Description
Pierre Paulin, Life and Work is the first definitive account of his life and work, authored by Nadine Descendre. Uncover Paulins iconic designs and history of the renowned designer with a range of photographs and original sketches.
Playfully rejecting the orderly restraint of mid-century design, the French avant-garde designer Pierre Paulin (1927-2009) imagined sleek departure lounges for the jet set, perfume bottles for Courrèges, and unforgettable pieces like the Pumpkin Armchair. Paulin’s signature innovation was to clothe his pieces in colourful stretch fabrics, softening them and concealing their inner steel and wood. In addition to creating dozens of furniture and lighting designs for American and French firms, Paulin executed commissions for clients as diverse as Renault, Air France, Maison de la Radio, a hotel complex in Palmyra (Syria), and a delicately modulated series of rooms within the Elysée Palace (the French White House). Pierre Paulin Life and Work draws from previously unpublished archives a wealth of extraordinarily vivid drawings, models, and photographs, to reveal the restless energy of this mid‑century polymath. From the 1950s onwards, Paulin – A solitary figure of great natural reserve – has inspired generations of designers
Nadine Descendre is a journalist, art critic, documentary filmmaker, and curator. She is currently the Director of l Agence Interculturelle Europeenne (A.I.E.) in Paris.
240 pages – 300 illustrations
Published in 2016