Pierre Paulin 442 Fauteuils
By Thonet, Pierre Paulin
Located in Washington, DC
Pierre Paulin very rare pair of 442 fauteuils with two loose cushions. Beautiful and unusual flare
Vintage 1960s French Mid-Century Modern Lounge Chairs
Fabric
Pierre Paulin 442 Fauteuils
By Thonet, Pierre Paulin
Located in Washington, DC
Pierre Paulin very rare pair of 442 fauteuils with two loose cushions. Beautiful and unusual flare
Fabric
Unavailable
H 26.78 in W 34.26 in D 27.56 in
Fauteuil vintage Elysée Pierre Paulin édition Ligne Roset
By Pierre Paulin
Located in NANTES, FR
Fauteuil Elysée dessiné par Pierre Paulin pour Ligne Roset en très bon état dimensions
Cotton
Pierre Paulin Fauteuil Model 'Tulip' F-547, 1965
By Pierre Paulin, Artifort
Located in The Hague, NL
Armchair from the tulip family by Pierre Paulin for Artifort. Metal feet, molded plywood frame
Metal
Set of Two Pierre Paulin Fauteuil Model 'Tulip' F-547, 1965s
By Pierre Paulin, Artifort
Located in The Hague, NL
Rare set of two chairs from the tulip family by Pierre Paulin for Artifort. Metal feet, molded
Metal
Mushroom / F588 , Pierre Paulin , Artifort , Pays Bas , Années 1960
By Pierre Paulin
Located in PARIS, FR
Fauteuil mushroom F 588 de pierre Paulin, pour artifort Tissu iceberg en laine et coton de chez
Fabric, Foam
Mid Century Modern F780 Sofa by Pierre Paulin for Artifort
By Pierre Paulin, Artifort
Located in BE
Artifort F780 sofa Pierre Paulin fauteuil model F780 by Artifort. This model was made in the 1980s
Fabric
Sold
H 30.71 in W 23.63 in D 23.63 in
Early F780 black leather easy chair by Pierre Paulin for Artifort
By Pierre Paulin, Artifort
Located in BE
Early F780 easy chair Artifort Pierre Paulin fauteuil model F780 by Artifort. This model was made
Leather
Fauteuil Pierre Paulin f8800
By Pierre Paulin
Located in LIVAROT-PAYS-D’AUGE, FR
Fauteuil modèle f8800 de Pierre Paulin, première édition Restauration de l’assise est complète
Metal
4 fauteuils - Pierre Paulin - 1960
Located in Paris, FR
bleu blanc rouge bleu blanc rouge bleu blanc rouge vbleu blanc rouge bleu blanc rouge bleu blanc rouge bleu blanc rouge bleu blanc rouge bleu blanc rouge bleu blanc rouge bleu blanc...
Pierre Paulin F687 Spider fauteuil for Artifort set/2
By Pierre Paulin, Artifort
Located in Amstelveen, Noord
Pierre Paulin designed te important lounge chair model F678 for Artifort in 1965. Together with
Leather, Wood
Sold
H 27.56 in W 33.86 in D 31.5 in
Vintage Orange Slice Fauteuil Lounge Chair by Pierre Paulin for Artifort
By Pierre Paulin, Artifort
Located in Appeltern, Gelderland
The famous orange slice chair by Pierre Paulin was designed in the 1960s. The fabric and the foam
Nickel
A Pair of 'F 444' Chairs.
Located in London, GB
An Extremely Good Pair of Fauteuil 444's by Pierre Paulin
Steel
Pierre Paulin introduced a fresh breeze into French furniture design in the 1960s and ’70s, fostering a sleek new Space-Age aesthetic. Along with Olivier Mourgue, Paulin developed chairs, sofas, dining tables and other furnishings with flowing lines and almost surreal naturalistic forms. And his work became such a byword for chic, forward-looking design and emerging technologies that two French presidents commissioned him to create environments in the Élysée Palace in Paris.
