Region: Paris & Île de France

TRACES & CONTEMPLATION I ARCHITECTURE CÉRAMIQUE

March 2025

ARCHIK invites you to discover “Traces & Contemplation” by architects Frédéric Bourdiec and Maxence Renard, who explore the fields of ceramics and photography respectively. Through this four-handed exhibition, Frédéric and Maxence question our view of housing and urban spaces.

Above all, his pieces speak for themselves. Each piece is part of a series named Les Lilas, Vue sur Mer, Canon à Lumière, and evokes particular eras, places or construction techniques. The aim is clear: to make the object tell its own story, even before it is explained.

His lamps and tables are not just functional: they become sculptural, capable of transforming a space. If they illuminate, they also illuminate the idea of the object as a trace of architecture and collective memory.

Frédéric explores the constraints of the material and the technical possibilities offered by ceramics. Each filling becomes an experiment in finesse, weight, assembly methods and texture. Inspiration from Pierre and Vera Szekely and André Bloc resonates in his volumes and surfaces.

The aridity of large modern cities, the brutality of functionalist buildings from the 50s and 70s and the mass layouts of large housing estates permeate his work. Each of his creations is both a tribute to and an interrogation of social housing.

The artists

Architects by training and graduates of ENSA Marseille, Frédéric Bourdiec and Maxence Renard explore, each in their own way, the links between architecture, art and perception.

Frédéric Bourdiec, known as Architecture Céramique, transposes his architectural vision into ceramic sculptures inspired by the Brutalist and Functionalist buildings of the 50s and 70s. Crafted with precision and sensitivity, his works question notions of scale, texture and light, while telling an intimate, urban story.

Photographer Maxence Renard focuses on revealing the subtle interplay between shapes, colors and perspectives. In his work, whether architectural or fashion photography, he explores materials and contrasts, capturing light to offer a new perception of the spaces he immortalizes.

Their joint work, nourished by their training as architects, questions the spaces that surround us and reveals the hidden beauty of materials, shapes and volumes.

This exhibition is an invitation to observe the resonance between matter, light and memory.

PRACTICAL INFORMATION

Dates

Opening Thursday, January 30, 2025 from 7pm

Exhibition from January 30, 2025 to April 4, 2025

Open Monday to Friday, 10 am to 6.30 pm, by appointment only

Maison ARCHIK Marseille

Designer’s Instagram

@architectureceramique
@maxence.renard

Photograph

@juliefleutot

TOTEM I HEJU STUDIO

January 2025

To celebrate the start of an intense new year, ARCHIK invites you to discover “Totem”, an exhibition featuring the architectural duo HEJU Studio and their unique vision of timeless, sustainable design.

“Totem” is a retrospective of HEJU Studio’s collaborations with French brands and galleries sharing the same values of timelessness and sustainability: Ressource, Carocim, Nobodinoz, La Lune and Virginie Lesage. Through a selection of furniture collections, materials and artworks, this exhibition celebrates a singular aesthetic where rounded reliefs, graphic forms and primitive architectural vocabulary intertwine to create sensitive, poetic objects.

Sculptural furniture, graphic cement tiles, subtle hues and objets d’art: each piece on display embodies a dialogue between minimalism and expressive architectural forms. The totemic figure, omnipresent in their work, becomes here the common thread of a universe where craft, material and light meet.

The artists

Hélène Pinard and Julien Schwartzmann, architects and founders of Heju Studio, met at the École Nationale Supérieure d’Architecture de Strasbourg, where they graduated top of their class. Together, they have created a unique universe inspired by Japanese and Scandinavian aesthetics.

Their sensitive, spontaneous approach optimizes spaces, challenges codes and brings emotion and poetry to everyday life. They attach great importance to materials, colors and textures, creating atmospheres that appeal to all the senses.

Fervent advocates of the continuity between art, design and architecture, they conceive projects that merge disciplines and inspirations. Each project is unique, reflecting a luminous, calm simplicity enriched by a distinctive personality.

An invitation to plunge into the world of HEJU Studio, where architecture dialogues with design in a quest for balance and poetry.

PRACTICAL INFORMATION

Dates

Opening Thursday, January 16, 2025 from 7pm

Exhibition from January 16, 2025 to March 16, 2025

Open Monday to Friday, 10 am to 6.30 pm, by appointment only

Maison ARCHIK Paris

Designer’s Instagram

@hejustudio

Located in a historic and highly sought-after condominium in the 10th arrondissement, this apartment with its industrial origins was in good condition, but its U-shaped floor plan deserved to be rethought. It is built around a 9 m2 terrace, whose charm was just waiting to be revealed.

Objective

Rediscover a plan that’s easier to live in, with an open kitchen, larger shower room, separate WC and, of course, more storage space. Bring the terrace back to life as a real bonus room. More light in the kitchen.

Line of conduct

Preserve the atypical charm of the premises and the remarkable old features. Echo the greenery of the terrace by punctuating the apartment with flat expanses of green.

