Next month marks a year since the appointment of Stéphane Parmentier as creative director of Christofle, the French silver maker founded in 1830. Vibrant and talented, Parmentier came to Christofle from the worlds of fashion and furniture design — having worked with Karl Lagerfeld, Givenchy and Montana.
Initially, Parmentier partnered with Christofle to design the NYC flagship store and a special collection before joining the house to oversee its entire global creative vision — including a recent partnership with Swiss design school ECAL. As Christofle prepares to open its elegant new Manhattan showroom next week at 41 Madison Ave., we spoke with Parmentier about design, travel, fashion and food.
Fashion was my first life for more than 15 years and it still has a heavy influence on me. What I like about fashion is its ability to mix colors and materials — the micro and the macro, masculine and feminine. This is the way fashion works for me.
The most beautiful object of the 20th century has to be the airplane. No matter how often I travel, I still cannot believe that you go to sleep 30,000 feet above the earth and wake up somewhere else. Airplanes are truly like time machines and I love how everything in it has a true function — nothing is there for waste.
Mies van der Rohe has had a strong influence on me. His Barcelona Pavilion from 1929 remains one of history’s most beautiful examples of architecture; his use of light and materials back then was revolutionary. I also appreciate Swiss architect Peter Zumthor. His pieces, at first, can appear cold, but they have a sensuality — everything he does is in the details.
The best way to think about silver is not to think of it as silver at all. Instead, you need to think of it as an everyday luxury that you live with and use. Most people don’t realize you can even put fine silver into the dishwasher.
I have been there 80-plus times, but Japan remains my “dream” destination. Everything from the food to the fashion feels fearless. I love architect Tadao Ando’s Benesse House hotel on Naoshima, an art- and architecture-filled island.
One of my secret Parisian spots is the Atelier Brancusi, which is part of the Centre Pompidou. The Atelier is a reconstruction of Brancusi’s workshop, which now displays dozens of his sculptures, drawings and photos. I love how Brancusi’s use of shapes and materials.
My favorite hotel in the world has to be the Tawaraya Ryokan in Kyoto (278 Nakahakusancho, Nakagyo-ku). It has such a refined and elegant atmosphere that you feel from the moment you enter, as if it belongs to an entirely different world — a world of pure history and tradition.
I am not really a collector, but when I travel I like to bring back home the best of what I find in a country. Often that’s food, particularly olive oils — and Italy, to me, has some of the best olive oil of all.