The unique limited-edition collection by Shaha Raphael for House of Today draws inspiration from fossils, shells, and marine life, leaving one to ponder: Is this treasure unearthed or meticulously crafted?
Shell-Inspired Furniture Collection by Shaha Raphaël on Display in Saint-Tropez
Shaha Raphaël's latest furniture and object collection, titled 'Low Tide - Mareé basse', is currently on display at House of Today in the heart of Saint-Tropez. This unique collection, inspired by fossils, shells, and sea life, beautifully blends Brutalism and Art Nouveau aesthetics, creating a captivating display that evokes the idea of forms emerging from the sea.
The collection is the result of an organic, collaborative creation with Lebanese artisans from Beirut, Tripoli, and Beqaa. Shaha Raphaël and her team worked closely with these skilled craftspeople, merging archaeological sensibilities with design. Shells, found naturally, were treated as both discovered artifacts and newly designed objects, resulting in pieces that blur the line between found natural objects and crafted furniture and decorative items.
The exhibition, which is on until July 27, features a variety of items, including tables, stools, mirrors, tableware, glasses, cutlery, and coffee cups. Some standout pieces include the Claw side tables, made of unpolished onyx and resembling crab claws, and the Fossil table, made of pale southern Lebanese stone with brass legs that cling into carved edges.
The Spine coffee table, composed of four aluminium modules and a 'comma' shaped base made of found she-oak wood, is another intriguing piece in the collection. Raphaël imagines the Spine coffee table as an infinitely modulating piece.
Decorative spoons in brass and silver, cast by hand in silicon from fossilised fishbones, are another unique addition to the collection. The collection also includes the Three pairs of candelabras with a fish-bone-evolved design and coated in three patinas - silver, pink, blue, and green.
A lampshade with a brutalist base and operated by a delicate chain is part of the collection, originally imagined as a necklace. The carpenter from Bekaa who made the Spine coffee table saves unique pieces of found wood especially for Raphaël.
The exhibition integrates the sea-memory concept with evocative scenography, emphasizing the emergence of natural forms in human design. It is a poetic dialogue between design and nature’s memory of the sea, grounded in Lebanese artisanal expertise and a thoughtful curatorial and spatial presentation in Saint-Tropez.
In addition to Shaha Raphaël's exhibition, Marseille-based architect Isabelle Castanier's group exhibition 'Une Maison à Saint Tropez' is also taking place in Saint-Tropez this summer, featuring designers like Marion Mailaender, Sacha Parent, Linde Freya Tangelder, and Astier de Villatte. Astier de Villatte's 'Saison à Saint-Tropez' is also happening in Saint-Tropez this summer, featuring limited edition designs of 'Triton et Sirène'.
For those interested in experiencing this unique fusion of design and nature, be sure to visit 'Low Tide - Mareé basse' at 1 Place des Lices, Saint-Tropez, before it closes on July 27.
This Shell-Inspired Furniture Collection by Shaha Raphaël not only includes home-and-garden items such as tables, stools, mirrors, tableware, glasses, cutlery, and coffee cups, but also dabbles in fashion-and-beauty with decorative spoons in brass and silver, cast by hand in silicon from fossilised fishbones. The collection, integrated into the sea-memory concept, beautifully illustrates a lifestyle that blurs the line between man-made objects and discovered natural artifacts.
