Through twenty-five pieces designed by a dozen creators, the exhibition “UNBUILT invites themselves to their homes” offers, until June 21, a singular vision of design, very 21st century. A niche design, where the boundaries between art, architecture, sculpture and design are blurred.
Born in 2020, UNBUILT – literally “unbuilt” – is a gallery of artist-designers of another kind, offering objects not dictated by the market, created initially for the own use of their creators. “UNBUILT is a community of artists who think about the object ,” explains founder and director Alexandra Fau. It brings together furniture and objects by French and international artists, free of any convention. Unique or in very limited edition, they are made of intuition, invention, sensitive experiences, and were imagined by love, generosity or necessity. » At the foundation, UNBUILT – spotted at the Collectible show in Brussels – reveals a selection of pieces inspired by everyone’s plastic language, in a decor with striking colors designed by the painter Maxime Testu.
Imagined by Julie Béna, Santiago Borja, Hélène Labadie, FCK, Fallen Fruit (David Allen Burns and Austin Young), Alexandre and Florentine Lamarche-Ovize, Kamil Bouzoubaa-Grivel, Gary William Webb, Vincent Lamouroux, or even Sophia Taillet and Mateo Garcia , the works take advantage of the stepped space. High up, near the bay window, Mirage Table by Sophia Taillet – whose Venus lamp was noticed on the 13Desserts stand, at Collectible – glass table, with elegant curved legs, takes on its full dimension through plays of light due to the roughness of the material. Lower down, the modular shapes of the stoneware teapots or faience vase by FCK-Frédérik Gautier recall details of brutalist architecture. Among others, the Renart lamp by the Lamarche-Ovize duo, in enamelled earthenware, seems to come out of a children’s story while referring, by its coiled shape, to the hybrid bestiary of medieval capitals. As for Hélène Labadie’s blown-glass sculpture Belle when you’re crying with dripping shapes, its glowing tone echoes that of certain plant details of the From the Garden and Field upholstery fabric by Fallen Fruit, designed for the Victoria and Albert Museum of London. Its patterns are inspired by herbarium plates from the 18th century, on a fluorescent yellow background.
Originellement confidentiel, ce design est intéressant par sa démarche à rebours des conventions. En outre, il enrichit la discipline d’une nouvelle vision, celle d’un « art total » ou presque, sans hiérarchie ni catégorisation.
Virginie Chuimer-Layen
UNBUILT comes to their homes , Fondation Pernod-Ricard, 1 cour Paul Ricard, Paris 75008. Until June 21, 2022. More information on: www.fondationpernod-ricard.com and www.un-built.com .
