Right now the most exciting creative centres are those that sit at the nexus of craft and technology. In Africa and Asia, cities such as Lagos and Jakarta are booming for this reason, as skilled manual workforces blend with rapidly developing economies. In Europe, it’s Paris. The city’s ateliers, adept at handicraft, sit alongside industrial-scale manufacturing.

It’s a blend that’s coming to the fore in the French capital this week, with Design Miami Paris – where design galleries present antique and vintage pieces, alongside new work – coinciding with Paris Art Week. Both are flanked by a host of smaller design-led events, such as Contributions (see below). Big players beyond the industry are getting in on the action too. Range Rover has a display at Design Miami Paris, while Apple’s Designers of Tomorrow showcase features a host of young creatives who use the US tech firm’s products to create bespoke pieces. “It shows that we’re at an inflection point,” says Design Miami’s CEO, Jen Roberts, reflecting on both her fair and the industry at large. “Organisations such as Apple are recognising that the tools they’re developing are being used by our market.” Again, high-quality craft alongside new technology.

It’s something that is exemplified by Paris-based design studio Marie et Alexandre, co-founded by Marie Cornil and Alexandre Willaume. The duo presented two custom-made items as part of Designers of Tomorrow: a modular totem that can be reconfigured to serve as a table or seat; and a vase made from thermoforming glass – a mould-making process, typically used to create plastic objects. “Our approach is artistic but practical,” says Cornil. “We use craftsmen but keep industrial functionality in mind when making pieces. It’s important to make sure that design is accessible by considering production and technology.” In short, the duo strike a balance between humanity and technology by using industrial processes in new, unexpected ways.

It’s something that Nifemi Marcus-Bello, who featured in Design Miami’s first Paris show in 2023 and is part of Contributions this year, agrees with. “Rather than just accepting technology and having it shape our lives, we need to understand how to use it,” he tells the Monocle Minute on Design. “It’s about knowing how it will enhance what we already have and how we’re already making things.” It seems that the future of design, at least if you’re in Paris this week, is one that uses technology to create considerately crafted products, connecting us at scale to the things that make us most human.

Nic Monisse is Monocle’s design editor. For more insight and analysis, subscribe to Monocle today.

Biannual design festival Contributions is returning for its second edition this year. Established by design consultants Anna Caradeuc and Élise Daunay, Contributions aims to showcase projects that bring a gentle but fiercely independent spirit to Paris’s design scene amid the commercial focus of other events taking place during the week. This year, Caradeuc and Daunay have chosen music as an overarching theme for the exhibition, working with designers and artists to create five site-specific installations that cut through the noise. “I worked in music before design,” says Caradeuc when the Monocle Minute on Design meets her at an exhibition by US-based designer Emily Thurman. Here, sinuous rocking chairs and stools are adorned with delicate metal bells, while a soundtrack by US singer Kevin Morby plays in the background. “The idea was to bring creatives from different fields together,” she says.

Elsewhere, French gallerist Harold Mollet has teamed up with Italian musician Andrea Laszlo de Simone; the former is presenting a selection of work from design collective Metals in response to an audio-visual piece, “Una Lunghissima Ombra”, that De Simone has created as a companion to his new album of the same name. “We are committed to creating moments of resonance between practices that we love, without overthinking them,” says Daunay. “This year’s programme focuses on the joy of bringing together people we admire and witnessing how their dialogue can move others. It’s in finding stability within the unpredictable that the most beautiful expressions often emerge.”

Contributions runs until Friday 24 October. Click here to find out more.

Tunisia-born, Paris-based architect and interior designer Charles Zana has taken over an apartment on Rue de Rivoli this week for an exhibition called In Situ. It features more than 30 of his creations, as well as pieces from his private collection, including ceramics by Italian designer Ettore Sottsass. “It’s a way for me to reveal myself a little more, to show my taste and my attachment to Paris and art,” says Zana. “That’s the spirit of In Situ: a simple, free and ephemeral way to present our creations in a vast space, in dialogue with art and the city itself.” Standouts from the exhibition include the sculptural and monumental Sara Sofa, upholstered in a teddy mohair by Pierre Frey, and light sconces made from white plaster, which bring a poetic touch to the space. Visitors can also linger over an espresso and a croissant by pastry chef Yann Couvreur at the Charles Zana coffee pop-up. 

