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There are no more items in your cartCharles Tassin is an interior designer and decorator. A term which he appreciates, because he’s very attached to beauty and the good it brings to the daily lives of everyone. His own daily life is shared between his creations and the life of the May and Maylis galleries that he founded with his wife, on rue de Lille in Paris.
It is here, in the cozy and warm intimacy of his office, in the midst of both objects designed by his hand and antiques, that he evokes L'Art de la Chambre, his inspirations and his collaboration with the Treca brand. With a smile on his lips and a sparkle in his eye. Selected thoughts.
Your work refers to several universes. Where do you draw your inspiration from?
The inspiration of a decorator is like any artistic profession. It's about being a sponge. Maybe from childhood. Observing, watching and soaking up every form, every thing. Music and cinema as well. And atmospheres...
And also, when you’re an interior designer-decorator, there’s indeed the visit of the premises. Here, a molding, the cornice of a ceiling, a door surround, a fireplace. There, the proportion of a window in relation to the facade. It means looking at the lines always, always, always! Because, of course, it’s about the design above all.
It's true that materials and colors also matter. But for me, designing is really the most important thing. Then things really flow. Voilà! It might appear obvious when you’re doing my job. But maybe not for everyone.
Is the bedroom a space that speaks to you?
The bedroom is the bed. The bed is the bedroom. It's sleep, it's love, it's family. I like the bed for sleeping and for dreaming as long as possible... So it's a very important space for me.
I’m lucky to have my ideal room in the house I live in. But I searched for this room for a long time. It’s located in an old house, on the first floor, surrounded by windows. My bed looks at the house. It doesn’t turn its back on the entrance. It watches the arrival of the other... That is very important. There are two windows on one side, and two windows on the other, with views over the gardens. A chimney. And fabrics hung on the wall and heavy curtains. It’s a cocoon, a refuge, a bubble of happiness, a padded and colorful nest.
How did your collaboration with Treca come about?
The collaboration with Treca is first of all an encounter, some time ago, with Béatrice Mahon (Head of the Decoration Department) with whom I got along very well as an architect decorator and therefore as customer and prescriber of Treca products. Treca means French quality. It's French craftsmanship. It's the small industry that travels all over the world, or almost. Crafted here. And distributed elsewhere. It's beautiful. It's something that touches me...
Béatrice invited me to collaborate, to design for the brand which corresponds very much to what I hold dear. That is to say French craftsmanship and the French industrial spirit. It’s very important to me. At the gallery, we make a real effort to favor the “Made in France”. And Treca, as a friend put it to me, still is crazy enough to manufacture in France in its two factories in Mer and Reichshoffen. It’s absolutely admirable. This is why I joyfully dived into this adventure.
And furthermore, it was the first time that I collaborated with a brand that produces in a semi- industrial manner. When you're an interior architect and designer, it's very interesting and very attractive to design objects that will be distributed all over the world.
The Charles Tassin collection is rich in several models. How did you design them?
The design of a headboard is an exercise that isn’t so obvious, because it’s a question of standing out with a design that is strong enough to be recognized, without all the same going into an artistic delirium. For me, the complexity comes mainly from the fact that it is a two-dimensional object. The relief must be limited: we must therefore start with a height/width and a design that will evoke something.
I wanted something very typical, neoclassical, and carefully drawn. The curve, the counter-curves, and the straight line are very important in what I like to do. In any case, what I aim to do. That's why I embarked on a neoclassical design that made reference to the volutes of the policeman's hat, with curves that look slightly 18th century. I wanted to because, for me, it’s very evocative of the French style. And I then adapted it for the majority of the headboards that I conceived. From the dozen models I designed, we finally chose five for this collection.
Then we had to name them... It's always a fun exercise. A touch of literature. A touch of French, because I wanted French names. I broke with my usual naming method because I wanted a particular subject for Treca. So, I simply took the villages of my childhood, of my countryside that I love, villages around in the depths of Yvelines, on the borders of the rivers Eure et Loire.
How did the transition from drawing to manufacturing the headboards go?
Very well. The craftsmen entered the scene when it was necessary to go from the drawing, from the silhouette to the realization. I had met these wonderful companions from the Reichshoffen factory earlier. Entrusting drawings to marvelous craftsmen to carry them out is a real pleasure... Thanks to my profession, I have always had a passion for visiting workshops because I work daily with cabinetmakers, upholsterers, founders, ceramists... It's very diverse, and I have a real passion for this know-how.
Your headboards for Treca are dressed in very beautiful textiles. How did you make the choice of fabrics?
It was an exchange between the Treca teams and me. And finally, the Maison Pierre Frey because the two brands have worked together for a long time and very closely. It was a choice that suited me perfectly. And which touches me particularly for friendly, almost family reasons.
One last word: What advice would you give for furnishing a bedroom?
I might recommend alternating patterned and plain fabrics. Why not very patterned curtains, floral or vegetal, with a plain wall hanging. Or the reverse. Or why not fully printed. With completely eclectic furnishings. And well-loved things, a few antiques, to mix with contemporary lamps.
You can go wild in a bedroom: it's an atmosphere where you can allow yourself a lot of things.
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Credits photos showrooms © Romain Chambodut
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