The world of Christian Mattler: ‘a perfect archive of mid-century modern art and design’

The world of Christian Mattler: ‘a perfect archive of mid-century modern art and design’

The architect occupied a charming duplex at the top of a Paris apartment building, with the feel of an artist’s studio, which he filled with art and furnishings by the likes of Jean Prouvé, Serge Mouille, Mathieu Matégot, Georges Jouve and Charlotte Perriand.

Capucine Tamboise never imagined when she entered the top-floor flat of a Parisian apartment block in the 15th arrondissement that she would be stepping into a time capsule. ‘It was a perfect archive of mid-century modern art and design,’ says the head of Design sales at Christie’s in Paris.

The light-filled duplex, with sloping rectangular windows and a long balcony, was, until his death this year, the home of the architect Christian Mattler. In the course of his career, Mattler worked on several notable commissions, including Terminal 3 of Paris’s Charles de Gaulle airport, and the restoration of the Tour Montparnasse.

Born in 1959, Mattler developed an early love of art through his Austrian mother, who introduced him to the stylish innovations of the Vienna Secession — works by artists and designers such as Josef Hoffmann and Otto Wagner.

After training as an engineer and architect, he was employed in the offices of the French designer Jean Prouvé, who instilled in him a commitment to craft and a respect for traditional materials.

This is evident in his compact, white-walled apartment, which embodies Le Corbusier’s ‘resplendent purity’ in its functional utility and its use of strategic primary colours. ‘It looks minimalist,’ says the specialist, ‘but actually there are many amazing things’ — by which she means armchairs by Prouvé, tables by Mathieu Matégot, vases by Georges Jouve and a superb group of Charlotte Perriand furniture. These objects will be offered in Design, 1925-2025: la Modernité en Héritage on 26 November 2025 at Christie’s in Paris.

One of the most dramatic features of the interior is the iron stairwell in which Mattler suspended artworks, among them a striking frieze by the painter Jean Dewasne. As co-founder of the Atelier d’Art Abstrait in 1950, Dewasne pioneered geometric abstraction in Paris and was responsible for the colour scheme of the Centre Pompidou, working alongside Richard Rogers and Renzo Piano.

‘Mattler had a deep intellectual curiosity,’ says the specialist, noting the many well-thumbed books to be found in the apartment. ‘He needed to know everything about a designer, who they worked with and hung out with, and that is reflected in his choice of art and design.’

Dominating the skyline through the windows is the imposing Tour Montparnasse, the hi-tech megastructure built at the end of the 1960s to express the optimism and progressive spirit of France’s ‘Trente Glorieuses’ (the 30-year post-war economic boom). ‘I think it is rather wonderful that Mattler always had the building in his peripheral vision,’ says Tamboise, suggesting that it has operated as a lodestar for ambitious, experimental design over the years.

‘When I look at this apartment, I think of Perriand’s statement about “the joy of creating and living”,’ says Tamboise. ‘I think Christian Mattler had a rare talent for perceiving beauty where others might have overlooked it.’

Christie's.

Jean Prouvé (1901-1984), A pair of ‘Visiteur n. 350’ armchairs, 1952. Painted and folded steel sheet and tube, partially painted folded aluminum sheet, oak and rubber; fabric cushion. Each: 37 x 27¼ x 36⅝ in (94 x 69 x 93 cm). Estimate: €200,000-300,000. Offered in Design, 1925-2025: la Modernité en Héritage on 26 November 2025 at Christie’s in Paris.