Harry Nuriev in full denim at Carpenters Workshop Gallery

In his new exhibition at the Carpenters Workshop Gallery in Paris, Harry Nuriev revisits denim by dressing the furniture and spaces of a fake apartment. The creator thus associates design and fashion by carrying out an investigation into the change in the way we look at contemporary everyday objects.

Iconic material of cowboy and rebel uniforms, hippie banner and pop fetish since Andy Warhol consecrated it in 1971 on the Rolling Stones' "Sticky Fingers" album cover, denim represents an emblematic texture endless winks. For “Denim”, his new exhibition at the Carpenters Workshop gallery in the Marais, Harry Nuriev (born in 1984, Russia) seizes on this color by presenting an installation composed of several interchangeable elements which aim to reconstitute an apartment and its micro- environments. The interiors of the Paris-based Russian designer are easily recognizable at first glance by his use of color, or rather a predominant shade, which acts as a common thread in his work. Nuriev defines himself as "monogamous" and has a habit of sticking to one shade for a few months. For him, color even takes precedence over form.

In this logic, Harry Nuriev presents objects that seem banal at first glance, ranging from a dressing table to gym equipment and a DJ booth, all adorned with denim of the same tone. One of the most striking pieces of furniture is a large sofa which turns out to be much more sophisticated than it seems, since it is arranged in such a way that it can be used as a table for dining or working, or as a bed to rest on. This alternative design is also accompanied by numerous electronic devices, underlined in acid pink casings: auxiliary lamps, USB ports and even an IPad station, where an application seems ready to place orders at home. The artist considers furniture as an extension of our needs, which allows his creations to meet current needs.

A great admirer of Bauhaus, Russian constructivism, minimalism and the Memphis group, as well as 3D images, NFTs and the metaverse, Harry Nuriev mixes the virtual and the physical, the experimental and the pop, the simple and the luxurious, like no one else. Thanks to his transformist vision, the designer reassesses what already exists and shows it in a new light. According to Nuriev, interior architecture brings together design, architecture and art, and in this equation he excludes fashion which is, despite everything, a true extension of our identity. Thus, using denim as a blank canvas, the designer creates a series of deliberately hybrid pieces that lead us to question our own relationship with the furniture that surrounds us.