This limited edition piece results from the ongoing collaboration between Paris-based Belgium designer Pieter Maes, Courbet, and the gallery's master craftsmen. Maes' designs for Editions Courbet unfold an ensemble of simple, archetypal forms, executed with time-honored techniques. Each of the designer's pieces emphasizes the artisanal dexterity from which it resulted, with a consistent, detailed simplicity. Maes draws inspiration from the timeless elegance and appeal found in the simple forms from the Neolithic and Cycladic Periods, or in the works of other 20th-century artists and sculptors sharing similar inspirations.

Pieter Maes Collection

MERIDIENNE 

The Fold sofa results from the Editions Courbet program and the collaboration between master upholsterers  Phelipeau, Ateliers Jouffres, and the artist Pieter Maes. The piece embodies both the artisans' dexterity and Maes' design vocabulary; A modern take on timeless, archetypal forms executed with time-honored techniques. Maes draws inspiration from the elegant simplicity of monolithic shapes found in the Neolithic and Cycladic Art forms, as well as in the works of 20th-century artists and sculptors.

FOLD SOFA

Sofas

Since graduating from the Design Academy in Eindhoven in 2004, Belgian-born, Paris-based designer Pieter Maes has sharpened his creative signature throughout his early collaborations with designer studios such as Vincent Van Duysen or Ora-Ito, and European furniture manufacturers Tribu and Ligne Roset. The designer’s vocabulary embodies his ongoing interest in the resonant quality of pure forms found in artistic expressions spanning from the Neolithic or Cycladic Periods to the artistic expressions of modern artists such as Isamu Noguchi and Brancusi among others.

Maes’ visceral appeal for these archetypal forms have unleashed a personal body of work freed from the rational forms of the manufactured furniture design world in which he excelled for over a decade. In 2014, the designer opened his own studio in Paris and pursued an ongoing study and exploration of these quintessential forms and their influences on our collective subconscious.

With a mature understanding of the materials, their nature and respective craftsmanship techniques, Maes first explores forms through computer drawings. While informed by a chosen matter, the original design eventually morphs and materializes in concert with European master craftsmen using time-honored techniques. From the initial artistic vision throughout the development and fabrication, Maes creates modern pieces anchored in heritage; each being a contemporary expression of timeless forms.

Maes lives and works in Paris where he continues his creative collaborations with institutional clients while pursuing the development of his personal work and signature collection.