35 1/2 x 23 1/2 in
“Like distant echoes blending in the distance
Into a deep and shadowy unity”- Baudelaire
For this summer carte blanche, Hubert Barrère, Artistic Director of Maison Lesage (Chanel group) and visionary embroiderer, offers a personal and sensitive perspective on contemporary creation. At the crossroads of craftsmanship and visual arts, the exhibition celebrates the hand, the soul, and the suspended moment.
Through a selection of works that weave intimate connections between artists, the exhibition pays homage to the emotion of the image, to the artistic blur as a revealer of beauty, and to the feminine figure—whether as silent muse or defiant rebel.
Icons such as photographer Erwin Olaf, whose passing in 2023 left a profound impression on Hubert Barrère, meet a new generation of artists, including Rakajoo, Charles Hascoët, and Saype. Transmission becomes vibrant—not didactic, but tender and demanding.
The artworks converse like a visual fugue. The handcrafted gestures of Li Hongbo, the veiled portraits of the Miaz Brothers, and the totemic embroideries of Eko Nugroho respond to the light of photography, the texture of drawing, and the depth of painting.
As a guide of visions, Hubert Barrère orchestrates a choral, elegant, and tactile symphony, celebrating art as a carnal and sensory expression of the world.
Hubert Barrère is a French fashion designer, corset maker, and embroiderer, and has served as the Artistic Director of Maison Lesage (Chanel Group) since 2011. Trained at the École de la Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture, he launched his own line, which earned the Grand Prix de la Mode from the City of Paris, before leading the Hurel atelier for fourteen years, working closely with Karl Lagerfeld. In 2008, he was appointed President of the Fashion Group International of Paris and published a seminal book on the history of the corset.
In the 2020s, Barrère has exhibited his own creations at Villa Noailles and Artcurial, designed costumes and scenography for the Opéra-Comique, soprano Lea Desandre, and the ballet B comme... by Nicolas Le Riche. In 2020, he chaired the accessories jury at the Hyères Festival, and in 2023, the fashion jury. Recognized internationally, Barrère embodies the meeting point of artisanal savoir-faire and contemporary creation, championing a sensitive and innovative vision of embroidery.
