September is marked in Paris by the sacrosanct Design Week. A week dedicated, as its name suggests, to all practices related to design, organized around the Maison et Objets trade show and in the galleries of central Paris. A special moment to exhibit, show and promote the latest creations from the talents of the sector.
And in these times of ecological crisis, it is increasingly important to take into account the environmental impact of architectural and design productions. This is why we decided to talk with Paul Marchesseau, founder of Emilieu Studio, which produces architecture based on reuse and reflects a committed practice that is deeply rooted in our times.
The opportunity to address forgotten practices such as decorative painting, allowing us to find alternatives to the production of new materials, but also to talk about the role of clothing in a profession at the crossroads of different sectors.
Your design and interior architecture practice is mixed, and has been built from the beginning on the importance of reuse and environmental issues. Tell us a little about the genesis of your work and its applications.
I created a design and interior architecture agency called Emilieu Studio, with which we also do research through an integrated think tank. It involves working on environmental, social or political issues, always in connection with architecture and design. The basic idea is to always link theory and practice. As designers, it is important to think of an "earthly design" by connecting to reality. So we do projects linked to the event, such as scenographies for example, preferably public projects. Because it is the impact of architecture that interests me; whether it is the reception of people, working conditions or how each person lives and is influenced by the space. The construction of a space always conditions the way individuals live and see the world.
My parents were in organic farming, and I was always impressed by their way of seeing things. My father worked in a mill made of 80% reused materials, and I quickly understood the possibilities and influence of the work of people who campaign on these issues.
So the practice of design can be linked to reuse and ecology in both form and substance. A few years ago, with the artist Yann Toma, we designed an energy installation for COP21 on the Eiffel Tower. Last year, we had the chance to work on the new Camondo Méditerranée school – a major interior design school – which we built in harmony with the territory and 90% based on reused materials – that is to say, with already existing materials. Today, more than ever, architecture must be designed with as little new production as possible.
Your practice is therefore very focused on reuse, and you have also worked on this technique through textiles…
Yes, we recently supported a festival called RRRecycle, which aimed to have a more global reflection on the issues of reuse, recycling, and repair in design in the broad sense. We brought in personalities working in textiles but also historians. It was necessary to demystify the contemporary movements of reuse and upcycling, which have actually existed for decades, and to show that these techniques can and must be updated. New practices are being put in place and are forming new professions, such as shoemaking for example, which is now adapting to sneakers.
Rag recycling has existed since the 19th century, and at that time old textiles were also recycled to create faux velvet and thus make luxurious fabrics accessible to a social class that could not afford these specific fabrics. At that time, recycling was already being done to make imitation textiles or tapestry.
I also worked on textiles for a project funded by the Hermès Foundation; the Agora du Design at the Pavillon de l'Arsenal. The challenge is to make a fully reversible project using textile printing; textiles then reused as fashion accessories. We didn't want to simply send the material to an association but rather optimize the scraps as much as possible and show concrete prototypes of bags built "with the scraps from the exhibition".
Everything is designed to recreate a new object, and textile is an easy material to reuse.
As part of Design Week, you have this Agora du Design project and other projects related to reuse?
Yes, we created this scenography for the Agora du design at the Pavillon de l'Arsenal, and we are presenting a collection of furniture at the Puces de Saint-Ouen, which is also the result of re-use. These are pieces of furniture painted using the decorative painting technique, with the aim of imitating fake marble.
What exactly is decorative painting?
Decorative painting is a technique from the end of the 19th century that consists of studying the material in all its roughness in order to be able to reproduce it identically in painting. It is a technique widely used in interior design to make imitations of marble or wood, for example. It is also used a lot for film sets. In my practice, it is really a desire not to extract real material, and not to need to transport anything.
Interior architecture and design are professions at the crossroads of several fields, several worlds and formal frameworks. What place do clothes and attire have in this work?
Architecture is historically a very masculine profession, because women unfortunately had little access to these studies. Professionals were therefore often dressed in suits. Since then, the practice has become more democratic and the ornaments have been removed. Architects have "undressed" architecture, they are often minimalist, dressed in black or white. This still persists in the discipline, and those who say they go against the grain often translate this by going to the opposite clothing style. By wearing lots of colors, like Patrick Bouchain for example. They represent themselves by dressing differently.
Design is a little different because it is a younger, more engineering profession. It is a fairly structured profession where people are often dressed according to fashion trends. Sportswear, rigid style, shirt and pants, it all depends on the sectors of activity in which we work. In the world of luxury, it is more formal, but design remains a discipline linked to the urban world.
So you can't do everything when you're an architect?
No, well it really depends on your clientele. It is they who determine your style, because there is a real work of representation. We dress in line with what we are going to propose as an aesthetic. Some like Vincent Darré, will dress in a rather eccentric way, because their architecture is too. We represent what we are going to do.
So some designers use their personal image to “sell” their architecture?
Also yes, because when we look for an interior designer, we often look for a personality that fits our expectations on the project. It all depends on the types of architecture. If we do real estate, we will look for someone who also knows how to do engineering and project management.
Image and freedom of dress therefore depend on the circles we frequent. Personally, I frequent quite broad circles. When I go to see clients in traditional real estate, I will rather opt for a fairly fitted blue shirt with denim pants and sneakers for example. For less formal clients, I will allow myself a more casual, more open velvet shirt, or a T-shirt, with light and wide pants.
And you, where do you put your clothes? Are the shirts folded properly?
It is often said that the shoemaker's children are always the worst shod. That's my case! My shirts are badly folded or on hangers and ironed the same day depending on the appointments. They also change several times. On the other hand, I can tell the difference between jackets and shirts. To better find my way around, because I have a few too many blue shirts, you have to distinguish them!