The French Pavilion at the Osaka 2025 World Expo, a symbol of the excellence of French know-how, will be the setting for an exceptional partnership between Tectona and the Mobilier National.
Following a call for projects issued in conjunction with the Villa Noailles, directed by Jean-Pierre Blanc, the jury, which included design specialists, selected the project by designer Jean-Baptiste Fastrez to create an exclusive range of furniture specifically for the French Pavilion Osaka 2025.
Inspired by the Pavilion’s editorial theme “A hymn to Love,” the collection, entitled Kaeru, embodies the bold spirit and excellence of French craftsmanship and design. It will be designed and manufactured by Tectona and will represent the alliance between tradition and modernity. The collection will then be unveiled at the end of 2024 at a major conference to present the French Pavilion and its program during the six months of this international event.
« This ambitious project is part of the Mobilier National’s long tradition of promoting French design at major international events, such as Olivier Mourgue’s armchair for the 1967 Montreal exhibition, or Pierre Paulin’s set for Osaka in 1970. »
Hervé Lemoine President of the Mobilier National and of the Board of Directors of the Cité de la Céramique Sèvres & Limoges
« Tectona continues, with the help of talented designers, to create outdoor furniture for national and international cultural institutions. Leading this unique design project for the French Pavilion at Osaka 2025 is one of Tectona’s missions, as is supporting young designers and passing on our know-how expertise. »
Arnaud Brunel Président of Tectona
« Well done to Jean-Baptiste Fastrez for creating this furniture in keeping with the French Pavilion’s hymn to love. Many thanks to Tectona for enabling visitors to enjoy a moment of French quality in the Pavilion’s bistro. »
Jacques Maire President of COFREX and General commissionner of the France Pavilion
« It is with pride and humility that I follow in the footsteps of leading designers by representing France in Osaka. My project will pay tribute to the design of our country: sober and unconventional, rooted in tradition but projected towards the avant-garde. »
Jean-Baptiste Fastrez Winning designer
Mobilier national
The Mobilier National has been supporting the creative arts and crafts since the 17th century as an establishment under the French Ministry of Culture. Its mission is to ensure the conservation and restoration of its collections, which are unique in the world, and to perpetuate and pass on exceptional skills. As well as being a prominent centre of heritage, the institution is also a major contributor to contemporary design and to the promotion of French decorative arts.
Promoting French expertise, the Mobilier National steers the international side of the national strategy in support of craftsmanship and design by ensuring their visibility at trade fairs and exhibitions around the world.
Tectona
Founded in 1977, Tectona quickly became the French benchmark for outdoor furniture. From the outset, the clarity and simplicity of its shapes, the demanding choice of materials, and the mastery of craftsmanship and technology laid the foundations of the Tectona signature.
Since the 1990s, Tectona has been opening its doors to designers to create models in tune with the evolution of outdoor living. Tectona collaborates with designers such as Andrée Putman, Ronan & Erwan Bouroullec and Pierre Charpin. Since 2023, Tectona has supported the Design Parade festival at Villa Noailles, confirming its commitment to excellence and young talent.
Jean-Baptiste Fastrez
Jean-Baptiste Fastrez is a French designer born in 1984. After graduating from ENSCI in 2010, he opened his own studio in 2012, collaborating with brands and publishers such as Moustache, Manufacture de Sèvres, Kvadrat, CIRVAandTaiPing,aswellaswithGalerieKreo.
Fastrez has won several awards, including the Grand Prix du Jury at Design Parade 6 at Villa Noailles (Hyères, France) in 2011 and the Grand Prix de la Création de la Ville de Paris in 2019.