Our bureau created a series of installations for the globally renowned French cognac brand François De Martignac, designed to seamlessly integrate the brand into the ambiance of restaurants. We developed both the concept for the brand integration and the design of the objects, drawing inspiration from the idea of the “edge of the world,” both in its literal and metaphysical senses.
Martignac stands out as the only French cognac produced outside its namesake province. Harvested from grapes in the Cognac province, the beverage matures near the iconic Mont Saint-Michel castle and the Étretat beaches along the northern Normandy coast by the Atlantic, challenging traditional cognac production norms.
The Atlantic has always been seen as the “edge of the world” for Europe and European civilization. It is at the intersection of these two worlds — the old and the new — that the augmented tradition of the Martignac house was born.
The design concept was built around the notion of an augmented tradition, with Normandy serving as the cohesive theme for the three objects developed by our team to meld the Martignac brand seamlessly into restaurants.
The object titled “Lifeform” was conceived with the help of AI, into which about ten concepts, such as “ocean,” “freedom,” “future,” “naturalness,” “art,” “possibilities,” etc., were inputted. This process yielded a vast array of images from which our designer selected and further refined one form with the help of artists and sculptors. This form, with its fantastical and undefined plasticity, invites a multitude of interpretations and meanings. It simultaneously resembles many things while not being anything specific. To some, it may evoke tree roots, to others underwater coral, to some the flame of fire, or to others yet, a splash of water immortalized in metal.
Normandy’s chalk cliffs of Etretat were an inspiration for the installation “Edge of the world”. Once an ocean bed, today’s cliffs were part of an underwater landscape. The natural metamorphoses, the blurring of the aquatic and terrestrial realms, and the cliff shapes have inspired numerous artists, including Claude Monet and Gustave Courbet. Conventionally viewed from the side, the installation presents a hypothetical overhead cross-section of the cliffs and ocean depths, offering a fresh perspective on a familiar landscape.

The third installment is a mural made of plaster, paying homage to tradition and a symbol of Normandy — the famed Mont-Saint-Michel castle, reminding us that traditions can be augmented rather than dismantled, enriching us and propelling us towards new horizons.
The triptych for Martignac not only succeeds in integrating the brand into restaurant spaces in a visually stunning and intellectually stimulating manner but also encapsulates the spirit of the brand: a beacon of innovation rooted in the rich soils of tradition.