Until January 10, 2027, the Musée de la Toile de Jouy is hosting a major exhibition dedicated to Amédée Couder (1800-1864), a fabric designer and pioneering figure in 19th-century textile design. For this occasion, the INPI (French National Institute of Industrial Property) has loaned two patents from its heritage collections, illustrating the innovations that accompanied the rise of the textile industry.

A pioneer of textile design in the industrial age

At the beginning of the 19th century, the textile industry underwent profound changes. The mechanization of printing processes, evolving tastes, and the expansion of markets stimulated the creation of new designs. It was in this context that the figure of the industrial designer emerged, at the crossroads of artistic creation and manufacturing production.

The exhibition, held at the Château de l'Églantine in Jouy-en-Josas, retraces the career of Amédée Couder, one of the first to structure this activity by founding a truly independent design studio. Providing designs to numerous manufacturers, he helped popularize certain motifs – notably paisley – which have enjoyed remarkable success and continue to inspire contemporary design.

Patents, evidence of an industry in full innovation

To illustrate its story, the Musée de la Toile de Jouy presents several archival documents devoted to the technical innovations that have marked the history of textiles. Among the fifty or so works on display – printed textiles, shawls, samples, printing tools and archival documents – are two original patents held by the INPI.

The first is an illustration plate of patent no. 1BA000248, filed on April 14, 1809 by Amédée Couder himself, for the "preparation of a paper for the use of painters and draftsmen".

The second is the first page of patent no. 1BA011971, filed on February 29, 1844 by Paul Godefroy for a "fabric printing machine that will eliminate the need for the printer".

Presented alongside other archives devoted to the history of the textile industry, these documents testify to the constant attention paid by industrialists to the quality of designs in the 19th century.

About the INPI archives website

The historical archives of the INPI are accessible via the platform DATA INPI, tab "historical archives". Intended for the general public, researchers and professionals, this website provides quick and easy access to two collections, one of which consists of 410,000 patents issued between 1791 and 1901 and the other of 460,000 trademarks and trade names filed between 1857 and 1920.

Under an agreement signed in 2008 with the Ministry of Culture, the Institute has the rare privilege of directly managing the historical archives it preserves. The fruit of the creativity of inventors, engineers, and artists, they are one of the essential sources of technical, economic, social, and cultural history of France since the 19th century.

Source: INPI (French National Institute of Industrial Property), 29 June 2026 – https://www.inpi.fr/en/in-one/Amedee-Couder--pioneer-of-industrial-design (The INPI English page is machine-translated from the French original; the French version prevails.)