Which movement or designer has influenced you the most?
I’m influenced by major artistic movements and great creative eras rather than small, isolated ones. Nineteen-thirties France is a huge inspiration. It was a time of incredible creative energy, when everything felt alive and connected, from art and music to dance and literature. I’ve also been inspired by the Los Angeles art scene of the 1970s and 1980s. And then there’s Ettore Sottsass, who was a key figure in the Italian Radical movement of the 1970s. He broke down the boundaries between art and design, bringing together two worlds that had long seemed separate. That idea of crossing disciplines continues to resonate with me.

The sky’s the limit: which piece of furniture would you love to own?
There are so many pieces in my pantheon of dream furniture, including a lacquered daybed by Eileen Gray, a totem by Ettore Sottsass and a sofa by Jean-Michel Frank.

A recurring source of inspiration?
Nature. It might sound simple but it’s truly essential to me – in form but also in colour. Over time, I’ve realised that I only use tones that exist in the wild: soft sage greens, autumnal shades and warm beiges – nothing artificial. Andrea Branzi was the first to open my eyes to the idea of bringing nature into design. For In Situ, we created pieces made from recomposed oak logs in collaboration with Maison Charlois.

A favourite project that you’ve worked on?
I’m currently working on a Spanish-style house on a private island near Miami. It’s a project that really inspires me. It captures the city’s Hispanic and Cuban spirit: that tropical atmosphere, the light, the lush vegetation. There’s also a major landscape component, with a beautiful garden designed by a talented landscape architect. I love bringing a touch of French sensibility into foreign contexts. It’s always incredibly stimulating.

A priority for you and the industry going forward?
Supporting our artisans – the people who we have been working with for years and keep furniture-making alive in France. We really need to protect this ecosystem of ateliers and craftspeople, who continue to create for us and with us.

Which city has the best design scene? And where should we visit?
Paris is the capital of design. It’s home to the largest number of interior-architecture studios working internationally. There’s also an incredibly dynamic art scene – and art and design always go hand in hand. Paris is full of galleries specialising in specific eras but also those that have rediscovered and championed great designers such as Eileen Gray. And then there’s a truly unique institution: the Musée des Arts Décoratifs. It’s one of the only museums in the world entirely dedicated to decorative arts and design, with a deep historical perspective.

‘In Situ’ runs until Sunday 26 October at 242 Rue de Rivoli, Paris.

Visitors to Design Miami Paris would do well to stop by Galerie Gastou and Galerie Desprez-Bréhéret’s set-up to admire an archival wonder by French sculptor Philippe Hiquily. Titled Coque, this armchair is made from a single piece of hammered aluminium and takes its name, as well as its concave form, from the shell. Born in Montmartre in 1925, Hiquily studied at the prestigious École des Beaux-Arts, specialising in metal sculpture.

Throughout his career, Hiquily’s oeuvre would evade straightforward categorisation, though his style was in keeping with the mid-century zeitgeist, borrowing elements from abstract expressionism and surrealism. The sensuality of his sculptures, with their spikes and organic curves, can also be seen in the furniture that he was commissioned to make by interior designer Henri Samuel in the 1960s. Hiquily’s designs are infused with passion and artistic sensibility – and make for particularly sought-after pieces of collectible design today.

Design Miami Paris runs until Sunday 26 October at L’Hôtel de Maisons, Paris.

Paris is staking its claim as Europe’s design powerhouse, balancing global furniture giants such as Ligne Roset and Roche Bobois with a thriving ecosystem of independent makers and traditional artisans. This duality has never been more evident than at Design Miami Paris – the internationally renowned fair’s decision to establish its European presence here while closing its Basel operation speaks volumes about the city’s design-minded gravitational pull.

The French capital’s infrastructure supports this renaissance. Its many design schools keep fresh ideas flowing, while city-hall initiatives such as the Ateliers de Paris – a publicly funded design incubator – serve as a support system for up-and-coming creatives. “We try to welcome people who are pushing the boundaries of what is traditionally considered design by the public or even policymakers,” says Mathilde Nony, the deputy director of the Ateliers de Paris. “We want to expand their horizons.”

Beyond the emerging talent, celebrated at events such as Design Miami Paris and the city’s abundance of educational programmes, there are also countless museums and galleries that serve as permanent touchstones. “Paris’s dynamism is supported by many public and private initiatives, as well as an exceptional network of galleries and globally recognised fairs,” says Bénédicte Gady, the director of the Musée des Arts Décoratifs. It’s no wonder that the city, already a force in fashion, is a design hot spot in the ascendant. Or, in Gady’s words, “At the moment, Paris is effervescent.”

To learn more about Paris’s creative scene, pick up a copy of the Monocle Design Directory, which is out now. You can also read the full report on monocle.com.