French designer Felipe Ribon has been combining his work with a wider research into abstract concepts, touching on themes of hypnosis, trance, Cartesian rationalism and spiritualism.
This year, the Musée des Arts Décoratifs et du Design de Bordeaux's director, Constance Rubini, invited Ribon to showcase his works in the 18th century Hôtel Lalande; the museum's home and a spectacular setting that dramatically contrasts the designer’s minimalist silhouettes and use of colour.
After graduating from ENSCI – Les Ateliers in Paris in 2008, Ribon worked for Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec, later pursuing a residency at Rome's Villa Medici. Through his time there, he focused on objects as his medium, broadening his design scope beyond materiality.
For his Musée des Arts Décoratifs exhibition, he was given carte blanche to experiment with the house’s rooms, drawing inspiration from the history of the architecture and the people who inhabited it. The result is a poetic curation of his most recent pieces, forming a dialogue with existing architectural features, objects and sculptures. Titled 'Corps Subtils' (Subtle Bodies), the exhibition plays around the designer's themes with discreet elegance.
The aim of the show, he explains, is to ‘claim the space of the museum in a new way and blend in with its collection, while broadening our perception and opening our mind to other realities’.
Ribon was given carte blanche to experiment with the house’s rooms
The designer has been combining his work with a wider research into abstract concepts, touching upon the themes of hypnosis, trance, Cartesian rationalism and spiritualism
The pieces on show are part of previous works by the designer, namely the 'Mind the Gap' and 'æ – objets médium' projects, both exploring our relation to things perceptible
Through a residency at Rome's Villa Medici, Ribon developed his work on objects as medium, broadening his design scope to extend beyond materiality
Ribon drew inspiration from the history of the architecture and the people who lived within it to stage a poetic curation of his most recent pieces that form a dialogue with existing architectural features, objects and sculptures
The exhibition plays around the designer's aesthetic themes with discreet elegance
The objects were selected by Ribon to delicately contrast with the house's period features
Hypnosis and spiritualism are recurring themes in Ribon's objects, which combine a modern form with abstract concepts
The aim of his show, the designer explains, is to ‘claim the space of the museum in a new way and blend in with its collection, while broadening our perception and opening our mind to other realities’
ADDRESS
Musée des Arts Décoratifs et du Design de Bordeaux
39 rue Bouffard
33000 Bordeaux
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