HOUSE OF GAMES BY MAISON&OBJET PARIS

MAISON&OBJET announces the theme of the upcoming MAISON&OBJET PARIS September 2016 show. From now on, the three trends agencies that form part of the MAISON&OBJET Observatory will take turns at each show giving their interpretation of the theme, which reflects the collective work carried out throughout the year, in an expanded space. The new Inspirations Forum, which will present the Inspirations Space by Vincent Grégoire, will be extended through the Wild Café- Bookstore, designed by François Bernard and focusing on the theme of the Inspirations Book, illustrated by a selection of works. Lastly, the conference space will provide opportunities to explore the theme in greater depth and reposition it in the broader context of current trends.

Step into the game, a world full of signs, shapes, colours and tales, to reinitiate the creative mind. Our playfulness is fed by the aesthetics of board games, games of chance and games of
balance. Chessboards, pawns, playing cards, dice, dominos, tarot, etc. Anything is reason to have fun. The rules of this game ? To bring drama to décor, to bet on joyous and elegant maximalism, to play the card of Strange Beauty. In the luxury of this new decorative art, the colour red trumps all others. Sensuous materials and precious know-how are a winning bet.
Games play with rules, times, styles and genres. Dada collages and the juxtaposition of heteroclite elements shuffle the cards of unexpectedness. The dice are cast. It’s your turn to play.

Why did you bet on the HOUSE OF GAMES theme?
The members of the MAISON&OBJET Observatory and I wanted to pick a theme that related more closely to our living environments. The outline for HOUSE OF GAMES soon became
obvious. It reflects a number of signals we’ve picked up in the fashion, contemporary art, luxury and design industries, and even in gastronomy. This HOUSE OF GAMES marks the return
of a renewed baroque, dandy style, which leaves ample room for fantasy, eccentricity and appeal. More generally speaking, we are noticing an increasing interest in board games, as well as private clubs, which counterbalance the lonely life we lead behind screens and help us restructure our lives around rules we can easily apply. A recent study carried out by NellyRodi for Google into the relationship between the Generation Z and luxury has shown that, contrary to common beliefs, its members have a great capacity to switch off and value the notions of sharing and community very highly.

What have you imagined for the Inspirations Space?
I have imagined a succession of three boxes, which open to reveal three visions of how we play games. The first one explores board games through a chess set, where every piece is replaced with a design masterpiece. It questions the notion of social position and the strategic concern for appearances in a precious, dandyinspired environment. The second offers a perspective on posture and imposture and the comeback of the dada spirit through an interpretation of roleplaying games. Combining chance, luck and the collision of ideas, the rules of the exquisite corpse are coming into practice in the field of interior design, paving the way to historic and hysterical mix-and-match décors. Chance games are finally providing inspiration for the
creation of a boudoir that showcases a cheerfully occult form of easy esotericism. In reaction to all-pervading rationalism, people advocate for the return of the unexpected and play the card of serendipity.

See you there? Visit us at Hall 7 Stand A63