Biography

Robin Bourgeois is a designer and graduate of the École des Arts Décoratifs in Paris. He creates modest objects designed to integrate naturally and sustainably into everyday life. Through his projects, ranging from objects to exhibitions, he has developed an economical formal language that highlights craftsmanship and celebrates materials. His work seeks to build on existing materials and skills, reimagining their uses and possibilities.

Research Project at Fondation Martell

Robin Bourgeois’s residency focused on chestnut basketry, a local resource identified within the Labo Almanach and a form of craftsmanship deeply rooted in the region. Drawing on the Limousin armchairs known as “Le Corbusier” chairs, produced by basket makers Raffier and Dupasquier, and following a series of interviews centred on chestnut as a resource, the designer explored alternative directions for transforming and adapting this traditional practice.

Interim Results from the Residency

Before tackling the redesign of the iconic armchair produced by basket makers in Haute-Vienne, the designer developed a pair of small chestnut objects—a lamp and a stool. Acting as mediating objects, these pieces enabled him to establish a technical and cultural dialogue with local craftspeople. Through this work, he seeks to make this heritage desirable once again and to reactivate the living resources of the region.

The resulting prototypes and design studies offer a deeper understanding of the potential of a material whose implementation remains, in some respects, physically demanding and relatively rudimentary. The designer continues to explore forms that rely on local expertise, for instance by incorporating a lampshade made from locally sourced paper into the lamp design.

Place within the Labo Almanach

Robin Bourgeois’s approach draws on design methodologies that analyse production know-how with the aim of applying it to the creation of new objects. Through encounters with the artisans who possess these skills, the designer has been led to question his own role and capacities as a designer in a context where the tools themselves belong to the craftsperson.

The negotiation of knowledge, in order to find common ground and foster genuine co-production, has become central to the project. Manufacturing details, formal proposals, production costs, and the sourcing of chestnut splints, paper and other materials all constitute key aspects of the process.

Taken together, these situational constraints form a field of research that the designer has begun to explore through this project.

Resources Involved

• AMCL – Association du Marron et du Châtaignier, Dournazac (Haute-Vienne)
• Vannerie Doumain, La Chapelle-Montbrandeix (Haute-Vienne)
• Périgord-Limousin Regional Natural Park
• Feuillardier Gabillou, Pageas (Haute-Vienne)
• Création Châtaignier Alain Dupasquier, Aixe-sur-Vienne (Haute-Vienne)