Those visiting Art Basel Miami Beach with a hankering for design have more than just Design Miami, the city’s industry fair, to look forward to. For a more academic approach, there is “Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity,” currently at Miami’s Wolfsonian Museum through March 26. The exhibition explores the relationship between French culture and design over the past 70 years. Featuring pieces from the Centre national des arts plastiques in Paris, the show comprises 150 objects, from a vintage Hermès Kelly handbag to a 1994 Philippe Starck-designed toilet.
How does one install such a style-conscious show? French design powerhouse M/M Paris, whose projects have included a Björk music video and creative consulting for Vogue, have collaborated with Starck protégé matali crasset and curator Alexandra Midal so that each display component, from pedestal to plaque, conforms to Le Corbusier’s trademark measuring system and is colored red, white, or blue, in honor of the French tricolor. “We didn’t just want to have a collection of images of objects, but a socio-historical concept for the objects,” said M/M's Michael Amzalag.
Some sections of the exhibition focus on game-changing French designers, such as Roger Tallon and Philippe Starck, while others zero in on important elements in France’s design history. A segment entitled “The Barricade,” for example, surveys design after the 1968 uprisings. “We wanted to create a landscape," said Amzalag. "As designers ourselves, we were always inspired by the country in which we live, and all those objects were produced in the country since we were kids."
So what is it that defines French style? “In France, there is no such thing as style,” said Amzalag. “It’s more a collection of several identities or individualities.” A December 1 brunch at the museum gives VIPs the chance to chat with M/M’s founders Amzalag and Mathias Augustyniak. Menus will no doubt feature a flawless design.