Mathieu Matégot

Born in Hungary in 1910, Mathieu Matégot pursued his education in the arts at the School of Fine Arts and Architecture in Budapest. He started his career as a theater decorator but felt a yearning for broader horizons and decided to relocate to Paris in 1931.

This move was transformative. Montparnasse, known for its artistic pulse, embraced Matégot, and he forged deep connections with the creative minds of the era. However, it wasn't just art that defined Matégot's time in France. With the shadows of World War II spreading across Europe, he chose to stand with his adopted homeland and enlisted to serve France. His experiences as a prisoner in a German mechanical construction factory exposed him to perforated metal, an encounter that would define much of his later works.

After the war, Paris became the backdrop for Matégot's most seminal creations. Reconnecting with his artistic allies and forging new partnerships, Matégot delved into furniture design. His pioneering use of the Rigitulle technique—a blend of metal tubing and perforated metal sheets—led to designs that combined functionality with distinct aesthetic appeal. These creations became coveted pieces in the late 1940s.

As his reputation soared, Matégot became a sought-after name in the design realm. He transformed spaces, from the vegetarian charm of La Saladière in Paris to parts of the cosmopolitan Drugstore on the Champs-Élysées. His designs weren't just confined to France; his influence spread globally, with works like his Nagasaki chair becoming internationally renowned.

Mathieu Matégot stands out as one of the most innovative designers of the 1950s. In his imaginative mind, metal wasn't just a rigid material. Instead, he visualized it as something that could be cut, painted, folded, and molded with the fluidity of paper or lightweight fabric, leading to the creation of breathtaking suspended sculptures. This ability to transform a cold, unforgiving medium into something graceful and ethereal became emblematic of his work. However, Matégot's versatility was not limited to metal; he also expertly worked with glass, wood, rattan, and brass.

Mathieu Matégot stands tall as an iconic figure from the era of post-war design renaissance in France.

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