechanical reproduction. Where Tal Coat or Tobey seek a transcendence of gesture, Jacquet instead questions the loss of the image’s aura in the media age. As for Robert Wilson, he shifts the ground once more: his theater becomes painting in motion, sculpture of light and shadow, architecture of time. What links these artists — a connection clearly evident in the works presented in this collection — is their shared conviction that art is not merely a surface to be filled, but a field to be explored.

Contemporary Art - Selected works

H.R.H. Princess Niloufar Pahlavi collection of copper alloy Tibetan sculptures (Lots 19-45) provides an interesting focus for this category in the sale. Acquired in Paris during the 1980s, the group demonstrates the interest H.R.H. developed for the region and its arts through her personal meditation practice. Highlights include a rare 14th century gilt copper alloy figure of Mahakala, one of the most powerful protector deities of Vajrayana Buddhism, in its four-armed chaturbhuja manifestation (Lot 20). This fine sculpture epitomizes the peak of quality that Buddhist sculpture reached during this period. Also featured is a large, seated 15th-16th century figure of Vajradhara (Lot 19). This imposing Tibetan image depicts the primordial Buddha Vajradhara, the progenitor of Vajrayana Buddhist teachings, seated with hands crossed before his chest holding a ritual bell and thunderbolt scepter. The face is painted gold according to Tibetan ritual practice, but the physiognomy recalls classical Nepalese styles, its quality demonstrating the extraordinary skills Nepalese artists were able to bring to Tibet during that period. A variety of deities and copper alloy sculptures, as well as interesting works of art the like of Mughal jades and scholar rocks, or even a large collection of pottery Ladies complete this attractive section in the sale.

Asian Art

Jacques Grange and Renzo Mongiardino embody two complementary approaches to the same quest: creating interiors that are as much works of art as they are living spaces. Renzo Mongiardino, master of scenography, makes classicism and whimsy converse with theatrical mastery. His furniture, often unique, blends traditional craftsmanship with formal daring, creating atmospheres in which each object becomes an actor in the décor. Mongiardino’s elegance lies in his ability to orchestrate textures, materials, and proportions like a subtle symphony, turning interior architecture into an intimate theater. Jacques Grange designs spaces that combine modernity and memory. His furniture, whether reinterpreted antiques or contemporary creations, acts as a bridge between eras. Like Mongiardino, Grange seeks harmony between function, comfort, and poetry, with particular attention to the fluidity of space and the play of light. The connection between these two decorators lies in their shared vision of furniture as a vehicle of emotion and storytelling. In this way, their furniture or ensemble transcends mere decoration to become a language, capable of telling the story of the spaces and lives it inhabits.

From Renzo Mongiardino to Jacques Grange

Princess Niloufar Pahlavi, is a discreet yet influential figure in the worlds of art and design. Settled in Paris, she has skillfully combined her royal heritage with a contemporary sensibility, particularly through her personal collection presented here. Her creations reflect a refined taste for exceptional craftsmanship and a remarkable ability to blend Eastern and Western influences. Princess Niloufar Pahlavi thus embodies an elegant modernity, where art becomes both an intimate and universal language—a bridge between cultures and eras. Her works presented here are a true ode to nature: her candelabras literally take the form of foliage, her painted pomegranates, and her jewelry adorned with flowers, butterflies, and bees. All of these works, both playful and poetic, are inspired by her garden and her travels.

The Creations of Princesse Pahlavi

Paris

Head of Department, Furniture

Louis-Xavier Joseph

Chairman, Co-Worldwide Head of Design

Florent Jeanniard

Head of Contemporary Discoveries Sale | Associate Specialist

Armance Gay

Associate Specialist | Old Masters & 19th Century Paintings

Clémence Enriquez

Deputy Director | Specialist | Asian Art

Liting Hung

Specialist

Simon Meynen

Meet our Specialists

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H.R.H. Princess Niloufar Pahlavi is the niece by marriage of His Imperial Majesty the Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, Princess Niloufar Pahlavi assembled an eclectic and sensitive collection that reflects her refined personality. It was housed in a discreet Parisian hôtel particulier, hidden away within a luxuriant garden. This singular setting, infused with poetry and intimacy, was first decorated by the legendary Renzo Mongiardino in the late 1970s, before Jacques Grange reimagined its atmosphere in the early 2000s. The auction also presents a rare opportunity to acquire furniture designed by these two great decorators: trompe-l’œil tables and bookcases by Renzo Mongiardino, as well as Jacques Grange’s remarkable mica coffee table and a dining table in shagreen and palm wood. Completing the ensemble are Princess Niloufar Pahlavi’s own creations,including jewellery and elegant candelabra – playful yet poetic – inspired by her garden and her travels.

Collection Princesse Niloufar Pahlavi, Une maison par Jacques Grange