As the itinerant decadence of another European summer wanes and the French reluctantly return to work for the optimistic annual reset they call la rentrée, Paris Design Week 2024 (5 – 14 September) unfolded in the city of light amidst the final days of the 2024 Olympic (and Paralympic) fervour. With the megalith trade show Maison & Objet returning to its biannual outpost at Parc de la Villepinte outside the city, a smattering of local launches and satellite events in town framed a soft landing into the new working year for the Paris design community.
Both industry-facing appointments and public exhibitions offered a glimpse into the eclectic possibilities of new craft, historical re-editions and graphic opulence that form a part of today’s design landscape. But with the European spring so saturated with design events from March to July, one couldn’t help feel an absence of heavyweight investment and spectacle-driven events this week, with some design editors choosing to relocate projects already presented during Salone del Mobile 2024 in April, and others activating their showrooms and permanent spaces with smaller collectible design showcases and collaborations.
