Robert Mathieu (France) mid-century furniture

Robert Mathieu, born in 1921, initially trained at Ecole

Boulle and worked as a watchmaker before pivoting to architectural lighting

design. He became one of France's most renowned lighting designers and

producers during the 1950s.

In 1949, he opened his first lighting store at 98 Boulevard

Charonne and went on to expand his business with three more stores in Paris.

Mathieu's company, "R. Mathieu Luminaires Rationnels," developed

three main ranges of lights. The first range, produced from 1950/1951, featured

a double lampshade system in gilded brass known as the diabolo. The second

range, introduced in 1953, incorporated lacquered aluminum reflectors for

ceiling lights, lamps, and wall lights. From 1956 to 1958, he invented a

complete range of wall and ceiling lights and lamps with lacquered gray metal

counterweights and white Perspex cone reflectors. He also produced other, less

upscale series in the 1960s using materials like more... glass and teak to follow the

trend for mass-produced Scandinavian furniture.

Mathieu's company dedicated a large part of its production

resources to special orders, including the design of lighting systems for significant

architectural projects such as the Louvre Pyramid in Paris and the Eiffel

Tower. For his contributions to the field of lighting design, he was awarded

the Legion of Honor by the French government. Mathieu's business closed in

1978, and he passed away in 2002.