From Apr 29 to Aug 16
“At a time when reindustrialisation is being touted as a desirable goal, one thing is clear: there can be no contemporary industry without design, nor any transformation of production methods without a critical eye.”
It is from this conviction that the exhibition Local Tools – Dialogues avec l’industrie (Dialogues with Industry) takes shape. By bringing together young post-master’s designers and two partner industrial companies around a shared research project, it explores how design can transform the tools, methods and imaginaries of contemporary production.
© Nathan Cussol
An exhibition resulting from two years of applied research at the intersection of design and production
As a region historically shaped by industry, Saint-Étienne provides an ideal setting for exploring the links between design and production. The exhibition Local Tools – Dialogues avec l’industrie builds on this tradition, showcasing the research carried out as part of the Local Tools – Design & Industry post-master’s programme at Ésad Saint-Étienne in collaboration with the companies Rondino and Sculpteo.
Conceived as a project that is at once educational, experimental and socially engaged, the exhibition traces two years of close collaboration between young designers and partner companies, centred on a key question: how can we rethink tools, processes and production chains through design?
© Nathan Cussol
© Nathan Cussol
© Nathan Cussol
© Nathan Cussol
Design and industry: a shared field of research
The exhibition showcases the work of Hugo Le Guen, Nathan Cussol, Ismaël Rifaï and Camille Sardet, post-master’s designers whose research was developed through immersive placements at two partner companies with complementary approaches to manufacturing.
On the one hand, Rondino, a company specialising in woodworking, offers a testing ground based on subtractive processes and large-scale machinery, where the material is shaped by successive removal until the finished product is achieved.
On the other hand, Sculpteo, a major player in 3D printing, embodies the principles of additive manufacturing, where form emerges through the accumulation of material using cutting-edge technologies.
These two industrial contexts have enabled designers to explore the relationships between tools, uses and the forms produced, not within a commissioned framework, but through open, shared and context-specific research.
Show the processes rather than the results
Local Tools – Dialogues avec l’industrie is not limited to presenting finished objects. The exhibition aims to highlight the research process in all its complexity: phases of observation, formal experiments, technical investigations, trials, doubts and adjustments.
The exhibition design brings together a range of diverse content — study models, prototypes, full-scale pieces, photographs, videos and reports produced within the companies — in order to place designers and manufacturers on an equal footing. This approach affirms a militant vision of design, conceived as a space for dialogue, negotiation and shared vision.
A thought-provoking exhibition, accompanied by a publication
Conceived as a project with a militant dimension, the exhibition argues that reindustrialisation cannot take place without design, nor without a project-based culture capable of challenging contemporary modes of production. This reflection is further explored in a special edition of the journal Azimuts, published to mark the launch of the exhibition. Serving as a critical tool, this journal documents the research carried out and opens up a space for reflection on new forms of dialogue between design and industry.
A travelling exhibition
Initially presented at la Cité du design, the exhibition will then be shown in Paris from 10 to 19 September 2026, as part of Paris Design Week (Galerie Même si, 39 Boulevard Beaumarchais, Paris 3rd arrondissement). This touring exhibition builds on the project’s momentum by presenting the research in different exhibition contexts and to different audiences, whilst affirming the role of la Cité du design and Ésad Saint-Étienne as major players in design research.
© Nathan Cussol
© Nathan Cussol
© Nathan Cussol
About designers
An industrial designer and photographer who graduated from ENSCI - Les Ateliers in 2022, Nathan’s practice aims to harness imagery, form and production methods to serve the project, adopting a holistic approach that unfolds the object’s narrative and anchors it within its context. Following a stint at Moustache Edition, he has been working closely with Normal Studio on the development of product and spatial projects in collaboration with industry. He views design as a link, capable of translating an intention into a functional object, within a serial framework. At the same time, he co-founded Office Studio in 2023 with Hugo Le Guen to collectively bring their vision and approach to life, spanning design, creative strategy and photography.
Hugo Le Guen is an industrial designer who trained in cabinetmaking and graduated from ENSCI – Les Ateliers. From the very start of his career, he has collaborated regularly with the agencies Designers Unit and Normal Studio, developing a context-specific and strategic approach to objects and spaces. From industry to culture, he explores manufacturing processes in dialogue with those who shape them. His work is part of a form of cultural continuity; he favours a timeless aesthetic, free from fleeting trends. His approach involves integrating harmoniously into environments, whether in terms of production methods, chosen materials, or territorial, architectural or industrial contexts. In 2023, he co-founded Office Studio with Nathan Cussol to collectively implement their approach to design, imagery and strategy. Since 2024, the studio has been conducting research within the Local Tools design and industry programme at Ésad Saint-Étienne.
