MOBILIER NATIONAL x MANUFACTURE DE SÈVRES

Exploratory residency

Residency brief

Supporting crafts and creation since the 17th century, the Mobilier national's mission is to ensure the conservation and restoration of its world-unique collections, to perpetuate and transmit exceptional craftsmanship. As a major heritage site, the institution is also a key player in contemporary creation and the promotion of French decorative arts. Resolutely focused on the future, the Mobilier national is one of the founding members of the Campus of Excellence for crafts and design - Paris, the Gobelins manufactures, launched in 2020. Through its role, it demonstrates the vitality of artistic creation and contemporary design.

Since 1740, Sèvres-Manufacture and National Museum has preserved, enriched, and revealed a world-unique material and immaterial heritage. Founded in 1740 in Vincennes, the porcelain manufacture was transferred to Sèvres and became royal under the patronage of its first patron, Louis XV. Since the 18th century, the greatest artists, from François Boucher to Rodin, passing through Jean Arp, Alechinsky, Ettore Sottsass, Louise Bourgeois, or Giuseppe Penone, have succeeded each other to create new forms and decorations. Today, with one hundred and twenty ceramists exercising there and mastering around thirty trades, the Manufacture is a major player in the artistic scene, design, and decorative arts. This landmark of creation engages in dialogue with the National Museum of Ceramics, conceived as a museum of inspiration for the artists and artisans of the Manufacture.

This residency program allows an Indian designer or artisan working in the field of contemporary creation to immerse themselves in the ecosystem of French crafts. The residency will primarily serve the laureate's research in the field of French craftsmanship and design, enabling them to develop and realize their project.

This research residency is conceived as an exploration, a field investigation that inspires and creates connections. Its focus is not on a specific form or material output (unlike a production residency), but rather on discovering the French crafts scene and human exchanges around French and Indian craftsmanship. It is understood that both the workshops of the Mobilier national and Sèvres cannot, however, be used for the material fabrication of the project.

Through visits to the manufactures and workshops of the Mobilier national & Sèvres, provision of technical resources, meetings with professionals, artistic guidance, visits to emblematic institutions, and travel to regions, the laureate will be fully inspired by French techniques, craftsmanship, aesthetics, and spirit so that their project can mature and materialize.

  • Thematic focus Arts & Crafts
  • Location Paris
  • Dates From 1st October to 12 November 2024
  • Length of stay 6 weeks
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Location

The resident will be immersed from October 1st to October 20th, 2024, at the Mobilier national where he/she will have access to the various workshops and exceptional craftsmanship: the dyeing workshop for wool, the color chart listing more than 20,000 colors on wool, restoration workshops (cabinetmaking, seat carpentry, chandelier-bronze work, restoration of carpets and tapestries, upholstery, decorative tapestry), and textile creation workshops (high and low warp).

For the realization of their project, the laureate can be accompanied by artisans from the Research and Creation Workshop (ARC), textile manufacturers, as well as by the restoration workshops of the Mobilier national, where one hundred and ten art technicians and works managers work: cabinetmaking, seat carpentry, chandelier-bronze work, restoration of carpets and tapestries, upholstery, decorative tapestry. This support will be materialized through regular exchanges where artisans from the Mobilier national will provide their expertise and advise the laureate.

The resident will then conclude his/her residency with a stay at Sèvres-Manufacture and National Museum from October 21st to November 12th, 2024; they will have access to all 27 workshops on the site to discover the full range of trades practiced: from manufacturing (turning, casting, modeling, mold-making..) to decoration (painting, background application, gold work, offset printing..), as well as the laboratory and the mill. The resident will thus be able to immerse in the Manufacture and try their hand at the various skills developed by artisans for nearly 300 years.

Residency conditions

  • The resident should be willing to give up to 20% of his/her residency time to participate in various public engagements and events organized by Mobilier national & Sèvres during the time of his/her residency.
  • The resident will be provided successively with private on-site accommodation at Mobilier national for the first part of his/her stay, and then at the Sèvres Manufacture for the second part of the residency.
  • The resident will receive a fixed stipend of INR. 60,000 per month to cover his/her food and living expenses.
  • The resident will receive a residency grant of INR. 50 000 per month.
  • The resident’s travel costs to and from his/her home address will be covered by the French Institute in India

Eligibility criteria

  • Proficiency in English is required for the applicant