Refurnished wood stool approved by the cat. © Nicolas Barrial
Every Sunday, a collective of young designers welcomes makers apprentices at the Pavillon de l’Arsenal in Paris for upcycling workshops using the scraps from past exhibitions scenographies. Makery tested it for you.
The DIY spirit continues to blow on our institutions, the Pavillon de l’Arsenal is not immune to the phenomenon. Built in 1875, this parisian venue for exhibitions is dedicated to urbanism and architecture since 1988. With the idea to reuse the wood scraps from past exhibitions are born the “Chutes Libres” workshops. They are animated by the collective Prémices, founded by four alumni from Boulle, the School of Design and Interior Architecture. You have the occasion to work with professionals and after three hours, to leave with a furniture of your own making.
The collective Prémices elaborates educational workshops around the valuation of recycled materials and employs confirmed designers to animate them. After a first session in 2014, I came at the start of the new session, happening from February 15 to May 3, 2015. As a true novice of the wood workshop, I did not pretend to make a furniture for humans, so I decided to make a roost for my favorite feline. Its disdain or its appreciation would be my judge.
It’s Sunday, 3:00 p.m., let’s go for three hours of workshop. It will not be too much if I want to enter my creation into an upcycling process.
The workshop is vast, under a beautiful light from a glass roof. Helpers are identifiable with their red shirts.
Everything is clean and tidy before a riot of sweat and sawdust.
The sets are identified by specialty, we are invited to observe the areas and not to disperse the tools.
The real stars of the workshop, the famous wood scraps just waiting for us to live a new life. Better choose them properly sized for the projects to avoid creating new orphans.
We begin to cogitate. The helping team adapts to your level but challenges you – do not expect to escape yourself with a simple box. And if you have forgotten how to calculate an angle, do not worry, your assistants are followers of Pythagoras.
Most participants came with their own projects designed in advance but you can also manufacture stylish designs offered by the workshop.
My drawing shows my incompetence in furniture design. Bastien Phung, my mentor whose job it is, shows me a more sophisticated assemblage technique. Cross legs and a diagonally placed top. I opt for the plan of a stool, but I decide to greatly increase the height, up to 48 inches.
That’s the way the foot of my stool will look like, I will have me to make two pieces, remembering to dig notches facing each other. The upper part will be received crosswise onto the tray.
I made my choice of scraps: the two panels for the crossed feets. But the upper board seemed too small for my big cat, so I took a larger one and I redid my calculations.
We begin to trace the plans on the material, all ages are at the manoeuvre.
For my part, I did my route, I will only have three boards to cut but time is running and cutting plants are already stormed.
Electrical equipment is appreciated. The jigsaw is the most useful tool for the workshop, which focuses on fine cuts. They are in sufficient number for the fifteen participants.
Participants and organizers are united in a passion of making.
The moment of truth, it fits or not? A hammer to force destiny.
Those who chose a design offered by the collective persevere on complicated contours but they will be able to carry home a fine furniture.
And other, like me, inherit a stool straight out of a the sci-fi movie. But my 48 inches stool impresses quite a bit.
It remains little time, we go into “dirty work” mode, my assistant checks my measurements on the tray for it to fit properly.
During this time, in the sanding section, the most effective participants provide the finishing touches.
Well, it’s over. It’s time for a picture of the helpers team.
Back at home, no time to adjust the tray and to polish the curves, I’ll have to wait until my cat wakes up. Project is validated!
Not only this eco-responsible furniture workshop is more than advisable, with its team of qualified and attentive people but I noticed that some participants were not newcomers, this is an evidence of quality. Here are some tips if you decide yourself to go for it: come with an idea and its measurements, you can always be reoriented by the team. Therefore, you will be able to join the working areas more quickly and make a profit out of the €22 registration with a finished job. Moreover, you are allowed to bring any kinds of elements that you want to associate with the wooden structure.
“Chutes Libres” workshops at the Pavillon de l’Arsenal, from February 15 to May 3, 2015, on every Sunday from 3:00 p.m. to 6 p.m., registrations available on the Pavillon de l’Arsenal website. €22. 15 people max.
Read also on Makery:
Transformeurs : upcycling showdown in Nantes
Loungeshare #3, from dustbin to daring design
(Text ans pictures Nicolas Barrial)