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Tropique Dining Chair With Fringes

Created in the 1950s, the Tropique Collection of outdoor fur-

niture captures the timeless glamour and exotic luxury of out-

door living on the Côte d’Azur in the mid-20th century. Com-

bining 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, incorporat-

ing 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.

To give his furniture a balance of strength, durability, and

apparent weightlessness, Matégot frequently turned to per-

forated metal as a material choice, taking advantage of the

fact it could be bent and shaped like fabric, resulting in light-

weight, transparent surfaces. To create the Tropique Dining

Table, a stainless steel sheet is pressed and welded onto the

frame, providing a solid, functional surface that allows sun-

light to pass through.

Tropique Dining Chairs’ seats and backrests are today made

from a durable yet gently flexible outdoor fabric that is at-

tached to the underside of the curved armrests by a series

of pins. This is a contemporary evolution of Matégot's initial

construction whereby the fabric was woven through holes in

the metal. This maintains the look of the original design while

allowing the upholstery fabric to be easily exchanged. Hung

in a hammock-like manner across the frame, the textile seat

responds to the contours of the body. The backrest is padded

with foam instead of the original horsehair and a loose pillow

added to the seat ensures optimal comfort.

The Tropique Dining Chair is available with black or off-white

powder-coated frames, for durability outdoors, and two up-

holstery options. The option of adding tasseled fringes to the

arms, seat, and backrest introduces a note of playfulness

perfectly in keeping with the design’s laidback poolside char-

acter. Matégot’s assured used of textiles in this collection

offers a hint of his later career, as, having found internation-

al success as a furniture designer, he moved on to become

equally influential as an upholsterer.

Of all the iconic designs conceived by Mathieu Matégot

during his career, Tropique is among those that he loved the

most, having chosen it to furnish his own apartment. Re-

stored and updated, GUBI’s revival of the Tropique Collection

is a timely tribute to one of the most important and distinctive

French designers of the modern age and the natural way to

celebrate his legacy.

TIMELESS

GLAMOUR