10 January 2012

Bivouac at the Centre Pompidou-Metz

Bivouac brings together 15 years of work by French design duo Erwan and Ronan Bouroullec.

Between now and 30 July 2012, France's Centre Pompidou-Metz - located in Metz, the capital of Lorraine - is home to Bivouac, an exhibition set across 1000sqm of space, celebrating the collaboration of brothers Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec.

Prototypes and finished, hand-crafted and mass-produced pieces sit side by side, showing the diversity of the pair's work.

The pieces themselves form the scenography, leading visitors through the Bouroullecs' journey of creation.

Pieces include geometric modular system Clouds, designed in 2008 for Kvadrat, a 3-dimensional foam and cloth creation that almost resembles a living organism.

Much of the Bouroullecs' work has a playful, interactive quality about it, making it well suited for a stand-alone exhibition. Lianes, for example - the leather-sheathed lamps created for Galerie Kreo in 2010 - combine unique shapes and flexible composition.

Inspired by the idea of a temporary encampment, Bivouac explores ideas of nomadism and ephemerality, and encapsulates the freedom of style and the element of surprise inherent in the Bouroullecs' creations.