Melanie Courbet’s intention when she opened her gallery-cum-showroom, Les Ateliers Courbet, in New York’s Nolita neighborhood four years ago was to create a space that highlights the “time-honored techniques of master craftsmen,” she says, as well as “educates our clients.”
Sounds serious? It is. Many of her exhibitions have had an interactive component; during a retrospective for Lobmeyr, the 194-year-old Viennese glassware company, one of its master craftsmen was on site, personally engraving pieces for clients. Courbet works hand in hand with brands, culling archives for inspiration for future collaborations, and has become a go-to for design aficionados hunting for unique objects, such as Sèvres porcelain and Oyuna’s fine Mongolian cashmere.
In May Courbet moved to a larger space in Chelsea, where she opened with a soft launch. The new gallery becomes permanent this month, with an installation of avant-garde Italian handmade decorative surfaces from the company Paper Factor. She will also exclusively carry the cult Milanese porcelain label Laboratorio Paravicini.
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