Mathieu Paradis turns surplus scaffolding into Contrepoids and Grue

Contrepoids by Mathieu Paradis, a scaffolding chair with an orange fabric seat

Mathieu Paradis, an artist and product designer, works with scaffolding as his raw material. In Contrepoids and Grue, he turns its tubes and clamps into domestic structures that keep the memory of the building site. What is temporary stays, as if held in suspension, and the gesture raises questions about use and ownership.

Contrepoids and Grue by Mathieu Paradis in a large industrial hall

The series began with a simple question to companies that sell and rent scaffolding: what do you do with your surplus? The pieces take shape from these salvaged parts, which companies often set aside or send for scrap.

Orange fabric seat hanging from a scaffolding tube

Scaffolding tube with an orange cord and a weight

Stone counterweight in an orange sling beside a scaffolding clamp

Detail of the orange fabric of Contrepoids

Scaffolding clamp holding the fabric seat

On site, scaffolding structures space and carries people and materials. Then it disappears once the work is done. Here, however, it stops being a means and becomes the subject. Its makers designed the tubes, connectors and joints for strength and efficiency. Mathieu Paradis reads them instead for visual lightness, for suspension in space and for the raw beauty of an industrial material taken out of context.

Contrepoids and Grue

Contrepoids and Grue take a material built for the demands of a construction site and reveal these qualities. They also invite visitors to handle the pieces, so that they activate what was meant to be temporary and set in motion what was static.

Contrepoids, a scaffolding chair with an orange fabric seat and a stone counterweight

Grue with a hanging light above Contrepoids

Grue in a dark hall with a hanging light and a counterweight

Contrepoids and Grue seen across an empty hall

Counterweight hanging from the arm of Grue

Orange cord running from Grue to a counterweight

Fixed and swivel clamps joining scaffolding tubes

From models to full scale

The design process began with an experimental phase. Mathieu Paradis worked with scale models alongside 3D modelling, then moved on to tests with scaffolding itself at full scale.

Scale models of the chair and the crane structure

Scale model of Contrepoids with a yellow seat

Scale model of Contrepoids seen from the side

Sketchbook studies of clamps and the chair

Sketches of the crane structure with hanging lights

Sketches of hanging elements and the crane arm

Pencil studies of the crane and its light

Sketchbook pages with crane and table studies

Sketchbook pages with studies of the crane arm

For fabrication, he cut the crossbars with a grinder. He then sanded some with a belt sander and coated them with varnish to prevent rust. The assembly uses the techniques and fasteners of scaffolding, including swivel clamps and fixed clamps. Grue uses galvanised steel crossbars and measures 170 by 60 centimetres. Meanwhile, Contrepoids combines galvanised steel crossbars with fabric and measures 90 by 60 centimetres. Textile designer Juliette Thibert made the fabric.

At Brussels Design Week

Brussels Design Week then showed the two pieces at A2D Architecture and at The Hotel.

Grue and a table in a courtyard at A2D Architecture — Grue at A2D Architecture during Brussels Design Week. Photo: Natacha Guyot

Counterweight hanging from Grue against a white brick wall — Counterweight against the brick wall. Photo: Natacha Guyot

Grue and a low table in the courtyard. Photo: Natacha Guyot

Orange cord and counterweight of Grue in the courtyard — Cord and counterweight in the courtyard. Photo: Natacha Guyot

Courtyard and glazed facade at A2D Architecture — The courtyard at A2D Architecture. Photo: Natacha Guyot

Contrepoids and Grue by a window at The Hotel — By the window at The Hotel.

Contrepoids and Grue in the lobby of The Hotel — Contrepoids and Grue at The Hotel during Brussels Design Week.

Project Credits

Design: Mathieu Paradis
Works: Grue, galvanised steel crossbars, 170 × 60 cm; Contrepoids, galvanised steel crossbars and fabric, 90 × 60 cm
Textile: Juliette Thibert / @juliette.thibert
Exhibited: Brussels Design Week, A2D Architecture and The Hotel, Brussels, Belgium
Photography at A2D Architecture: Natacha Guyot