Discover the Magic of Métiers d’art at Design Parade Toulon 2024.

Les gardiens (The guardians) by Anaïs Hervé and Arthur Ristor, in collaboration with Lesage and Goossens. Photo © CHANEL.

Les gardiens (The guardians) by Anaïs Hervé and Arthur Ristor, in collaboration with Lesage and Goossens. Photo © CHANEL.

The Visual Merchandising Prize 2024 finalists showcase. Photo © CHANEL.

Anthony Laffargue, finalist of the Visual Merchandising Prize 2024. Photo © CHANEL.

Juliette Simeone & Amelie Dandoy, finalists of the Visual Merchandising Prize 2024. Photo © CHANEL.

Romain Joly & Lisa Bravi, finalists and winners of the Visual Merchandising Prize 2024. Photo © CHANEL.

The summer heat in Toulon wasn’t the only thing sizzling from the 27th to the 30th of June 2024. The 8th edition of the Design Parade Toulon lit up the French Riviera with an electrifying showcase of creativity and craftsmanship, all under the patronage of CHANEL and le19M, who have been the event’s grand partners since 2016. This international festival of interior design proved once again why it’s a must-see event on the global design calendar.

This year, CHANEL awarded the prestigious Visual Merchandising Prize to Lisa Bravi and Romain Joly. The dynamic duo, plucked from a pool of ten talented interior design finalists, now has €20,000 to create a project for exhibition at the 2025 edition of the festival.

Last year’s winners, Anaïs Hervé and Arthur Ristor, returned to showcase Les gardiens, their collaboration with Lesage and Goossens, part of le19M’s illustrious maisons d’art. Their display, a clever blend of tweed and goldsmithery, graced the former Bishop’s Palace in Toulon and will continue to enchant visitors until November 5, 2024.

The Design Parade Festival in Toulon and Hyères 2019.

Continuing the legacy of art patrons Charles and Marie-Laure de Noailles, contemporary designers gather for the annual Design Parade Festival, presented by Robert Mallet-Stevens’ early-modernist Villa Noailles in the South of France.

Residence With Sea View by the 2024 guest of honour, Marion Mailaender, in collaboration with Lesage Interieurs. Photo © CHANEL.

Vitraux Brodés’ embroidered stained glass window by Victoire De Brantes with the Vastrakala workshop and Biot glassworks.

This year’s festival also featured a host of captivating projects curated by le19M. Two standout installations came from Marc-Antoine Biehler and Amaury Graveleine, previous winners of the Visual Merchandising Prize and the Public Prize at the 2021 Design Parade Toulon. Their guest house design, a prize-winning entry from 2021, was a spellbinding mix of French and Indian influences, embodying a seamless fusion of cultures.

La Chambre 100, another work by Biehler and Graveleine, wove together the artisanal prowess of Lesage Intérieurs. This immersive installation transformed a hotel room into a canvas of embroidery, evoking the charm of Indian guest houses. Contemporary meets vintage in a harmonious dance of materials—metal juxtaposed with delicate embroidered fabrics, tweed, ceramics, and even coloured resin and basil wood beads.

Victoire de Brantes dazzled with her “Vitraux Brodés” project, created in collaboration with the Vastrakala workshop and Biot glassworks. Her embroidered stained-glass panels, part of the Villa Swagatam residency, blended traditional Indian techniques with a playful, modern twist. The result? A radiant display where pearls and stones pirouette across translucent canvases, capturing the dance of light and colour in a mesmerising spectacle.

Room 100 by Marc Antoine Biehler and Amaury Graveleine in collaboration with Lesage Interieurs. Photos © CHANEL.

Painter Marie Laure De Noailles was highlighted via a series of conversations. Photo © CHANEL.

For the uninitiated, Villa Swagatam is an initiative by le19M and the French Institute in India, aiming to forge long-term artistic collaborations between French designers and Indian artisans. This year, the program highlighted the synergy between literature, performing arts, and the rich traditions of Métiers d’art, underscoring the festival’s commitment to cultural immersion and creative exchange.

Marion Mailaender, the festival’s guest of honour, collaborated with Lesage Intérieurs on her exhibition project Résidence vue mer (Residence with Sea View).

For those who missed the festivities, worry not. The echoes of this year will continue to resonate, with exhibitions open to the public until later in the year and, of course, via endless inspiration available at the click of a button on Yellowtrace. We can’t wait to see what 2025 has in store. Until then, keep dreaming and designing.

Gabrielle Chanel: Fashion Manifesto at NGV International.

One of the most influential designers of the twentieth century, Gabrielle Chanel introduced a language of modernity into fashion that still resonates today.

[Images courtesy of CHANEL.]