Eileen Gray (August 9, 1878 – October 31, 1976) was an Irish furniture and architect and a pioneer of the Modern movement in architecture. In 1898, Gray attended classes at the Slade School of Fine Art.. In the late 1920s and early 1930s, Gray was involved with the Union des Artistes Modernes which had well-known members.

She designed and furnished herself a new home, Tempe à Pailla, outside Menton. This is another icon of Modernist architecture, a space designed for her to dwell and work, a living/working machine as she wanted it, a space which could be constantly changed with multi-purpose furniture.

Eileen loved a challenge; it is believed that was why she chose such a difficult site. She built on existing structures which anchored the house, based her house on ship structures, using forms that were long and narrow, many decks for views and levels for storage. Eileen was very social, she took advantage of the entertaining space for her guests and incorporated views of the city and the sea with balconies and large windows.