“Coloured impressions, blossoming forms, and emotions.” These are the terms Ronan Bouroullec uses to describe the flow of images in “Day after Day,” a recent Phaidon publication that delves into the diverse creative dimensions of his work. As time has passed, Ronan Bouroullec’s design practice has broadened, embracing various elements, each of which has gained increasing importance.

Firstly, there is the vast collection of drawings that were long kept private, even secret, serving as preparatory reflection, spiritual exercise, and praxis. In the past decade, a series of exhibitions and publications have fully asserted the importance and value of these drawings in Ronan’s work.

Then, there are the bas-reliefs, whose origins date back to January, March, and November 2019 when a photograph on Instagram captured Ronan deftly carving free-form shapes from raw clay. This gesture led to a repertoire of elements destined for enamelling and subsequent combinations, resulting in a diverse range of works. These include the bas-reliefs, which were first exhibited at Galerie kreo in London in 2021, and the spatial sculptures presented in Toulon in 2023.

Photography has also transcended its utilitarian role for Ronan, moving beyond the confines of memory and smartphones to find a place in publications and even on exhibition walls, as seen at Licht in Tokyo in the fall of 2023. There is also his exploration of engraving, marked by his newfound delight in drawing on lithographic stone in 2023. Additionally, the realm of exhibitions experienced particular intensity in 2023, including the triptych exhibition in Hyères and Toulon as part of the Villa Noailles centenary celebration, as well as exhibitions at Galerie kreo in Paris, Milan, and Tokyo. Lastly, there’s the world of books, exemplified by “Day after Day” (Phaidon, 2023), an almost exhaustive collection of Ronan’s Instagram posts from 2014 to 2022, chronicling his thoughts and methodology.

Ronan Bouroullec’s new exhibition at Galerie kreo is a testament to his method, grounded in the simultaneity of practices, which emphasizes sensory experiences, intuition, and improvisation. It brings together, for the first time, the 17 vases created in 2022 in Tajimi, Japan—the birthplace and epicentre of Mino Yaki ceramics for over a millennium. The exhibition also features a series of recent bas-reliefs, showcased in the summer of 2023 in Toulon, and a collection of large, previously unseen drawings.

This exhibition represents a moment of synthesis within the interconnected realms of design, sculpture, and drawing. It occurs at the fringes, or rather, at their boundaries, where osmosis can take place: the vase represents a space where the boundary between aesthetics and functionality becomes delicate and ambiguous; the bas-relief, on the other hand, exists as a hybrid space that fuses drawing and sculpture.

This moment of converging stories reflects a period of life and work, encompassing a few months in 2022-2023 when they coexist intimately. What binds these narratives together, beyond their chronology, is the fundamental concept of assembly, a notion Ronan Bouroullec underscores: “When it comes to objects like these vases and chairs, I believe the heart of my language lies in their mode of assembly, in how forms, plans, and materials come together within them.” The question of how materials and forms meet is a key in helping us better understand the profound coherence in projects as diverse as the interlocking principles of lit Chains (kreo 2016), the fusion of elements in the Officina range by Magis (since 2016), the furniture designed for the Saint-Michel de Brasparts chapel in 2023, and even the Clouds system by Kvadrat (2010), serving as a manifesto for this approach to articulating plans and spaces.

The vases crafted in Tajimi emerge from the combination of five shapes assembled in groups of two, three, four, or five. These elements are the product of a mechanical clay extrusion process, giving them a sense of weight, density, and presence. This method also imparts a degree of precision to their angles, allowing the enamel to adhere differently, creating a subtle contrast that accentuates the form and complements the slight deformations that occur during firing. These subtle irregularities add extreme delicacy, mystery, and charm upon what might otherwise be a simple assembly of geometric pieces.