In January, the international interior design community turned out in full force at the biannual Maison & Objet Paris fair, to discover the creative world’s latest brands and products. A vital global showcase of the trends and innovations of tomorrow, the show saw 85,825 visitors (half of them foreigners from 139 countries) and 2,871 exhibitors (60 per cent coming from abroad, and 800 new).
In January, the international interior design community turned out in full force at the biannual Maison & Objet Paris fair, to discover the creative world’s latest brands and products. A vital global showcase of the trends and innovations of tomorrow, the show saw 85,825 visitors (half of them foreigners from 139 countries) and 2,871 exhibitors (60 per cent coming from abroad, and 800 new).
The launch of its online platform, MOM, helped to raise awareness about the fair among new buyers and opinion leaders, who were able to discover year-round the breadth and depth of the product offerings on display at Maison & Objet.
Highlights this season included the Inspirations Space dedicated to the theme of “Silence” with scenography by Elizabeth Leriche, who imagined a serene and contemplative journey to retreat from the stresses of everyday life and enjoy the beauty of the objects around us; the Designer of the Year exhibition presenting Pierre Charpin’s poetic creations, and the Rising Talents Awards honouring the most promising British innovators in design and lifestyle today.
There was even a talk entitled “Garden City, Mega City, Strategies for the 21st-Century Sustainable City”, given by architects Wong Mun Summ and Richard Hassell, founders of architecture practice WOHA.
Here, we give you a sneak peek of our favourite products and brands – some established, and others, exciting new discoveries – that will be appearing in stores near you in the coming months.
Switzerland-based designer Tomas Kral has created the Beak collection of two geometrical jugs and a matching tumbler featuring strong lines, for Turkish contemporary glassware brand Nude. One stout and the other elongated, both jugs are tall-necked with sharp, beak-like spouts for easy pouring. After the success of the Star side table, Coedition presents the Star console table with a Carrara marble top and a pointed black- or goldlacquered bronze structure by French artist-designer Olivier Gagnere. He is best known for having decorated Cafe Marly at the Louvre Museum in Paris, and for his early works in glass and porcelain.
For its first collaboration with Ghidini 1961, the renowned Brazilian Campana Brothers created the Kaleidos graphic wall lamp for the Brass Ensemble collection. Composed of a brass base and six gilded, hinged mirror blades that produce a kaleidoscope of golden hues, it was inspired by Lygia Clark’s Bicho critter sculptures. Lladro Atelier, the Spanish porcelain brand’s ideas laboratory, launched the faceted Origami collection of animals handcrafted in Valencia – a reference to the traditional Japanese art of folding paper.
Known for his eccentric artistry, prolific Spanish designer Jaime Hayon injects his fantastical and colourful world into the Vista Alegre Folkifunki porcelain tableware collection inspired by animals, plants, masks, Portuguese folklore and the cosmos, which entices guests to sit around the dining table to share meals and stories. Cappellini re-edits the revolutionary Tube chair designed by Joe Colombo in 1969 – the first sectional and modular armchair on the market that users could position in different compositions – using new materials and updated manufacturing technology, while keeping the original shapes and details untouched.
Knot pendant lights by Chiaramonte Marin for Brokis juxtapose two highly dissimilar materials – coarse natural fibre and smooth blown glass (available in classic transparent, smoky grey transparent, smoky brown transparent or opaline) – where globes of varying sizes are suspended from cords finished in a simple knot and metal end cap, making it appear as though the bottoms of the glass have been pulled inward.
Hand-curved and silvered, Glas Italia’s Prism partition screens by Tokujin Yoshioka – in thick, faceted, extra-light and high-transparency mirror glass – playfully twist and turn in a random manner, refracting light to create unusual expressions of its surroundings, transforming the spaces they’re in.
Available as a one-seater, two-seater or ottoman, Nakki (Finnish for “hotdog”) by Mika Tolvanen for Woud marries Scandinavian simplicity with comfort. Its clean, skinny metal legs contrast with the curves of the upholstered soft, deep and plump seats.
Influenced by African art and geometry, Isabelle Gilles and Yann Poncelet – founders of Colonel – delight through their joyful, graphic Magic lamps featuring elongated lacquered steel bases topped by vibrant, patterned Kvadrat fabric lampshades. Elegant yet functional, Menu’s Cage side table by the Stockholm-based, six-person design studio Form Us With Love is a marble-top table with slender steel legs, which criss-cross to form a cage you can fill with books.
Part of the Bosa Animalita ceramic collection of 10 fantastical objects, the small, talisman-like Compagno by Sebastian Herkner – revealing a beetle, fish and bird as ambassadors of the elements of earth, water and wind – is the perfect daily companion in cities devoid of nature.
Comfortable and elegant, Ligne Roset’s modular Grand Chelem collection by French architect and designer Didier Gomez comes in a choice of banquettes, settees, chaises longues and footstools. The backrests and armrests are designed entirely for user comfort, and the looks can be customised through upholstery and different configurations.
Reflecting the sophisticated setting of a modern Italian residence, where design and fashion come together harmoniously, the Soho line by Toan Nguyen for Fendi Casa now extends to the bedroom with the Soho bed in pale tones. Balanced proportions and leather buckle details add character to the frame of the base.
Customisable to any size or shape within four weeks, the dramatic Luxxx carpet by Turkish rug company Stepevi uses a three-thread process, and is available in two shades: angara grey, pebble grey and silver, or ecru and silver. In his Folia collection for Saint-Louis that unconventionally pairs crystal and wood, Noe Duchaufour-Lawrance brings together tableware, vases, candlesticks, lighting, and the brand’s first pieces of furniture – a side table, bookcase and console.
Fragmented Forms.
Fractal geometry with points, angular shapes, and tight configurations where straight lines are shattered and mixed up, and structures folded over for new spatial energy, is what greets you here.
1 Nude Beak clear jug by Tomas Kral.
2 Coedition Star console table by Olivier Gagnere.
3 Ghidini 1961 Kaleidos wall lamp by the Campana Brothers.
4 Part of the Lladro Atelier Origami animal collection.
Playtime in Paradise.
A wonderful world of whimsy and fantasy – limited only by the imagination – makes itself felt, as a new spirit of cheerful freedom permeates the fairgrounds.
1 Glas Italia Prism partitions by Tokujin Yoshioka.
2 Vista Alegre Folkifunki porcelain vase by Jaime Hayon.
3 Brokis Knot pendant lightings by Chiaramonte Marin.
4 Cappellini Tube chair by Joe Colombo.
Small is Beautiful.
In this fast-paced world of excess and extravagance, some brands are proposing creations scaled down in size.
1 Colonel Magic lamp by Isabelle Gilles and Yann Poncelet.
2 Woud Nakki seating by Mika Tolvanen.
3 Menu Cage side table by Form Us With Love.
4 Bosa Animalita Bird decorative figurines by Sebastian Herkner.
Grand Deluxe.
It’s all about living in the lap of luxury, where the noblest materials shine through plush textures and generous volumes.
1 Ligne Roset Grand Chelem sofa by Didier Gomez.
2 Saint-Louis Folia barware by Noe Duchaufour- Lawrance.
3 Stepevi Luxxx carpet.
4 Fendi Casa Soho bed by Toan Nguyen.
Text Y-JEAN MUN-DELSALLE.