Paulin was born in Paris to a family of artists and designers. He initially sought to become a ceramist and sculptor and was studying in the town of Vallauris near the Côte d'Azur — a center for pottery making, where Pablo Picasso spent his postwar summers crafting ceramics — but broke his hand in a fight. He enrolled at the École Camondo, the Paris interior design school. There, Paulin was strongly influenced by the work of Charles and Ray Eames, George Nelson and Arne Jacobsen, as was reflected in his early creations for the manufacturer Thonet-France.
It was at the Dutch firm Artifort, which he joined in 1958, where Paulin blossomed. In a few years, he produced several of his signature designs based on abstract organic shapes. These include the Butterfly chair (1963), which features a tubular steel frame and slung leather, and a group of striking seating pieces made with steel frames covered in polyurethane foam and tight jersey fabric: the Mushroom (1960), Ribbon (1966) and Tongue (1967) chairs. The revered designer not only introduced new construction techniques to Artifort furniture but contributed fresh materials, Pop art colors and dazzling shapes to the mid-century modern era as a whole.
In 1971, the Mobilier National — a department of France’s Ministry of Culture in charge of furnishing top-tier government offices and embassies — commissioned Paulin to redesign President Georges Pompidou’s private apartment in the Élysée Palace. In three years, Paulin transformed the staid rooms into futuristic environments with curved, fabric-clad walls and furnishings such as bookcases made from an arrangement of smoked-glass U shapes, flower-like pedestal chairs and pumpkin-esque loungers.
Ten years later, the Mobilier National called on Paulin again, this time to furnish the private office of President François Mitterand. Paulin responded with an angular, postmodern take on neoclassical furniture, pieces that looked surprisingly at home in the paneled, Savonnerie-carpeted Louis XVI rooms. As those two Élysée Palace projects show, Paulin furniture works well both in a total decor or when used as a counterpoint to traditional pieces. His creations have a unique personality: bright and playful yet sophisticated and suave.
Find vintage Pierre Paulin lounge chairs, armchairs, coffee tables and other furniture on 1stDibs.
With entire areas of our homes reserved for “sitting rooms,” the value of quality antique and vintage seating cannot be overstated.
Fortunately, the design of side chairs, armchairs and other lounge furniture — since what were, quite literally, the early perches of our ancestors — has evolved considerably.
Among the earliest standard seating furniture were stools. Egyptian stools, for example, designed for one person with no seat back, were x-shaped and typically folded to be tucked away. These rudimentary chairs informed the design of Greek and Roman stools, all of which were a long way from Sori Yanagi's Butterfly stool or Alvar Aalto's Stool 60. In the 18th century and earlier, seats with backs and armrests were largely reserved for high nobility.
The seating of today is more inclusive but the style and placement of chairs can still make a statement. Antique desk chairs and armchairs designed in the style of Louis XV, which eventually included painted furniture and were often made of rare woods, feature prominently curved legs as well as Chinese themes and varied ornaments. Much like the thrones of fairy tales and the regency, elegant lounges crafted in the Louis XV style convey wealth and prestige. In the kitchen, the dining chair placed at the head of the table is typically reserved for the head of the household or a revered guest.
Of course, with luxurious vintage or antique furnishings, every chair can seem like the best seat in the house. Whether your preference is stretching out on a plush sofa, such as the Serpentine, designed by Vladimir Kagan, or cozying up in a vintage wingback chair, there is likely to be a comfy classic or contemporary gem for you on 1stDibs.
With respect to the latest obsessions in design, cane seating has been cropping up everywhere, from sleek armchairs to lounge chairs, while bouclé fabric, a staple of modern furniture design, can be seen in mid-century modern, Scandinavian modern and Hollywood Regency furniture styles.
Admirers of the sophisticated craftsmanship and dark woods frequently associated with mid-century modern seating can find timeless furnishings in our expansive collection of lounge chairs, dining chairs and other items — whether they’re vintage editions or alluring official reproductions of iconic designs from the likes of Hans Wegner or from Charles and Ray Eames. Shop our inventory of Egg chairs, designed in 1958 by Arne Jacobsen, the Florence Knoll lounge chair and more.
No matter your style, the collection of unique chairs, sofas and other seating on 1stDibs is surely worthy of a standing ovation.