Adopting a spontaneous and reflective approach, this exhibition gathers roughly 20 pieces of furniture, lightings and objects made from 1913 to 2018, in unique and limited editions. The exhibition choses to ignore stylistic differences and disciplines, in order to highlight perfect execution, innovative timlessness, as well as functionality.

Through a visual conversation of selected pieces, Julie Blum, Director of Anne-Sophie Duval gallery, and Valérie Maltaverne, founder of YMER&MALTA, want to share their viewpoints on the processes of creating high quality designs, as well as affirming their commitment to exceptional craftsmanship.

Entrée en matière (closely translated to Material entry) could also be understood literally as well as figuratively. The art works displayed complement each other thanks to games of proportions, techniques, colours and materials. In an original setting designed as a light box, showcase temporary set up in the gallery quai Malaquais, the selection focuses on four themes: both visible and invisible: Skin (Marquetry and Leather) and Visible energy (Light and Time).

‘‘When I met Valérie a few years ago, I would never have imagined that she would invite me to explore her path, leading her to bridge the gap between her imagination and reality, never worrying about traditions or conventions’’. - Julie Blum

This brilliant aesthetic emulation began with the inMySkin table, created in 2014 by YMER&MALTA. Produced in a limited edition of only 12 pieces, it revisits traditional marquetry, a craft inherited from the great cabinet-makers of the 18th century and rediscovered in the early 20th century. The top is designed to resemble scales, crafted from eleven different-coloured natural woods, creating the illusion of reptile skin.

The design unity of the decor is of put in perspective with three coffee tables created in 1910 by the renowned Art Nouveau graphic and artistic designer Georges de Feure. With the same refinement of execution, their table tops are decorated with a floral marquetry made of mother-of-pearl, ebony and fruit woods; the styling of the motifs is very audacious, marking a transition from Art Nouveau to Art Deco. This combination of works (separated by a century) demonstrates how marquetry transcends its craft aspect to becomes a pictorial art.

Through a sculptural expression, the numbered edition Galet light stones raise questions about space, material, and abstraction. In 2018, YMER&MALTA developed with the Nogushi Museum a unique manufacturing technique to avoid the presence of seals in the design. Through a detailed process of rotomolding, each piece is made in several layers of sand, resin, and glass fibre until it reaches a harmonious balance. The contours are further softened by the diffusion of a softly filtered light.

The light sculptures resonate with an abstract, slender figure by Michell Hartmann (1975) in off-white glazed ceramic, whose subtle curves still palpably suggest the modelling of the hand. The use of a single material reinforces the symbiosis and the sense of body-to-body connection with the piece.

‘‘The exhibition in the Anne-Sophie Duval gallery happened naturally, as Julie Blum and I are so united by the beauty of it, the depth of expertise and the exactness of designs, whether they are from the Art-Deco period or from nowadays’’ - Valérie Maltaverne

It is particularly evident with the four Victory cowhide leather seats conceived in 2012 by YMER&MALTA (a limited editions of only twelve copies). The full, organic shapes recall the masculine, sensual world of boxing accessories. It is only the stitching, with its wide laces that suggests the extreme sophistication of the design. The simplicity is perfect, the function is unmistakable. Similarly, from the Anne- Sophie Duval gallery, the iconic cubic armchair by Jean-Michel Frank (1928) - previously owned by famous French decorator of the interwar period, Armand-Albert Rateau. With its white leather and ebony veneer feet, expressed by rigorous lines and raw materials, there’s nothing artificial about its timelessness.

The theme of measuring time is inspired by YMER&MALTA 2017 Time Flies clock (limited edition of twelve pieces). A large granite disc tells the minutes, a smaller one tells the seconds, whilst a third disc, made by stereolithography tells the hour. Technology and nature come together, connecting stone to an electronic system and multiple transformation processes (clockmaking, granite machining, and 3D printing).

The clock seamlessly compliments the Pendule by Étienne Cournault (1930). As a hybrid of sculpture and painting, the piece highlights this atypical artist’s ongoing exploration of different materials and techniques, such as painting under glass where the motif, in this case a lunar face, is created on the reverse side of a silver mirror. The factice paper dial reinforces its surrealist dimension.

The Entrée en matière exhibition reveals the connection between original works, full of verve and poetry, whether they are one of a kind or part of a limited edition collection. Gallery owner Julie Blum and the founder Valérie Maltaverne establish a sensitive and intuitive dialogue around the multiple savoir faire. Finally, they invite us to spend time immersing ourselves in the presence of these objects, regardless of the era they belong to, which is the true essence of luxury!

The Entrée en matière exhibition, a crossroads of decorative savoir faire, Gallery Sophie-Anne Duval, 5 quai du Malaquais, 75006 Paris. From the 15th October to 30th November 2024.