The Studio.

Who is behind Studio Cymé?

Agnès Denat and Violaine Auzuech

When was the studio created ?

Agnès founded the studio in early 2015.

How many designers are there?

We are two associate designers.

Do you work with freelance designers ?

Yes, we do, that's the whole point of our studio, bringing together the talents of 80 designers.

Tell us about your background.

A : I studied product and industrial design at Les Arènes in Toulouse.

After my DSAA, I returned to Paris to complete my training with a master degree co-habilitated by the ENSCI and the Sorbonne.

I started as a product and packaging designer in the luxury and communication sector, where I worked in several agencies before joining the design office of a fashion accessories and textile supplier.

A few years later, if there was no doubt that I had found my way, I needed my creative freedom ! So I pluck up my courage and left my job to pursue my passion for prints !

V : I did a degree in Applied Arts in Toulouse specialized in textiles.

Then I discovered the Ecole Supérieure d'Art Françoise Conte in Paris, a school specialized in textile design. I immediately wanted to go to this school.

After graduating, I did an internship as an event decorator at Dalloyau and I finally stayed there for one year on a fixed-term contract. I was passionate about this job but I took advantage of the end of my contract to return to the world of textile design.

I then worked for two years as a stylist/infographer for a bedlinen brand.

This experience brought me a lot and confirmed that this was the job I always wanted to do. And then, after two years, the desire to go freelance was very present and that's what I did! Shortly afterwards I met Agnès, initially I joined the studio as a designer and then a few months later we decided to become partners!

Describe your style.

This is a complex question as Cymé offers as many different styles as there are designers in its community!

But we try to be consistent in the creative profiles we represent, as well as in the choice of prints we select. When we create our collections, we are very sensitive to colourful ranges and original designs, we like strong patterns that stand out.

What are your main inspirations/influences ?

A : As I am a history buff, I am always picking up a thousand and one references from various periods.I can spend hours digging through the Forney Library archives, getting lost in architectural magazines, or in the details of a painting. I also read a lot, which inevitably influences my imagination !

V : I have a bit of a passion for the work of Matisse and Rousseau which I regularly draw inspiration from.

Otherwise I suppose I am inspired by what I see in my daily life... to be original.

Which place inspires you most ?

A: I had the chance to discover the island of Java two years ago. It was a memorable and inspiring trip in so many ways that I still draw influences from it. The culture and history of textiles, decoration and pattern is very present there, which makes it a dream destination for a textile designer! The vegetation is luxuriant, the landscapes fabulous, between jungle, volcanoes and sea,

I found there enough to feed countless atmospheres, ranges and shapes for my designs.

V : Gardens (from absolutely everywhere).

What triggered your passion for prints?

A : I couldn't date it precisely but I remember that my passion for drawing and ornament was already present in primary school because I used to decorate with pretty friezes and small illuminations most of the titles and margins of my school notebooks.

V : The millions of pieces of fabric that my grandmother kept in a drawer to sew clothes for our dolls. They were all so beautiful with their different prints.

Describe your creative process.

A: I set myself a theme, I do a big iconographic research session, then I define a first colour range with which I will draw the elements that will constitute my motif. Then I cut, scan, clean, compose and fitting.

V : Usually I try to compose my design on a quick sketch and then I start drawing. But in the end it's always completely different from what I did on the sketch…

What is your favourite medium? And why is that?

A : It varies according to the season and my desires but I often come back to the black technical pen with a very fine point, like Muji, Micron or Rotring.

I like the abundance of detail that this allows and it also leaves me free to imagine all the colourings I want once I'm on the computer.

V : I love Photoshop because I can change the colours ad infinitum and I don't get paint everywhere...but I couldn't do only digital, gouache and watercolour are two other mediums I like to use especially for drawing landscapes.

What is your favourite part of your job ?

A : Obviously I love to draw, but my favourite part of our job is to see our designs produced, when we find them worn or in people's homes, I love the idea that they have a life of their own after we have finished them !

V : I hesitate between the moment I start a drawing with a cool idea and the moment I visualise it finished (and then realise that the original idea is not there at all).

What type of products or sectors do you work for ?

Mainly for fashion, but also very much for decoration and furnishing.

What are you working on at the moment ?

On our next SS22 collection, but also on orders for some very nice projects to be published this year !

What fairs do you exhibit at ?

We have been exhibiting at Première Vision, Heimtextil, the London print design fair and Interfilière for two seasons thanks to La Trame pavilions.

What is your best memory of the fair ?

A: There are so many! It's already where I met most of my accomplices from the Trame, it's on Heimtextil for example that I discussed for hours with Coralie from Bleu Cobalt about the stakes and the needs of our profession, the little seed of what was going to become our federation.

What do you want to achieve in the future ?

V: To further develop our customer base in the decoration sector. A sector we are particularly fond of.

What advice would you give to new designers starting out ?

To hang in there! It's an exciting but very competitive job, you have to know how to stand out, learn not to give in to market pressures, and be patient.