Assume the “countryside in Paris” ambience, which combines industrial codes (black metal skylights, antique doors, retro-style electric radiators), country-inspired antique furniture such as the farm table and framed kitchen fronts, and the Mediterranean softness embodied by the raw materials of the South of France: terracotta and waxed concrete.

Implementation

A complete renovation that places the kitchen next to the terrace, giving each a place at the heart of the apartment. A previously under-utilized space was upgraded with the creation of a custom-made office, entirely painted a deep green to become a real bonus room.

A parquet floor painted white to unify the whole and let the light circulate: a bold choice, but one that paid off.

An ultra-optimized bathroom in which waxed concrete-covered formwork conceals technical elements and creates hidden niches and storage.

Original plans & project

A haven of peace and light with simple beauty.

L'ARCHITECTE CARMIN

  • Crédits photosBertrand Fompeyrine BCDF
  • SHARE

The before …

Transforming a commercial space, using light, space and raw materials in a way that respects the existing building.

Before …

Target

Convert a commercial space on the first floor of a 1980s building into living space, while revealing the qualities of the existing building.

Course of action

The building’s orientation (East-West), its relationship to the exterior (garden and street) and its structure (reinforced concrete) were the three characteristics that guided the design process.

The plan expresses this orientation, allowing the building to “follow the sun” throughout the day, and thus to have a living space that changes atmosphere according to the light. The existing reinforced concrete structure organizes the apartment and creates sequences. It is also the starting point for the materiality. The brutality of concrete contrasts with the warmth of oak and the preciousness of stainless steel. The painted oak floor is deliberately neutral and light, like a backdrop for the furniture. Framing is used to reveal, give depth, set the scene or escape. They create transversal relationships between the reception and service areas.

Achievement

To make the transition from commercial to residential use, the street entrance was modified to create a new relationship with the street, and to distance the building from it by opening onto the garden.

A new street façade was created, and the first floor was turned into a living space by “inhabiting” the windows: in the kitchen in the living area and the dressing room in the bedroom.

On the garden side, a generous bench was created to encourage contemplation.

The building presented a number of technical constraints, notably the presence of water and air drainage systems. Meticulous work had to be carried out on site on the false ceilings to keep the volumes uncluttered and make them a strength of the project.

Original plans & project

An ambience combining raw elegance and luminous warmth.

L'ARCHITECTE Louis EISENLHOR

architectes@archik.fr
  • Crédits photosPhilippe Billard
  • SHARE

Marina DECLAREY

Architect & Interior Designer

architectes@archik.fr

Originally from La Rochelle, Marina juggles between her home town and Paris, where she built the foundations of her career, merging her two worlds to enrich her architectural practice. For some fifteen years now, she has been passionately cultivating a dual practice of interior architecture and product design. This cross-disciplinary vision enables her to approach each project in its entirety, ensuring exemplary coherence and clarity. Inspired by artists such as Olafur Eliasson, Richard Serra, Soulages and Eileen Gray, she pays meticulous attention to detail, combined with a keen sense of aesthetics and functionality, giving her creations an undeniable quality.

Trained at the Ecole Bleu in Paris, Marina is distinguished by her deep passion and vast knowledge of materials and techniques. She emphasises raw, natural, high-quality materials through minimalist, modern design, infused with carefully selected cultural references. Her favourite materials include stone and wood, while natural colours and subtle details add a touch of elegance to her creations.

Dialogue and the sharing of knowledge are at the heart of her practice, encouraging collaboration between all those involved in a project. Over the years, Marina has built up a team of responsive, high-quality professionals. Her recent collaborations include projects ranging from the prestigious Jeu de Paume museum to private clients, from brands such as Roche Bobois to artisans such as Atelier d’Excellence, Siégeai, Le Floch and Maison Fey, as well as luxury spas, restaurants and world-renowned art galleries.

Proud to be part of the ARCHIK team in La Rochelle, Marina sees this synergy of skills as an opportunity to co-construct exceptional projects. For her, this is the primary role of her profession: to create spaces that transcend expectations and delight the senses.

Design sans titre (7)

bb

September 2024

For Paris Design Week 2024, ARCHIK is teaming up with CORPUS STUDIO for an immersive experience at the heart of design.

For this 4th edition of PDW, ARCHIK presents the work of Ronan and Konrad, architects and designers, founders of CORPUS STUDIO.
A selection of pieces from their bb collection, featuring a range of metals with different finishes, all hand-crafted in the foundry. Exclusively, new custom-designed pieces will be presented in a hushed setting, creating an immersive, cottony scenography.

bb is for baby, the first love, for Brigitte Bardot, voluptuous and suave, for Babybel© and its ingenious red wax shell that divides into several quarters.

A collection imagined through an empirical game of assembling shapes, all derived from one and the same element: a simple wheel – one of the most elementary shapes – poetically divided, repeated and assembled to ultimately create a multitude of functional objects.

CORPUS STUDIO

Founded by Ronan Le Grand and Konrad Steffensen, CORPUS STUDIO stands out for its transdisciplinary vision, fusing architecture, decorative arts, art and furniture. The duo create unique spaces and atmospheres by optimizing the specificities of each location. Their analytical and collaborative approach, supported by a network of experts, enables them to develop solutions that are both rational and sensitive. The result: poetic spaces that play with volumes, light and textures to offer an aesthetic and functional experience, where every detail contributes to a harmonious and comfortable atmosphere.