Ismaël Rifaï, born in 1993, is a designer-researcher and a graduate of the Design Academy Eindhoven. In 2019, he co-founded the research studio Studiolow in Marseille with Héloïse Charital. Together, they develop a design practice rooted in an anthropological approach, exploring themes such as informality, vernacular practices, migration and phenomena of adaptation. Work produced at Studiolow has been included in the collections of the Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe in Hamburg and has been exhibited at several international institutions and galleries, notably at the Émergences Biennale at the Centre national de la danse in Pantin (2020), the Design Museum in London (2021), the Friedman Benda gallery in New York (2021), the Carlota Oyarzun Gallery in Copenhagen (2022) and the Design Museum in Brussels (2024). Ismaël Rifaï and Héloïse Charital were residents at Artagon Marseille between 2021 and 2022 and winners of the Prix Région Sud Design in 2023 as part of Art-o-rama in Marseille. Their research received support from the DRAC PACA, the Centre Wallonie-Bruxelles and Fræme/Artorama.
An industrial designer, visual artist and plant-based scenographer, Camille Sardet set up her design studio in 2024, following her selection for the Design Parade at the Villa Noailles. With a double degree from ESAD in Reims and ENSCI – Les Ateliers in Paris, she joined the Constance Guisset studio, where she developed her expertise in art direction, as well as in the design of objects and spaces. Since 2016, she has also been the right-hand woman to Marianne Guedin, a plant-based scenographer, with whom she transforms iconic locations in the capital through floral installations. Her studio champions drawing as a means of connection and attention to needs, within which she develops illustrations, objects and spaces. Since 2025, she has been collaborating with Clémence Bondon, a consultant architect specialising in reuse, and Anaïs Fernon, an architect and designer, on the regeneration of the glazing of the Tours Nuages in Nanterre.
About Jean-François Dingjian
Jean-François Dingjian is a graduate of Ésad Saint-Étienne. In 1991, as part of a postgraduate programme, he co-founded the magazine Azimuts. He was awarded the Agora grant in 1996, followed by the Grand Prix de la Création de la Ville de Paris in 1999. In 2015, he was appointed Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres. His gallery exhibitions, temporary installations, industrial projects and scenography demonstrate a transdisciplinary approach, bringing together graphic designers, visual artists and photographers. Through these various contexts, he explores technical constraints, manufacturing processes and domestic rituals in order to reinvent the forms of everyday life, as evidenced in particular by his porcelain pieces for the table setting, produced by CRAFT in Limoges.From 2004 to 2023, he was project director at ENSCI – Les Ateliers in Paris. Since 2023, he has been coordinating the postgraduate research programme in design and industry, ‘Local Tools’, at Ésad Saint-Étienne. In June 2006, he founded the agency Normal Studio with Éloi Chafaï. Several of their creations feature in the collections of the Fonds national d’art contemporain and the Centre Pompidou.
Local Tools
Dialogues avec l’industrie
29 April – 16 August 2026
Opening on 28 April 2026
Exhibition design: Hugo Le Guen
Curated by: Jean-François Dingjian
La Platine - Cité du design
3 rue Javelin Pagnon
42000 Saint-Étienne
Partners
With communications support from Lyon Métropole Saint-Étienne Roanne Chamber of Commerce and Industry
With the support of Sammode, a sponsor providing in-kind support for exhibitions at la Cité du design
With the support of Paris Design Week
Special subscription offers
Le Journal des Arts and L’Œil
A leading monthly magazine, L’Œil stands out for its rigorous editorial approach, its wealth of illustrations and a particularly comprehensive exhibition guide. Published every other Friday in print and daily online, Le Journal des Arts analyses the latest news from the art world through investigations, analyses and reports, shedding light on the artistic, cultural and economic issues facing the sector.
In partnership with la Cité du design and Ésad Saint-Étienne, Le Journal des Arts and L’Œil are offering exclusive subscription deals, which you can find via the link below.
Special subscription offers
⚠️
Votre navigateur est obsolète, l’affichage des contenus n’est pas garanti.
Veuillez effectuer une mise à jour.
Votre navigateur est obsolète, l’affichage des contenus n’est pas garanti.
Veuillez effectuer une mise à jour.