Sculptural, functional and experimental. Stéphane Gimbert questions the tropes and ideals of classical design – moving away from the sombre and the subtle to adopt a more dynamic and playful approach. From his studio in Montreal, Gimbert creates innovative designs that are informed by movement – a moment of kinetic energy, frozen in time.

Drawing from his background in science, cinema and construction, Gimbert brings a striking sculptural sensibility to objects that are functional – quotidien, even. Pendants and lamps take fluid organic forms, with smooth glass-like layers that drip, spill, pool and ooze – caught between states, at once solid and liquid. Gimbert pours, building liquid layers, one atop the other, until a pleasing sense of volume is created and an interesting silhouette appears – at which point the sculpture is complete.

An injection of colour and character, GIM BERT is defined by a sense of play and curiosity, and each object demands attention – it must be inspected, walked around and interacted with. Deep pink, oil-slick black, red-sanguine and the perfect blue-grey; Gimbert expertly balances shape and texture with colour and tone, mixing his own paints to create a well-judged yet impactful colour palette.

Formed at the point between chaos and order, Gimbert perfectly balances pure art with pure design.

Inspired by philosopher and poet John Koenig, the titles of Gimbert’s work all bear the name of a difficult-to-define feeling which can be found in the Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows (2021).