La mode est une fête – Paul Poiret - MAD
A major museography project for the studio, a retrospective exhibition dedicated to Paul Poiret spanning 12 rooms, marking a foundational milestone in our scenographic approach.
Conceived in collaboration with graphic designer Anette Lenz, this project was born from a shared desire to celebrate the visionary work of Paul Poiret while offering a visiting experience that is rich, dynamic, and accessible.
Spatial innovation
Paf drew on its transdisciplinary expertise—museography, spatial design, and storytelling—to create a scenography that pays tribute to the couturier’s legacy while offering a contemporary and educational reading of his work. The objective was clear: to highlight Paul Poiret’s oeuvre, to extrapolate the essence of Maison Poiret through space, to pace the journey in order to sustain attention, and to abolish any hierarchy among the exhibited pieces. This holistic approach reflects the studio’s commitment to designing museographic experiences that are legible, rigorous, and inclusive.
The exhibition unfolds around a central catwalk, a nod to fashion shows, which becomes the narrative axis of the project.
Around this backbone, each room is conceived as a variation on the volumes and rhythms inspired by Paul Poiret.
Rethinking the museographic journey
The use of simple geometric forms, both aesthetic and functional, enables a fluid organization and a clear reading. By playing with circles, lines, and vertical structures, the exhibition resonates with the very spirit of Poiret: a liberation of form in the service of creative expression.
Conceptually, the scenography draws on a graphic reading of the couturier’s name: dots and stripes, transformed into a system of emblematic forms.
A seamless immersion
Dots (circles) and stripes (bands) rise from the floor to structure the space, define zones, and create hanging supports. This simple formal language allows for a more direct immersion, fostering a frontal yet intimate relationship with the works, encouraging both contemplation and circulation. Each space stands out without breaking the overall coherence, ensuring a balance between immersion, clarity, and discovery.
From a technical perspective, the scenography anticipates the multiple typologies of objects to be displayed: garments on mannequins, textiles laid flat, photographs, display cases.
Intelligent structures
All modules were designed with self-supporting and demountable structures, facilitating installation, reusability, and durability. Among the key devices is a self-standing X-shaped wall, conceived to host works in 360°. This central structure allows for the integration of plinths and display cases along its different branches, while encouraging a smooth circulation around the object. The walls, open at the top, provide both natural ventilation and discreet access for power cables. This meticulous attention to detail—serving both modularity and aesthetics—reflects PAF Atelier’s ambition to design a museography that is elegant, intelligent, and radically contemporary.
