metamorphosis: maria pergay for FENDI at design miami

metamorphosis: maria pergay for FENDI at design miami
image © designboom
above image: ‘chaise lion’

for the 2013 edition of design miami/, FENDI has presented ‘metamorphosis’, an installation derived from its ongoing collaboration with french artist and designer maria pergay. the collection of interior and domestic designs illustrate an ideal partnership, highlighting the aesthetic values which the italian luxury fashion house and the celebrated representative of the arts décoratifs movement both share — mastery of materials, dexterity in unifying texture and medium, and devotion to artisanship. at the core of the creative alliance is an acute attention to distinct mediums, which epitomize each designer’s opus: leather and fur, emblematic of the fendi empire, and stainless steel, one pergay’s most fundamental and recognizable materials used. the works installed within the fair are situated in an immersive maze of reflective panels, bathing both the exhibition space and observers a in a mirrored, kaleidoscopic array of chroma and metallic hues.

installation view of the designer collaboration at design miami 

the exhibit’s namesake alludes to the passage of time, metaphorically spoken through the manipulation of materials and the distinctive relationship they share with each other. as with her two, geometrically colored ‘cabinets arlequin’, the unification of amaranth and ebony woods, stainless steel, eggshell and galuchat, create a collision of tones and shapes that only pergay can accurately and adroitly execute. beautiful contradictions are evident everywhere, as abstraction and linearity, and warmth and cold come together in an impressive and skilled display. ‘the cabinet pétales’ is an illustration of pergay’s radical approach to design, often times uninhibited, yet composed with a fiery elegance. resembling unfurling flower petals, seemingly bursting out of itself, the cabinet is made from rigorous materials — polychrome stainless steel, precious woods, and galuchat leather.

image © designboom

‘chaise lion’ (foreground) and ‘pouf vague’ at design miami/
image © designboom

‘cabinet arlequin’, 2013

pergay’s cabinet arlequin on display at design miami 
image © designboom

cabinet pétales, 2013

pergay’s table marronnier, 2013

silvia venturini fendi alongside ‘chaise lion’ at design miami
image © designboom

maria pergay

born to russian jewish parents in moldova in 1930, maria pergay fled to paris with her mother during world war II. there, she studied costume, set design, and sculpture at the institut des hautes études cinématographiques and built her career as a shop window designer through the 1950s, eventually receiving work from major brands like dior and hermès. in the late 1960s, she began to explore furniture making, drawn to the material of stainless steel — now most associated with her work — and opened her own atelier in paris where she sold her own creations directly to the public. by the 1970s, she was attracting international clientelle, including salvador dalí, pierre cardin, and saudi prince abdullah. maria pergay currently lives and works in paris where she continues to design interiors and produce limited-edition works.

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