Ingrid Petrie Design

All images via etsy.com/uk/shop/IngridPetrieDesign

Just in time for Christmas, check out these prints here and more. All original work by the lovely Glasgow-based artist, Ingrid Petrie.

la 510 originale



Images via chaise510originale.fr



 

 

A couple of chairs here after my own heart. One perfectly white (just how I like it) and the other adorable for a child in a great colour combination. These are resissues of the 510 chair by Label Edition, an iconic design by Gaston Cavaillon and Mullca, in 1947. Ahead of its time, with steel tubes, complex soldering and stackablility, the design was an instant hit and to be found in educational establishments throughout France. The school chair was originally produced in six sizes to match the age of the child. A made in France classic.

Alban Le Henry

images via albanlehenry.com 

My French design interest of the moment: Alban Le Henry. Having learnt alongside other favourites of mine, les frères Bouroullec, he has certainly been in good company.

bleu de chauffe

Oh no, I am liking everything about Bleu de Chauffe. Really nice website alert: selling lovely bags, great back-story (Bleu de Chauffe is the blue workwear jacket that the steam train conductors wore when heating the water and making the pressure rise, but also the name still used today for workwear worn by French manual workers), photography that looks oh so French and it is all made in France. With each item individually branded on the inside you are owning not only beautiful craftsmanship, but a unique piece. Drawing inspiration from a vintage postman's bag or an electrician's holdall from the 50s and 60s, this eco-friendly company uses only plant based dyes and has a low carbon footprint. Fabrication Française at its very best.

All images via bleu-de-chauffe.com

quick: sample sale!

Image via plumo.com

Here they are again - clouds. The ones above are very likely to be around for today only, so best get in quick if they take your fancy. These lovely little hair slides are a French design and are made in France. Sample sale on today, courtesy of Plumo. All items are unique pieces (only one of each available).

The joy of Duralex

Image via historycompany.com

Here to illustrate Proust's madeleine theory, is a piece about Duralex. One sighting of a stack of Gigogne glasses and I am whisked back to my primary school canteen, circa 1983. If you are reading this and from the UK or France, I am certain you are being whisked back to school right now, too. This also works for their plates. When we were growing up, we always ate from brown Duralex glass plates. I have no idea where they are now, but thankfully they are still alive and well and still being used every mealtime at my inlaws' house. My parents uncovered some mini versions for us on a trip to Budapest a few years back. They get used all the time and I am now intending to source the original larger size so we can recreate those mealtimes in the late 70s/80s. Stackable, stylish, inexpensive and often readily available, they are also very hardwearing. If you treat yourself to one little bit of classic design this year, let it be Duralex.

Image via jazzywholesale.co.uk

les frères Bouroullec

Looking back at the work of Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec for the past few years, 2011 appears to have been a vintage one. With a number of real design winners, I find their work this year particularly stunning and pleasing. The lines, colours and tones have been perfectly researched. The Pico tiles have already been imagined into our overhauled bathroom and the Ploum sofa I know will look terrific in our bedroom or livingroom. With talent abound, this family team currently has a retrospective running in the Centre Pompidou-Metz, devoted to their work. The exhibition runs til 20 July 2012.

 Image via bouroullec.com - Pico tiles

 

Image via bouroullec.com - Pico tiles

Image via bouroullec.com - Osso chair

Image via bouroullec.com - Textile Field, London Design Fesival

Image via bouroullec.com - Ploum 2011

Goude stuff

The recent speedy festive trip to France involved a lot of countryside, plus peace and quiet. I had mentally pencilled-in a visit to the museum, Les Arts Decoratifs, in case we made it up to Paris. It is currently hosting the Goudemania exhibition, until 18 March 2012, and looks well worth a visit. Jean-Paul Goude is master of visual-brilliance and the brains behind some memorable advertising, for some of the world's biggest brands. A French graphic designer, photographer, illustrator and advertising film director, he was once also married to Grace Jones, with whom he collaborated on many projects. The exhibition is the first ever retrospective exhibition of the artist's work. Take a look at the attached overview of his creations below. Genius.

You Tube: Jean-Paul Goude - Retrospective

Bensimon



Image via Bensimon.com

When I used to think of Bensimon, I thought pumps. Those great little plimsolls that are either elasticated or lace-up and come in a variety of colours. I was delighted to read that they are still very much a French, family company, but even more so to see how they have developed. Their move into art and design could easily have been viewed as tryhard, but it is actually really good and I would definitely buy some of it for our home. The gallery S. Bensimon, situated in the Marais, in Paris, opened its doors in 2009 and has since been exhibiting and selling limited edition work by a range of artists and designers. A few special edition pieces, like the ones below, are available online. Lovely, lovely stuff.

Images via Bensimon.com

nouvelle vague

Jean Seberg, À Bout de Souffle, 1960
Image via newwavefilm.com

I am coming to the end of some editing work I've been doing on a publication about film director, Jean-Luc Godard and French New Wave cinema. The work has been interesting and it has led me to rediscover work I had not seen in a while. Much of the décor in these films is as visually chic and stylish as its actors, with leading stars including Brigitte Bardot, Jean Seberg and Jean-Paul Belmondo; much of the sixties design featured looking very contemporary. All really good fashion, interiors and hairstyle inspiration. In the same vein, I'd also recommend La nuit Americaine by François Truffaut and I often think of Godard as a good introduction to the French New Wave, before venturing into the slightly more obscure territories of  L’année dernière à Marienbad and Hiroshima mon amour, by director, Alain Renais. But to be honest, the list of gems is endless, so well worth investigating.

Film stills, Le Mépris, 1963
Images vis filmcuts.co.uk