Mathieu Lehanneur

A comprehensive monograph on the visionary designer Matthieu Lehanneur, whose nature-inspired work blurs the boundaries between art and science

Mathieu Lehanneur’s multidisciplinary practice spans art, architecture, product design, and technology. From his headquarters, dubbed ‘The Factory,’ near Paris, Lehanneur designs and produces a fascinating array of projects including: an award-winning air filter, a river plant aquarium, a permanent installation at the Château de Chaumont-sur-Loire, the choir of Saint-Hilaire Church,  and, famously, the torch and cauldron for the 2024 Summer Olympic Games.

Lehanneur’s debut monograph reveals his design philosophy through 10 chapters organized around the determining 'principles' of his work. Featuring a trove of images – including preliminary studies and models, inspirations, renders, details, manufacturing photography, and press clippings – the book documents his distinctive approach to design.

Readers will discover 80 key projects, from interior and object design to larger-scale projects and public infrastructures, each presented with a text description and extensive full-color visuals. A foreword by writer Spencer Bailey delves into Lehanneur’s practice in more detail, while a conversation with journalist Lucie Weeger reveals the designer’s inspirations and aspirations, and an essay by museum curator Constance Rubini takes a closer look at Lehanneur’s Olympic torch.

A stunning object in its own right, the book features a distinctive cover inspired by the solid waves iconic of Lehanneur’s work, completing this multidimensional portrait of one of today’s leading creative visionaries.

Born in 1974, Mathieu Lehanneur is a prominent figure in the design world. A creator in the broadest sense, his work spans a wide range of disciplines and scales, from collectible design and furniture to monumental installations and technological devices designed to improve daily life.

He has received numerous awards, including the Best Invention Award from Popular Science in the United States, and was named Designer of the Year 2024 at Maison&Objet, in Paris. His works, regularly featured in museum exhibitions and international fairs, are held in major public and private collections worldwide, including the Centre Georges-Pompidou and the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris, as well as the MoMA in New York and MoMA in San Francisco.

Mathieu Lehanneur has also marked collective memory with emblematic works such as the choir of Saint-Hilaire Church ; Petite Loire, a permanent installation at the Château de Chaumont-sur-Loire, in France, and the torch and cauldron for the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Since 2018, he has developed his collections through his eponymous brand, structured as an integrated model from design to production, anchored by two key sites: the Factory in Paris and the Pied-à-Terre in New York.

Spencer Bailey is the co-founder of The Slowdown, co-host of the Time Sensitive podcast, and a widely published author and journalist.

Anne Bony is an art historian specialising in the decorative arts based in Paris. She is regular contributor to the Art Review.

Constance Rubini is a design historian and curator. She has been the director of the Decorative Art and Design Museum in Bordeaux (madd-Bordeaux) since 2013.

Lucie Weeger is a French journalist, writer and photographer working for French TV and media outlets.