Atelier Polyhedre Now at Pavilion

ATELIER POLYHEDRE SERVES UP CERAMICS WITH STYLE

AT 100% DESIGN AND NOW AT PAVILION

Atelier Polyhedre, a French ceramics studio, develops tableware and decorative

items both as limited editions and as one-offs. The company will present a set of

tableware inspired by the famous French Chantilly whipped cream at the 100%

Design show, which will be held in London at the end of September 2009.

The new tableware range is designed to capture the distinctive and playful appearance of Chantilly cream in the medium of glazed earthenware. These shapes and motifs are used to create a collection of ceramics mirroring the smooth, whipped cream, vivaciously unregulated, and the sense of a liquid that is ebbing and flowing – all these states are reflected in the different components of the table service.

Quirkiness and humour are the essential ingredients of this collection – a whipped plate, a soup tureen that appears to be overflowing, a plate overturned like a collapsed cream cake, and a cup decorated with a net of gold that seems to melt into its saucer. The brilliant whites and intense blacks of the enamelling add a refined note to tables and kitchens, whether in a regular residentiaL property, in a stately home or in a palace hotel.

THE STORY BEHIND ATELIER POLYHEDRE

Situated on the banks of the river Loire, at the heart of the city of Nantes, Atelier Polyhedre benefits from its location within a rich cultural environment. The Estuaire Biennial Arts Festival is held in the region, which is also home to a vast network of galleries and artists. The historical importance of traditional craftsmanship in the region has also informed the company’s development.

Baptiste Ymonet founded the company in 2004 in order to design a special collection of earthenware objects. Baptiste, who was born in 1973, studied at the School of Fine Arts (the Ecole des Beaux Arts) in Tours (in the Loire Valley), where he fi rst discovered the appeal of working with ceramics. Eggs, balls and spheres are the recurrent sources of inspiration for his unique pieces of work. He likes to recall Baudelaire’s words to describe his designs: “Making gold out of mud.”

In 2007, Atelier Polyhedre’s work was awarded the Prix des Jeunes Créateurs (award for young designers) by the Ateliers d’Art de France (an organisation promoting the French crafts industry). It was on this occasion that the company took part in the Maison & Objet trade show in Paris for the fi rst time. Born in 1978, Vincent Jousseaume studied at the School of Fine Arts in Nantes, during which time he worked on designs in plastic based around the theme of mealtimes. It is hardly surprising, therefore, that he chose to specialise in ceramics and crockery, bringing a touch of disorder to all kinds of tables.

Vincent joined Polyhedre in 2007 to develop a range that was specifi cally dedicated to tableware.

In 2008, the duo developed the Cling brand of crockery together.