Lounge Club: How Benjamin Paulin brings Pierre Paulin’s furniture into the 21st century

“Where I start is where my father, unfortunately, was not able to go. My intention was to make the dream come true,” says Benjamin. Take the Utopia Project for Herman Miller. Because of the expense to create the pieces in this project, it never materialised in Pierre’s lifetime. The Utopia project, which includes the Dune Ensemble, is composed of modules that allow clients to fully redesign the rooms in their homes instantly. It now forms the imagery that has made Paulin, Paulin, Paulin relevant in the modern design landscape.

Benjamin continues, “I grew up amid the rejected pieces in my house, the prototypes that didn’t make it, like the dream that never came true.” He shares a sense of delight in these pieces as, in his opinion, they are the best ones. Other examples of these pieces are the Tapis-Siege and the Miami table which were drawings that were only ever built after Pierre’s death.

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A debate surrounding the value of re-issued versus buying pieces produced during a designer’s lifetime is one furniture collectors are familiar with. “This was a big issue for us when we started, because there were only vintage markets and new limited editions. Now, it’s okay, at least for the people who want to work with us. My father’s creation is conceptual art.” He explains that in Pierre’s case, the product is the idea, which comes with the authorisation for someone to produce that idea into material testimony.

He compares this analogy to a recent Sol LeWitt wall drawing he acquired. “It’s not Sol LeWitt that came to my house. The Foundation came and painted the way Sol decided on.” Likening his father’s oeuvre with conceptual art he asserts, “You cannot buy the concept. You can just buy an expression of it.”

Fashion was a starting point for Paulin, Paulin, Paulin. He credits friends such as Azzedine Alaia, who ordered the works and provided funding to get the first exhibition running. They began by showing the works as an exhibition with no intention of selling pieces. Likewise, the first exhibition in Monaco for Louis Vuitton’s 2014 cruise collection was mounted at the behest of Nicolas Ghesquiere. This show caught the attention of then Louis Vuitton manager Michael Burke, who then invested in another exhibition.

Benjamin’s appreciation for celebrity culture is rooted in his personal history as a performer. He began a decade-long career as a French rapper after leaving school at 15. He strongly asserts that celebrity culture has helped them to reach younger generations. “Thanks to Frank Ocean, Travis Scott, Kanye—they are really helping us to connect,” he smiles at coming full circle, his former career blending seamlessly into his current one.

His optimism about the future is palpable, with the intention of doing “whatever we think is cool and whatever is exciting”. Recent projects include an exhibition with Squid Games actor Lee Jung Jae in Seoul for Frieze and another exhibition in November this year in New York with the Donald Judd foundation. 

Paulin, Paulin, Paulin will also have a presence at ArtBasel, preparing an exhibition focusing on tables from the Fifties and Nineties. Other ongoing projects include a museum in the mountains in the South of France. Benjamin believes in investing long-term, building brand equity rooted in authenticity.

For Benjamin, “there will not be another Pierre Paulin or Eames, for the simple reason that modernism is over.” He shares his interest in future movements in art and design, citing a friend currently developing “objects that would be used in the idea of humanity living in outer space.” Questions such as how one could keep the human experience, human in the wider universe, are ones that excite Benjamin.

Making “impossible pieces” and presenting them to a new audience lies at the heart of their mission. Benjamin is committed to building a strong sense of community where clients are more closely related to collectors and patrons, versus simple consumers. He asserts, “What we like, in this sense, is that we know all our customers. I don’t see what we are doing as a brand. I see it as being a member of a club." 

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