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Jacques-Émile Ruhlmann was born in 1879 in Paris. In 1901, after his military service, he returned to work in his father's firm, which specialized in painting, wallpapers, and mirrors. Six years later, upon his father's death, he took over the family business and shifted its focus to creating furniture, carpets, objects, and lighting.
From 1910, Ruhlmann participated in the “Salon d’Automne”, where he presented his creations in a rotunda dining room. The following year, he began exhibiting regularly at the “Salon des Artistes Décorateurs” and became a reference in the field of luxury furniture. He received numerous requests, notably from the fashion designer Jacques Doucet, who became one of his first clients. He then decided to expand and open an agency specializing in decoration at 27 Rue de Lisbonne.
Exempted from military service from 1914 to 1918 due to his family responsibilities, Ruhlmann continued to design furniture and run his business. However, with most workers mobilized for the war, he had to rely on his father's former companions. Although Ruhlmann did not receive formal training as a cabinetmaker, he displayed genuine intuitive genius in developing the manufacturing techniques needed for his designs.
At the end of the war, he partnered with Félix Laurent, who also owned a painting business, and they founded “Établissements Ruhlmann et Laurent”, specializing in painting, mirrors, wallpapers, furniture, and decorations. Ruhlmann chose his nephew Alfred Porteuneuve as his assistant.
Aspiring to be like his fellow decorators, furniture makers, and interior designers, Ruhlmann surrounded himself with a young team to whom he imparted his rigor and taste for excellence. During this period, he created the "meuble au char," recognized as one of his greatest works.
In 1925, he participated in the “Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes”, where he built a pavilion called the "Hôtel du Collectionneur," which was undoubtedly the most admired building of the exhibition.
In 1926, the Metropolitan Museum of New York acquired several pieces of Ruhlmann's furniture, as did several French museums. That same year, Ruhlmann participated in the “Salon d’Automne and the Salon des Artistes Décorateurs”; he also designed the tea and music salon for the ocean liner “Ile de France”, the new flagship of the “Compagnie Générale Transatlantique”.
In 1928, he exhibited his luxurious ceremonial bedroom at the “Salon des Artistes Décorateurs”, which was a triumph for his refined and elegant style. In a similar vein, in 1929, he created interior decorations and furniture for the Élysée Palace, several ministries, private clients, including the Maharajah of Indore and the Bettencourt family.
He participated in the 1931 “Exposition Coloniale Internationale de Paris” at the “Musée Permanent des Colonies”, furnishing the office of Paul Reynaud, Minister of Colonies.
Jacques-Émile Ruhlmann passed away at the height of his fame on November 15, 1933. Upon his death, in accordance with his wishes, the Ruhlmann and Laurent group was dissolved.
