TROPIQUE
BY MATHIEU MATÉGOT
Created in the 1950s by the Hungarian-born French master of postwar design, Mathieu Matégot, the Tropique Collection of outdoor furniture captures the timeless glamour and exotic luxury of outdoor living on the Côte d’Azur in the mid-20th century.
Tropique Dining Chair
More than five decades after it was first designed and 20 years since the death of its designer, GUBI is proud to pay homage to Mathieu Matégot with the relaunch of one of his most popular collections.
Out of production for decades, the Tropique Collection has been revived by GUBI for the 21st century, giving a new generation a chance to live ‘la dolce vita’ as Mátegot imagined it.
Combining material simplicity with a decadent aesthetic, Tropique comprises two dining chairs and a dining table. The frame of each piece is made from stainless steel rods, incorporating a distinctive statement curve at the feet – a signature of Matégot’s style and a feature that unites the collection into a clear and cohesive whole.
Developed soon after Matégot had returned from WW2 and set up his furniture workshop in Paris, Tropique was one of four key collections that established his reputation as a designer.
The curvaceous forms won the attention of some of the most prestigious design publications of the day and earned him a place at some of the most important events and exhibitions of his time. One such exhibition, Art & Decoration’s ‘La Fleur dans la Maison’ in 1950, showcased the Tropique Collection immersed in tropical flora, brilliantly demonstrating the design’s affinity with the natural world and the al fresco lifestyle.
Tropique wins Monocle Design Awards
The Monocle Design Awards honor the world’s most exciting designers alongside the very best new projects and products bringing our homes and cities to life. For the second edition, featured in the magazine’s May 2022 issue, Monocle’s editors and design correspondents have selected GUBI’s Tropique Collection by Mathieu Matégot as the winner in the awards’ ‘Best Patio Pick’ category.
MATHIEU MATÉGOT
Mathieu Matégot (1910–2001) was a self-taught Hungarian designer who settled in Paris after travelling, studying, and gaining experience in set design, window dressing, fashion, and tapestry.
He volunteered for the French army during the Second World War but was captured by the Germans and put to work in a mechanical accessories plant. It was here that he recognized the potential for perforated sheet metal to lend transparency, weightlessness and modernity to new forms. After the war, he developed Rigitulle – his take on the material – and his own folding, shaping, and bending technique.
GUBI GOES AL FRESCO
Designed to move as easily between indoor and outdoor spaces as we do, GUBI’s new transterior furniture and lighting features the aesthetic of Gabriella Crespi’s refined Bohemian ’72 Collection loved by the stars of stage and screen. GUBI adds dynamism to GamFratesi’s TS Table and Bill Curry’s innovative Obello Lamp, reinventing them as portable accessories that follow us wherever we go, bringing the look and feel of the indoors outside.