 

“From these objects emerges a sculptural and functional dimension, oscillating between angle and roundness, rigor and humor, minimalism and maximalism.”

PRACTICAL INFORMATION

Dates

Paris Design Week from September 5 to 14, 2024

Opening Saturday September 7 from 7pm

Open daily from 10 am to 6 pm

at Maison ARCHIK Paris

Designers’ Instagram

@corpus.studio

Photo credits

@firminbiville I @mathildehiley

In a 1930 building designed by architects Jean Ginsberg and François Heep, this apartment needed to be optimized. Reinterpreted by architect Baptiste Legué, the space now boasts a modernist cachet.

Objective

Restore the radiance of a 1930s apartment by bringing in light and circulation.

Line of conduct

Creating a soft, luminous atmosphere was the common thread running through this renovation. Inviting light into every room to highlight mineral materials such as terrazzo and waxed concrete.

Implementation

The transformation of the apartment was radical: all partitions were removed, leaving only the structural elements in place. The floors underwent a complete overhaul to accommodate a mix of terrazzo and carpet. A set of furniture was carefully custom-designed and discreetly integrated into the existing environment. This approach re-established simple volumes and perfectly harmonized the apartment’s overall aesthetic.

Partner brands:

Travertine coffee table: Talka
Cream-colored bouclé armchair: Lacroix

A modernist setting that plays on contrasts.

L'ARCHITECTE DIPTYQUE

  • SHARE

QUARTIERS D’ÉTÉ | PIGALLE MATIGNON & MATCHI ART

July 2024

This summer, ARCHIK is delighted to invite Pigalle Matignon, Matchi Art and Red Edition to furnish its Parisian home. Discover an inspiring selection of art and design pieces.

Immerse yourself in a captivating artistic journey through the Parisian Maison ARCHIK, where furniture by Red Edition meets design pieces by Pigalle Matignon and artworks by Matchi Art. An opportunity to discover elegant furniture, objects and works of art that embody French elegance, creativity and savoir-faire.

An immersive exhibition that transports you into a summery universe, where each carefully selected piece evokes the softness and light of Parisian summer days.

THE ARTISTS

Red Edition gives pride of place to materials, deep colors, architectural lines and the craftsmanship of wood and lacquer. Through a combination of eras, each collection honors an ancestral material and technique. The brand reinvents vintage furniture with a contemporary twist, creating elegant, timeless pieces that celebrate French craftsmanship.

Pigalle Matignon, a collectible design gallery, highlights the history of the pieces and their creators. Offering accessible small-scale furniture created by French artist-designers, the gallery favors responsible work and exclusive, signed and numbered limited editions. Each piece, developed exclusively for Pigalle Matignon, is handcrafted and treated as an objet d’art. Founded by Laure Lefèvre Baulme, the gallery aims to reintroduce humanity and history into our interiors with rare and meaningful pieces.

Matchi Art’s mission is to make the purchase of art accessible to all, integrating art into everyday life. This new-style art gallery offers a rigorous selection of original works by emerging and established artists. Matchi Art is distinguished by its warm, atypical space, where contemporary works cohabit harmoniously with carefully selected vintage furniture.

A celebration of design and contemporary art, highlighting promising talents on the French scene.

PRACTICAL INFORMATION

Dates

Opening on Thursday, July 4 from 6 pm

No appointment necessary, daily from 9:30 am to 6:30 pm at Maison ARCHIK Paris

Designers’ Instagram

@pigallematignon 

@matchi.art_

@rededition

A complete renovation carried out by ARCHIK and the architect Baptiste Legué (ABL) in a house from the beginning of the century, near Paris.

Target

To give back to this doll’s house where small volumes and numerous rooms follow one another, a more contemporary functionality by decompartmentalizing the spaces and revitalizing their layout.

Course of action

Expand the house to offer three distinct spaces: living area, master suite and children’s area, all on two levels, and focus on the outdoors with an extension of the living area facing the garden, opening onto a shaded terrace.

Achievement

Natural materials were used as the main thread of the renovation: Okoumé wood for the custom-made woodwork, natural and pink travertine in the bathroom and kitchen. The pink and beige tones of the whole project create an enveloping and soft atmosphere.

On the first floor, the staircase is moved and becomes an integrated element that creates a bench for the dining room. The open kitchen with island is the nerve center of this first level and is adorned with pink travertine. The day and night areas have been separated and Okoumé wood panels, some of which serve as doors and others as storage, mark this distinction. The master suite has a bathroom entirely made of travertine with a custom-made double sink.

Upstairs, two attic bedrooms each offer built-in storage and an office area. The relocated hopper allows the creation of a pleasant shower room with window, as well as an independent toilet. Two rooms in total look terracotta.

A family cocoon, warm and bucolic, turned towards the outside.

L'ARCHITECTE LA MAISON ROSE

  • Crédits photosAgathe Tissier
  • SHARE

Before …