Cafétéria no. 512 table, a.k.a. Compas table, 1953
The last type of furniture structure created by Jean Prouvé was the Compas base of 1953. It is also one of his most iconic creations, together with the “standard” chair based on the 1934 model, with which the “compas” tables and desks were often associated. The principle of tapering bent steel legs welded to a broad-section tubing brace began to be used in 1951 for the Maternelle and Scolaire furniture, in combination with more slender tubular supports. The new Compas base reused this principle in a pareddown form: the triangular-section legs were assembled in pairs and welded to the crosspiece, which had a triangular bent steel bracket at each end. Called Compas from the outset, this frame was used simultaneously for tables and desks, whose basic difference lies in the placing—symmetrical or asymmetrical—of the legs on each side of the brace, and the shape of the brackets. The Cafétéria no. 512 table has a symmetrical base, the end brackets having the dual function of supporting the top and concealing the joining of the legs and crosspiece. The top was available in several sizes, the very long bases being fitted with an intermediate bracket welded to the brace. According to its intended use—domestic or public sector—it was made of solid or laminated wood covered with plywood, melamine, plastic or Bulgomme and edged with solid wood or aluminum strip. Less often it was equipped with runners for a drawer. According to the model, the legs were fitted with rubber protective tips or welded metal sole plates. Several variants were designed, notably a demountable version seen in a series of sketches that emphasize the ongoing concern with the evolution of individual models: gains in storage and shipping space, use of existing components (“base unit in stock”), different assembly approaches, and possible size variations (“tube cut to requirements”). Apparently, this model was never executed. The Cafétéria no. 512 table sold well, notably to university restaurants and to cafeterias and canteens. Marketed by Steph Simon, the bases were made at the Maxéville plant until 1959 and the tops subcontracted to Negroni, a firm in the Paris suburbs. In 1955 a more economical tube version of the Cafétéria no. 512 table was designed to meet the call for tenders for the Cité Universitaire in Antony. The university restaurant was equipped throughout with tubular-base “compas” tables whose tops covered with melamine of different colors. Another variant, using large-section tube, was intended for large workshop tables; it seems that at least one example was used in the Maxéville factory.