The principles of design

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To mark its 50th anniversary – and ten years of Designer’s Days – Roche Bobois has come up with its very own set of ten commandments.

The commandments, or principles of good design, have been created to enable designers, manufacturers, publishers and distributors to ensure that “all furnishings and accessories contribute to improving our interior décor and enable a re-enchantment that also respects the craftsman, the user and the environment”.

The company then called on Jean Paul Gaultier to help create a series of products that would pay homage to the commandments, which are:

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1)Thou shalt encourage an awakening of the senses and of the intellect.
2) Thou shalt offer mobility and lightness in lavish measure.
3) Thou shalt draw inspiration from nature’s creations.
4) Thou shalt respect social and environmental standards.
5) Thou shalt adopt eco-design in thy practices.
6) Thou shalt revisit thy creative work..
7) Thou shalt dare to be audacious with shapes and technical innovations.
8) Thou shalt adapt to specific requests.
9) Thou shalt fill quality time.
10) Thou shalt pay homage to the achievements of the past.

To start with, Gaultier revisited the famous Mah Jong, which was designed by Hans Hopfer in 1971.

Gaultier’s new Sailor version calls to mind long-haul voyages under a hallmark striped canvas. A second Couture version combines six graphics, Lace, Calligraphy, Dollar Bill, Scarf, Kiss and Tatoo, to create a “haute couture adventure novel”.

In keeping with the second commandment, Gaultier has also created a folding screen cupboard, headboard components that fold and unfold like light fabric, Peplum seats in the style of Ben Hur chariots and storage units that mimic a towering collection of trunks. Motion and mobility are the key characteristics of these quirky pieces.

Finally, the Diable hand trolley has been transformed into a dressing mirror, demonstrating that even the most rudimentary tools can be turned into an object of art when their creator is seized by surrealist impulses.

Designers such as Fabrice Berrux, René Bouchara, Philippe Bouix, Sacha Lakic and José Lévy have also joined forces with Roche Bobois to give form to the company’s commandments.

Berrux’s Mayflower armchair pays homage to the third commandment, thou shalt draw inspiration from nature’s creations. In keeping with the fifth commandment, Lakic’s Brio collection of cabinets is made of renewable wood.

Meanwhile, with its Dali and Yves Tanguy-esque elasticity, Cédric Ragot’s Sismic collection of furniture pays tribute to the seventh commandment, thou shalt dare to be audacious with shapes and technical innovations.