“WALKING INTO THE APARTMENT WAS LIKE WALKING INTO ANOTHER CENTURY. THE WINDOWS FRAMED ONE OF THE MOST SPECTACULAR EXAMPLES OF GARDENS “À LA FRANÇAISE”, THE PALAIS ROYAL GARDENS, WITH THEIR PERFECT GEOMETRY, SURROUNDED ON THE THREE SIDES BY THE MAGNIFICENT NEO-CLASSICAL LIMESTONE BUILDINGS DATING BACK TO THE LATE 1700’S THAT THE APARTMENT IS PART OF. THE LOCATION AND THE VIEW ARE EMBLEMATIC OF PARISIAN HISTORY AND AUDACITY. IT IS HARD NOT TO BE TRANSPORTED BY THE QUIET BEAUTY OF THE LIMESTONE, THE ORDERLY CADENCE OF THE COLONNADES AND THE TALL WINDOWS OF THE APARTMENTS ABOVE IT. THE APARTMENT FELT LIKE AN EXTENSION OF THESE EXTRAORDINARY SURROUNDINGS, AND IT INSPIRED US TO CREATE A LUXURIOUS, BOLD, YET SERENE ENVIRONMENT, WITH STRONG, CAREFULLY SELECTED COLLECTIBLES, MOST OF THEM SPECIALLY COMMISSIONED FOR THE PROJECT” 
 
“THE APARTMENT HAD NOT BEEN RENOVATED SINCE THE 50’S AND WAS IN A STATE OF COMPLETE DISREPAIR. IT UNDERWENT A TOTAL SPATIAL RECONFIGURATION AND A GUT RENOVATION. FROM THE VERY BEGINNING, OUR FOCUS WAS ON OPTIMIZING THE LOCATIONS OF THE BEDROOMS WITHIN THE APARTMENT, WHILE MAXIMIZING THE BREATHTAKING VIEWS AND VISUALLY CONNECTING ALL THE WINDOWS FACING THE GARDENS. WHILE LOCATING THE LIVING ROOM, MASTER BEDROOM AND MASTER BATH ON THE GARDEN SIDE OF THE APARTMENT, WE ALSO MADE SURE TO CREATE MOMENTS FOR THE OWNERS TO SIT COMFORTABLY BY EVERY WINDOW, WHETHER TO READ OR DAYDREAM. THROUGHOUT THE APARTMENT, WE INSTALLED A TRADITIONAL VERSAILLES PATTERNED WOOD FLOORING AS AN HOMAGE TO THE APARTMENT’S NEOCLASSICAL ROOTS.”
 
“THE ICONIC PALAIS ROYAL GARDENS AND THE SURROUNDING NEO-CLASSICAL BUILDINGS HAD IMMENSE POETIC APPEAL, AND THEIR SENSE OF CALM AND PERMANENCE NEEDED TO BE REFLECTED IN THE PROJECT, ALBEIT TRANSLATED INTO A VERY CONTEMPORARY VOCABULARY. THE CHANGING COLORS OF THE PALAIS ROYAL GARDENS HAVE INSPIRED ME TO ADD UNEXPECTED AND VIBRANT NUANCES THAT ECHO THE CHANGING OF THE SEASONS IN THE GARDEN. MANY OF THE PIECES WE CREATED ARE IN COLORS REMINISCENT OF THE FOUR SEASONS, OF THE CHANGING COLORS OF LEAVES. ALL BESPOKE COLORS WERE PRODUCED IN COLLABORATION WITH FEMALE ARTISTS AND ARTISANS.” AMONG THEM THE SPRING GREEN LACQUERED CUBIC “BOURDELLE” BOOKSHELVES WAS PRODUCED WITH MIREILE HERBST, THE FALL YELLOW BESPOKE “RAKU” TABLE WITH CERAMIST ARTIST FABIENNE L’HOSTIS, THE FALL RUST RED MOHAIR OF THE VINTAGE GIO PONTI AUGUSTUS ARMCHAIR, AND THE WINTER DARK SHADES OF THE AFRICAN MAHOGANY DINING TABLE WERE PRODUCED IN COLLABORATION WITH LIZ HOPKINS.
 
ANOTHER KEY ELEMENT WAS THE DESIRE ON THE PART OF BOTH THE OWNER AND THE ARCHITECT TO HONOR FEMALE CRAFTSMANSHIP AND DESIGN. FROM THEIR FIRST CONVERSATIONS, COMMISSIONING COLLECTIBLE FURNITURE PREDOMINANTLY DESIGNED BY WOMEN ARTISTS BECAME A CENTRAL FEATURE OF THE PROJECT.
 
“MY PASSION FOR VINTAGE HISTORICAL ITALIAN AND FRENCH DESIGN IS REFLECTED IN THE PROJECT, WITH MANY PIECES PURCHASED IN DESIGN GALLERIES OR AUCTIONS, AND CAREFULLY RESTORED. MOST OF ALL, MY STUDIO CUSTOM DESIGNED EXCLUSIVE PIECES FOR THE PROJECT. IN FACT, WE RECENTLY LAUNCHED OUR FIRST EXCLUSIVE FURNITURE COLLECTION WHERE THESE DESIGNS ARE AVAILABLE.”
 
THE GIO PONTI SIDE TABLES WERE INITIALLY PURCHASED TO CENTER THE LIVING ROOM, BUT AS THE PROJECT DEVELOPED, WE FELT THE NEED OF A STRONGER, MORE POWERFUL CENTRAL PIECE TO THE COMPOSITION. SO WE ENVISIONED A LARGER NEW TABLE MEANT TO COMPLEMENT GIO PONTI’S GEOMETRY. THE RAKU TABLE WAS BORN WITH ITS GLAZING TECHNIQUE CHARACTERIZED BY CRACKS THAT CREATE RANDOM PATTERNS ACROSS THE SURFACE OF THE OBJECT. IT IS THE INCARNATION OF THE WABI-SABI CONCEPT, WHICH REPRESENTS THE BEAUTY OF IMPERFECTION, AND THE NEED TO LEAVE SPACE FOR IMPROVISATION. IT IS THE BEAUTY OF HUMBLE AND MODEST THINGS. IT IS ALSO THE BEAUTY OF ATYPICAL THINGS. 
 
“THE APARTMENT IS RESOLUTELY CONTEMPORARY, AND YET I WOULD RATHER DEFINE THE STYLE AS TIMELESS OR BETTER “INTEMPOREL” AS THE FRENCH WOULD SAY IT. THE OVERALL IMPRESSION THAT WE WANTED TO CREATE IS THAT OF A DIRECTIONALLY DESIGNED INTERIOR WITH A SENSE OF HISTORY, A PLACE WHERE ONE COULD WALK FROM ONE ROOM TO THE NEXT AND FEEL LIKE IT WAS AN ELEGANT STROLL AMONG A CAREFULLY CURATED MIX OF SHAPES, MATERIALS AND TEXTURES.”