Less is more – Sustainable Design

Let's be clear, clichés about sustainable design abound. Because yes, just because you use wood doesn't mean you're being virtuous; it all depends on how it's grown, processed, cut, shipped… So what approach does this concept actually encompass? "The definition given in 1987 by the Brundtland Commission report to the UN was pivotal," explains Maurille Larivière, a designer and graduate of the École Polytechnique, and co-founder of the Besign School in Cagnes-sur-Mer. This document explains that "sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs." While this publication was groundbreaking, voices had already been raised in the 1960s and 1970s, most notably by Victor Papanek. A leading figure in ecologically and socially engaged design, he was already saying at the time that you can "do the most with the least." So what has become of these principles half a century later, how are they applied? "Sustainable design is often synonymous with a beautiful object, made from local, recycled or renewable materials, but it is also a reflection of human know-how," summarizes Chrystel Simone, who supports companies on the French Riviera in eco-design.

Eco-responsible creative processes

Deeply inspired by the artisans of Morocco, where he lived, and particularly their way of repurposing recycled materials, Henri Dejeant designs lamps Invader in papier-mâché in their workshop in Béziers. These highly contemporary creations are born from molds made of old newspapers, vegetable flour, and plaster of Paris. Similarly, paper pulp is among the favorite materials of Marie and Jérémy of JAM design in Saint-Paul-de-Vence, who play with solids and voids in their colorful light fixtures. Turning their backs on petrochemicals, the duo favors oak bark, which they shape into cork panels glued with starch, mechanically and without heat. This low-environmental-impact process allows them to create lamps with beveled edges and patterned wall coverings. Where do these materials come from, how do they hold up over time, and what happens to them when you want to change your decor? The designers are part of a new way of designing the object: "The entire life cycle of the furniture is taken into account and we have a laboratory at the school dedicated to research on biomaterials such as pine needles from the coast," explains Laëtitia Wolff, a teacher at the Besign School.

Innovative metamorphoses

The current trend is indeed toward finding alternatives, and algae, which are proliferating due to climate change, could well offer large-scale industrial opportunities, as evidenced by the explorations of Samuel Tomatis, winner of the City of Paris Prize. Furniture, weaving, dyeing, basketry, luxury leather goods, tableware… algae lend themselves to astonishing transformations. Courtney Giovagnoli, an alumna of Condé, a school of applied arts in Nice, has followed a fruitful path with Mycodesign: “I did my thesis on mycelium, the underground part of the fungus. I generally let it grow for seven days inside molds with wood shavings before drying it. In the middle of summer, the heat on the hills of Aspremont is enough to stop its growth.” This biomimetic production technique, modeled on living organisms, gives rise to indoor lamps, plant pots, and candle holders.

Authentic simplicity and contemporary upcycling

While eco-design involves innovation, it also marks a return to raw, unprocessed materials. In Valbonne, the Repère du Zèbre exhibits lamps by Corsican designer Piatoni, laser-cut from a single piece of birch without screws or glue. Meanwhile, at Good Design Store in Nice, one can discover creations made from marble offcuts, by the designer Neolithique. "I like to create desirable objects, made on a small scale from found objects that I value as simply as possible," explains Dominique Trapp, who hand-assembles his marble candelabras with their decidedly baroque style. Using leftover gold printing paper, the low-tech designer playfully decorates backgammon boards on Mareuil stone. Upcycling has become one of the less traveled paths of a circular economy, and some Parisian houses have forged their identity there, like Maximum which manufactures furniture from industrial waste or FabBrick, which reinvents the wall covering of interior spaces with its bricks made from reclaimed textile.

Reinventing uses

For his lamps, mirror decorations, and table bases, Dzovag Kotchian drew inspiration from ancestral aesthetics: “When you look at architecture in Latin America, Africa, Europe, and even the old Breton houses, raw earth was widely used, and I wanted to use it on an object-like scale.” The result, after six months of work to develop the process: a metal structure repeatedly dipped in baths of liquid clay, then stabilized with essential oils, resulting in a meticulous, lace-like finish. A thinker of nomadic, humanitarian, minimalist, and poetic architectures, industrial designer Marc Ferrand creates fundamental units that can be deployed at all scales, from jewelry to buildings, including libraries. His collection is presented at Bel Œil in Nice. Never SatisfiedMade of wood assembled using a bronze cross, it is a celebration of beautiful materials and simplicity. It invites the imagination to create endless constructions at home.

Unique pieces & handcrafted items

Passionate about antiquity, Léa Ginac blends the old and the new in her collections of furniture, objects, and sculptural lighting. Having grown up with an antique dealer father, the designer is an ambassador for craftsmanship and handmade work, far removed from the idea of ​​consumerism: “What I emphasize is human-centered design, because I work with a family of artisans: a woodturner, a plasterer, a cabinetmaker… We produce small, timeless series, made to order, to avoid fleeting trends.” Thus, the creators of tomorrow are returning to the craft by reclaiming and developing their own materials, with sustainability becoming synonymous with creative expression. And Lionel Mesens, a lecturer in the Master's program in Design, Research, Innovation, and Development at Condé, concludes: “The throwaway culture of the 1990s and 2000s is somewhat over.” Companies are changing, and even if there's a lot of greenwashing, they must adopt a CSR approach. Today, a new term is emerging: "artisan designer."