François Dumas was invited by Lisa White, curator of the 11th edition of the Biennale Internationale Design Saint-Etienne, to conceive the scenography for the main exhibition “System not stuff”.
The show brought together the work of contemporary designers under a space of 1000 m² partitioned into 5 different themes.
Upon the thread of that year’s Biennale “Designing Common Ground” came the idea to work with ribbons. François Dumas was inspired by the ancestral tradition of the Maypole dance. Upon this occasion, a community usually living in a rural area is gathering to celebrate Spring. Each participant holds a ribbon and weaves it together with the others by dancing around a mast where it is attached at the top.
Later realising that Saint-Etienne was the French capital of the ribbon industry, it made complete sense. The city is also known for being a key player in metal fabrication, therefore these two elements naturally came to define the materials to work around.
Colourful ribbons are woven into metal grids that are arched in semicircle, creating a joyful backdrop for the objects in display.
Different patterns were developed to support each theme of the scenography.
