Insomniac

Magazzino is pleased to present Insomniac, Vincent Darrè’s first solo exhibition at the gallery.

An admirer of Dalì, Magritte and Cocteau, Vincent Darrè always brings dreamlike feelings to his unique collection of furniture. Extravagance, a sense of humor and an eclectic irony become the trademark of his entire artistic production.

He began his career in fashion, to finally embrace interior design and decorative arts. In 2009, after a solo exhibition in Toulun Art Museum, he created Maison Darré, driven by the desire to develop a new vision for the decorative arts. The maison would not exist without artisans who give to all the furniture the magic of their know-how. The pieces created here thus bear the mark of the hands of artisans, and refer to an imaginary past and to a theatrical way of life that distinguishes its founder.

Darré embodies a timeless French luxury in his collections. Memories and childhood inspire his work. On a trip with his mother to Italy, Darrè discovers the Baroque and its phantasmagoric references, the gaze of the monsters of Bomarzo and the grotesque fountains of Villa Lante. These gardens full of symbols and irrational follies, that yet are almost forgotten by modernity, have fascinated him ever since.

With Insomniac, Darrè presents a series of objects that seem to materialise directly from a dream. The particular creative process of the designer relies on surrealist automatism: the images created by the unconscious during the twilight sleep phases, concretize in objects truly singular in nature. Lamps, tables, chairs and book shelves take animal or anthropomorphic features, they dialogue with each other and establish surreal relationships animating the spaces of the gallery. The colors of his collections are rich, his pieces are unmistakable and always unique, and they encourage every visitor to move from one magical atmosphere to another. His collection is a formal invitation to entertain lively and irreverent conversations.