It takes two: Paul Matter debuts his dancing ’Tango’ lights in India

Product designer Nikhil Paul opened the doors to his Paul Matter Studio in New Delhi, India, with a debut lighting collection called ‘Tango’
Product designer Nikhil Paul opened the doors to his Paul Matter Studio in New Delhi, India, with a debut lighting collection called ‘Tango’
(Image credit: paulmatter.com)

Based in New Delhi, Nikhil Paul’s opened the doors to his Paul Matter Studio with a debut lighting collection entitled ‘Tango’. The studio’s original and custom lamps, for residential and commercial settings, take cues from mid-century modernism and the Industrial Age. Of course India’s tradition of unassuming craftsmanship and Paul’s own sense of minimalism delivered the chattel.

'We couldn’t find the sort of utilitarian yet elegant lighting that we had in mind. Everything in the market was either extremely product-y or antiques and what we were looking for was something that combined aged materials yet was still minimal and contemporary,' says Paul. If you can’t find it, make it, as they say.

And so ‘Tango’ developed from there – a playful experimentation of geometric forms that float in space all and all with a slight vintage flair. 'Low hanging elbows and beaten brass shades enable fixtures to be artfully arranged and reconfigured to emit soft pools of light,' says Paul. And the name ‘Tango’ is apropos of the Buenos Aires dance melting together rhythm, posture and abrupt pauses.

Hand finished in the studio their belief is in longevity of design in terms of materiality and also in the visual language. 'The pieces draw from a rich material palette that includes buffed and aged brass, copper, stone, leather and glass,' explains Paul. 'These materials get better with time and use and they can be used in their truest form whilst still revealing their layers.' 

The studio’s original and custom lamps, for residential and commercial settings, take cues from mid-century modernism and the Industrial Age

The studio’s original and custom lamps, for residential and commercial settings, take cues from mid-century modernism and the Industrial Age

(Image credit: paulmatter.com)

Of course India’s tradition of unassuming craftsmanship and Paul’s own sense of minimalism delivered the chattel

Of course India’s tradition of unassuming craftsmanship and Paul’s own sense of minimalism delivered the chattel

(Image credit: paulmatter.com)

'Tango' is a playful experimentation of geometric forms that float in space all and all with a slight vintage flair

'Tango' is a playful experimentation of geometric forms that float in space all and all with a slight vintage flair

(Image credit: paulmatter.com)

The name ‘Tango’ is apropos of the Buenos Aires dance melting together rhythm, posture and abrupt pauses

The name ‘Tango’ is apropos of the Buenos Aires dance melting together rhythm, posture and abrupt pauses

(Image credit: paulmatter.com)

Hand finished in the studio their belief is in longevity of design in terms of materiality and also in the visual language

Hand finished in the studio their belief is in longevity of design in terms of materiality and also in the visual language

(Image credit: paulmatter.com)

INFORMATION

For more information on Paul Matter Studio, visit the website

Daniel Scheffler is a storyteller for The New York Times and others. He has a travel podcast with iHeart Media called Everywhere and a Substack newsletter, Withoutmaps, where he shares all his wild ways. He lives in New York with his husband and their pup.