From Colette to Cocotte, May Pham van Suu, lacquer serving luxury design.

Auteur : Stéphanie | 06-11-2011

I met May at the Andree Putman agency a few years ago. She came to present her lacquered work as small, ultra-precious samples that pleased us immediately.

She especially managed to fascinate us with a lacquered sample decorated with an eggshell, a very old traditional Japanese artwork that in hand suddenly takes a contemporary twist.

After several exciting exchanges with May, our furniture pieces were created and are now in the dressing room of a princess in Brussels.

Eggshell and lacquer applied to commodes designed by Stephanie Doligez for Andree Putman.

This encounter with May has defined itself perfectly.

May does not just paint / lacquer a support, she follows a storyline: it’s a work of art for her and must be done in a group.

I discovered the variety of these storylines at her studio in Montreuil, when I went there with my daughter, Mia, to interview her for Cocotte Design.

Besides a series of black rectangles with pearl inlays for Chanel jewelry showcases, was this table «Five Claws» designed by LAQ (and lacquered by May) in which Darcel is deep in conversation (the theme of our show!) with the dragon:

Conversation between the LAQ dragon and Darcel of Craig Redman

But let us not dwell on the dismal concept of Darcel, a character depressed and disillusioned created by Creg Redman that comes straight from Colette, because it is May’s work that I came here to see !

She prefers to show me the inside of her rainbow colored eye-drawer and especially the relation between its egg-shaped head and the whites of his eyes in an eggshell!

Once again, she goes into the story of the object, showing the passion she has for her work.

Mia interrupts us to ask why Darcel does not have a mouth.

May explains that Darcel drawn here normally has a tiny unhappy mouth but as it has been enlarged, its mouth has disappeared. A Darcel happy? May’s doing perhaps!

But lets talk about LAQ, the company her husband Pascal Maugein created in 2009 with his friend Raphael Lancrey Laval whose table «Five Claws» will be exhibited by Cocotte Design at Designer’s Days; An incredible navy blue table with a dragon that becomes contemporary with its inlays of bright colors, gold leaf, and pearl blue.

She says it’s a client like any other, but her eye shines in pride when she shows me the work they have done together:

> the highly publicized table, «Dona», covered with a psychedelic skull and crossbones, a turquoise, lacquered table with an «aventurine pearl»,

Tattoo furniture by LAQ

> the latest creation, a small vintage cabinet with a pattern of tattoo designs from the 50’s by Sailor Jerry on a beige background, evoking the color of skin. You can also see this cabinet at the expo-Cocotte design.

When May talks about color, it seems like is is talking about cooking:

(no need to ask if she likes to cook, her answer will inevitably be a positive!)… She actually works on «memory and olfactory sensory», associating colors, tastes, and sensations to recreate the emotions.

Finally, I do not know if she is taking about hairspray or cooking, but I love her description!

Mia is the clown with the smiley happy and unhappy faces also created by LAQ.

Smiley by LAQ - (so funny, that’s me in the workshop windows in the right one!)

Good thing I brought Mia along with me, all these colors correspond to the lightness of our childhood.

But how does she create such powerful colors?

She often uses lacquer in her projects, but this lacquer is far from the industry standard.

Now, May speaks as a technical specialist rather than an the artist that spoke earlier:

«This red for example: First there is a very clear orange and then red glazes, afterward she adds 7 layers to the prepared wood, then 5 to 10 layers of light and darker colored lacquer, then the glaze, and finally 1 or 2 coats of transparent varnish. All of these without forgetting to sand between each layer!»

A huge job, of patience, passion and perfectionism!

I’m really happy to write this post for her and to share with you her work at the exhibition. Because she only works for artists who already have certain notoriety, we sometimes forget to speak about her: At cocotte design we had to, she deserves it so much!

And above all, once you have the works of LAQ before your eyes, get closer! Immerse yourself in details and technique and you too will fall for the work of Pham Van Suu May!

Our visit suddenly comes to an end: May must pick up her adorable little 2-year-old daughter, Lulu, from the nanny’s.

But since we want to know / see more, we look forward to sharing her work with you at the exhibition «Beyond the Blog» at espace13 Sevigne during the event, Designer’s Days, in Paris from June 15th to the 20th!

May Pham van Suu and LAQ: www.laqsters.com