A dining table and set of 10 chairs by Alexandre Noll (1890-1970) is valued at $400,000-600,000 ahead of the Design Masters auction at Phillips in New York later today.
The lot, circa 1945, is a prime example of Noll's functional sculpture - which grew out of an organic approach to furniture design.
 Noll's work stands in contrast to the drive towards uniformity that characterised design after the second world war |
He eschewed other materials in favour of wood, responding intuitively to its flaws and natural contours - making each of his works unique.
In 2010 his auction record was set at $1m at Christie's Paris for Cabinet Magnum, State N2 (1947).
Two armchairs designed by Andres Groult, titled Duchesse Brisee (1921), are valued at $250,000-300,000.
Groult (1884-1966) was among the first to work within the art-deco mould, and his pieces demonstrate a light-hearted approach in their fusion with traditional French design.
His record was set in 1994 for Chiffonnier Anthropologie (1925), a chest of drawers that mirrors the female form. It made $530,360 at Drouot Montaigne in Paris.
A pair of Oeuf chairs by Jean Royere (1902-1981) are valued at $240,000-280,000.
His use of bright colours and chunky, organic forms define his cheerfully idiosyncratic work. He was enormously popular among Middle Eastern rulers during the 1970s - including the Shah of Iran and King Hussein of Jordan.
Another design auction taking place at Phillips today will see the sale of a Jean Prouve sun shutter.
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