With its shape reminiscent of a pebble and its evanescent luminous aura, the Dora lamp has a very singular presence. Since June, it has been exhibited in the 10e district of Paris, at the Paradis gallery, a 1,000 square meter space specializing in vintage design. Dora sits next to tables by Roger Capron, Tulip chairs by Eero Saarinen, or a Bouloum armchair by Olivier Mourgue. These three designers are big names in 20th century designe century.
On the other hand, we know nothing, or very little, about André Cazenave, who signed this emblematic piece of the 1970s, often known to collectors under the name of “pebble lamp”. The Doras exhibited here – as well as in New York and Dubai – are reissues, offered in three sizes, sold from 350 to 950 euros. But, without the relentless will of the young duo of Alia Vitae, Emma Demuynck and Julien Borisov, they would probably never have reappeared in the cutting-edge galleries.
Bringing forgotten or little-known creators back into the spotlight, who have not had the recognition they deserved, is also the ambition of Oliver Oksman, head of Walter & Moretti, and Léonie Alma Mason, founder of LOMM Editions. Alongside their profession as designers and interior architects, they decided to relaunch the small series production of objects and furniture that have unfairly remained under the radar of the history of design.
Through a collection with radical shapes in anodized aluminum, the first resurrects the retrofuturistic fun of a Toulouse brand from the 1970s, while the second strives to revive the inventive lamps and seats created half a century ago , by the sculptor Odile Mir, her grandmother now 98 years old. Facing the behemoths of reissues, with the unbeatable Togo sofas and Eames seats at the head of the gondola, gooses that lay golden eggs which make the fortune of Ligne Roset, Vitra and others, these independents promote creation off the beaten track, often less lucrative but full of commitment and passion.
A seventies armchair of great modernity
In these stories with twists and turns, everything begins with a revelation, the discovery of a precious deposit from which we had forgotten to harvest the fruits. When Emma Demuynck, then an art history student, sought to find out more about the creator of the Dora lamp, she was taken aback. “There was nothing, no interview, no retrospective, no catalog raisonné,” remembers the 26-year-old young woman. This hypnotic piece, which she discovered as a teenager at the mother of her childhood friend (and future partner) Julien Borisov, is nevertheless prized by antique dealers and decorators. “We saw her in the Florence Foresti series [Désordres] sur Canal+, at the restaurant of the Hôtel national des arts et métiers or at Villa Magnan, a designer guest room in Biarritz, she lists. There is a real gap between its notoriety and that of its creator. » In 2020, the two friends launched the challenge of reissuing it. Then begins the adventure of Alia Vitae (“other lives”).
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