Hervé van der Straeten can still surprise us!

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Console Meditation, polished gold inox mirror © Cecil Mathieu

With his tenth exhibition “Fun Ride”, a clever mix of pink dining room table and Chinese cabinets, Hervé Van der Straeten shows his brilliant workmanship in his large gallery of the Marais, with thirty five pieces in precious wood, marble and bronze produced just outside Paris in his studio of Bagnolet. The chef d’oeuvre is an armoire in ebony and bronze, made of 1 700 pieces assembled like Boulle used to. My choice went for the extravagant “console cristalloïde rainbow” made of anodized inox and “Pink table”, a large piece in lacquer wood with four triangular feet. The showroom itself is a beauty and with the abstract works by Arotin & Serghei which hang on the walls, it is a particularly joyful scene.

Hervé Van der Straeten, Console Borderline multicolor Inox polished mirror © Cecil Mathieu

I had no idea that besides the jewelry he produced at the beginning of his career, Hervé Van der Straeten had designed the perfume bottle for Dior “J’adore”, a particularly architectural glass piece. Now he works mostly with precious wood and metal using glass for lights and accessories. Two Chinese cabinets are made with old parts of Coromandel screens. The effect is striking.

Hervé Van der Straten, photo Cecil Mathieu

Each piece is a collector’s item and is sculpted by one of his 30 artisans. I took special pleasure in touching every surface of furniture because the finish of the wood and the stone is so soft, that it is intensely sensual. Van der Straeten uses new material and multicolor stones and thirteen of his pieces are in the collections of the Mobilier National. He mostly works with International decorators and counts numerous stars as his clients.

Glass balls support the wooden Boule console in a dangerous equilibrium with Arotin & Serghei’s art on the wall

You might not be able to afford his consoles which sell for tens of thousands of euros but do go and visit his gallery at 11 rue Ferdinand Duval. It is a great luxury and it is free.

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2 Comments on “Hervé van der Straeten can still surprise us!”

  1. Merci, merci.
    Sans oublier la vente de meubles de Pierre Paulin chez Sotheby’s, exposition en ce moment, superbe, à voir absolument et également gratuite !

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