Born in Versailles, Hazelzet now lives and works in Paris. He graduated in art history from Université Paris Nanterre and went on to train in painting at the École des beaux-arts de Versailles. The artist developed a multidisciplinary practice through mediums like painting, photography and sculpture, before starting to work with metal in 2021 to create jewellery and collectible design pieces. Driven by a desire to explore intimacy, instinct and playfulness through wearable forms, he developed his approach to jewellery-making through his experience with ceramics and firing.
Hazelzet’s practice is defined by transversality, with various materials – ceramics, bronze, silver, porcelain, precious stones – responding to each another to form a coherent whole. His influences include Ancient Greek sculpture, Baroque painting and traditional jewellery from Dogon and Tuareg communities. The designer often casts existing bronze or silver objects, giving them a second life as jewellery that carries the history of a previous existence. The stones embedded in these wearable artworks range from diamonds, meteorites and Egyptian prophecy stones to simple garden pebbles.
Much of Hazelzet’s jewellery is inspired by 19th century wax cameos that he found as a child in a book belonging to his parents. Reproducing the images imprinted on these cameos, the designer casts rings featuring scenes and figures from art history and classical mythology. These same motifs recur across his lamps, vases and furniture, while his sculptures are also depicted in his photos and paintings. Hazelzet thus blurs the boundaries between disciplines and maintains a consistent artistic universe.
Work by Hazelzet has been exhibited at institutions including Palais des Beaux-Arts de Lille, Le Botanique, Centre d’Arts Plastiques Royan, CAC Meymac and Maison de la Culture et des Loisirs. His work is also held in collections including Fond National d’Art Contemporain, ABN AMRO, Collection VR D’Affaux, CNAP – Centre National des Arts Plastiques and MO.CO. Montpellier Contemporain.
Thibault Hazelzet. Hôtel Casanova (2020, Editions Lord Byron), was published for the eponymous exhibition at Galerie Christophe Gaillard in Paris in 2020. Hazelzet also features in the book Au-delà de l'autoportrait (2011, Editions Biffures) by Muriel Berthou Crestey.
