New furniture and accessories spotted during Paris Design Week.
One of the most hotly anticipated parts of any design week is the release of new products. From independent designers to full brand rollouts, there are always fresh names and innovative ideas hitting the market. Recently GRAY attended Paris Design Week and Maison&Objet. Here are the products that caught our eye, both around the city and on the show floor.
OBJECT OTT/ANOTHER PARADIGMATIC CERAMIC BY STUDIO YOON SEOK-HYEON
Ott vases by Studio Yoon Seok-hyeon.
Part of the cohort of Maison&Objet’s Rising Talents Awards, which featured the work of emerging designers in the Netherlands, Studio Yoon Seok-hyeon presented the project Ott/APC—a set of porcelain vases glazed with Ott, a traditional Korean lacquering material made from natural tree resin (the designer is originally from Korea). The hue of the glazing becomes darker with each additional application, and, unlike with vessels glazed using more traditional methods, the natural resin makes the porcelain reusable after its service life.
SHLUMI ARMCHAIRS BY BINA BAITEL
Shlumi armchairs by designer Bina Baitel.
Symmetrical but different, the Shlumi armchairs by French designer Bina Baitel had a spotlight in Maison&Objet’s Talents so French section. The monolith forms are grounding and sculptural, but the soft contours prevent the pair from feeling imposing.
BOUDINS COFFEE TABLE BY SABOURIN COSTES
The Boudins coffee table from design studio Sabourin Costes. Image by Mathijs Labadie.
Released this spring, but spotted for the first time by GRAY, the Boudins coffee table by Paris design studio Sabourin Costes is eye-catching for its mix of materials and confection-like appearance. Made from glass and resin in a limited edition of 10, this piece veers from strictly furniture territory into the realm of collectible design.
PLAKKENPOT H BY HANNA KOOISTRA
The Plakkenpot H by Hanna Kooistra.
For her most recent project, Stages of the ordinary, Hanna Kooistra (another pick in the Maison&Objet’s Rising Talents Awards) looks to history as she designs. Starting with pre-industrial ornamental products—such as an 1816 coffeepot seen at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam—Kooistra creates a contemporary reinterpretation of everyday objects that is both decorative and practical.
THE INVISIBLE COLLECTION X ALINE ASMAR D’AMMAN
The Georgia seating collection was designed by Aline Asmar d’Amman for the Invisible Collection. Image by Jean-Pierre Vaillancourt & Pascal Dangin.
Making her furniture design debut, Beruit-born Aline Asmar d’Amman—architect and founder of Culture in Architecture—presented a collaboration with the Invisible Collection. A celebration of femininity through curved and glamorous forms, the Georgia seating options (a tête-à-tête sofa and side chairs) reflect a very French sensibility—the twisted backrests are even reminiscent of the morning croissant, but in a sophisticated, not kitschy, way.
ALTARS COLLECTION BY SÉBASTIEN COUDERT-MAUGENDRE
The Altars armchair by Sébastien Coudert-Maugendre.
Designed through the lens of architectural practice, the Altars collection by Sébastien Coudert-Maugendre is reminiscent of folded origami forms. Crafted by the Solum Lignum cabinetmakers from solid Ash wood, the pieces (an armchair and a coffee table) present a dialogue between modern cabinetmaking techniques and traditional handcraft.
TERRAZZO BY OSTREA
The terrazzo produced by Ostrea is made from crushed shells.
Presented at Paris Design Week by Ostrea, a French design studio that launched in 2020, a new line of terrazzo is made from recycled, crushed shells—an eco-friendly alternative to plastic and other non-natural materials. Founded after an encounter with Breton oyster farmers—the team learned that the shells are not recycled and end their life buried in a landfill—Ostrea offers terrazzo in three shell-specific patterns: Huitre (oyster), Moule (mussel), and St. Jacques (scallop), all available in four colors and two grain sizes.
PETIOLE COLLECTION BY ALEXANDRE LABRUYÈRE
The Petiole chair by Alexandre Labruyére. Image by Charlotte Cornette.
With a practice rooted deeply in handcraft, designer Alexandre Labruyére describes himself as a “jack of all trades.” Trained as an industrial designer, Labruyére spent a period of time at a large industrial sports company, which he left in 2019 to train with Greta from the Ecole Boulle in Paris, as a cabinetmaker. Now based in Lille, France, the designer produces work inspired by the nature he encounters while cycling. The Petiole collection is inspired by the stem that attaches the leaf to the branch. Created using the technique of steam bending, each piece brings an organic shape that pays homage to materiality.
ORPLI VASE BY ATELIER POLYHEDRE
A trio of vases from Atelier Polyhedre. The new Orpli vase is on the far right.
New from Atelier Polyhedre and presented in the CRAFT Hall at Maison&Objet, the Orpli vase is a nod to Greek pottery of the 5th century B.C. With a simple silhouette and slightly cantilevered form, the vessel is perfect for a single stem or bloom, and it can stand alone as a sculptural object sans flora.
TABLES BY STONED AMSTERDAM
The Manhattan 60 and Manhattan 100 tables from Stoned Amsterdam.
Known mostly for its cheeky branding and tabletop accessories, Stoned Amsterdam has released a new collection of marble tables. Named after areas in New York (the Manhattan, the Soho, the Brooklyn), the tables are available for pre-order in multiple shapes and sizes, each one a statement piece of its own.
ARCHIPELAGO SEATING BY ROULA SALAMOUN
Archipelago seating by Roula Salamoun. Image by Tarek Moukaddem.
Presented alongside her signature Strata rugs, the new Archipelago seating by Beirut-based designer Roula Salamoun takes inspiration from natural landscapes. With their boulder-esque shapes, available in a handful of colors, the handmade pieces can be arranged in various series (from a single stool to a large cluster) for a unique and custom look.