Pierre Paulin studied sculpture at École Camondo in Paris during the early part of the 1940’s, where he was recommended by his teacher to join the workshop of Marcel Gascoin, one of the creators of Union des Artistes Modernes (UAM). From Gascoin, Paulin got introduced to the Scandinavian aesthetics and design, which led him to join the interior decoration services of the Galeries Lafayette department store where he took great inspiration from American designers such as Ray and Charles Eames and Harry Bertoia.
In 1953 Paulin wanted to design his own furniture but was unable to find a manufacturer. With money from his father, he began to produce on his own, and showed several pieces at the Salon de Arts Ménagers. Paulins furniture attracted attention and in 1954 he designed his first furniture for Thonet-France, for which he also created his first single shell chair.
During the later 1950’s, Paulin was recruited by the creative director of Dutch design company Artifort, Kho Lian Ie, which led to a collaboration where Paulin could work with new materials and to research the relationship between the body and furniture. For Artifort Paulin designed pieces such as the No. 577 Tongue, that was part of the furniture for the French pavilion at the 1970’s World’s Fair in Osaka. It’s nickname Tongue comes from its shape that resembles the human muscular organ.
In 1965, the Ribbon chair was produced by Artifort, inspired by a geometrical shape called the Möbius strip. During the same year, Paulin also designed the F545 Tulip chair which was reintroduced by Artifort in 2013.
Paulin took part in designing the new furnishings for the Louvre Museum in 1968 and was, in the following year awarded the American Industrial Design Award. In 1971, Paulin furnished the private chambers of the French president in the Elysée Palace. Twelve years later he did the same for the president’s study.
In 1975 Paulin founded the design agency ADSA together with Maia Paulin and Marc Lebailly, which advised the industry in creative direction and brand image, as well as producing design for public and private spaces. In the early 1980’s Paulin created a new limited edition furniture collection, including the Boston chair. From 2005 Paulin worked mainly on the re-design of his earlier pieces, but also developing new concepts.
In 2006 he was the focus of an exhibition which also launched his catalogue raisonné as a part of the Design Parade 02 at the Villa Noailles in Hyères-les-Palmiers. During 2007-08 Paulin had exhibitions at the Gobelins and at the Galerie Azzedine Alaia in Paris. He was the recipient of the Grand Prix National de la Création Industrielle.
Pierre Paulin passed away in 2009 at the age of 82. He is represented at several museums including the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Victoria & Albert Museum and the Museum of Furniture Studies in Stockholm.
