Background

Gwendal Le Bihan and Edouard Danais, both architecture graduates from ENSA Nantes, crossed paths during their studies in Brazil. Following separate assignments in various architecture agencies resulting in individual projects, they decided to unite forces in 2018, founding Exercice. The primary objective of this collaboration was to leverage their collective experiences, establishing a design and architecture studio focused on material experimentation. Their vision aimed to merge technical expertise with creative exploration, blending precision with artistic liberty, and placing the expertise of artisans at the core of their design process.

Signature Style

Exercice engages in diverse projects spanning from buildings to furniture and urban spaces. Despite the broad spectrum of these ventures, Exercice remains committed to highlight the craftsmanship and techniques of artisans in their work. This commitment is intricately intertwined with their ongoing research on materials. The assembly and conception of spaces or objects serve as pivotal elements in their creative process. Throughout their projects, Exercice pursues efficiency and strives to distill design to its essence.

Showstoppers

Each design project becomes an avenue for in-depth research into materials and techniques rooted in craftsmanship and manufacturers’ expertise. Embracing this ethos, Edouard and Gwendal collaborated with Glass Variations, focusing solely on a single material: glass assembled by UV bonding. “While glass is often perceived as cold and unsuitable for everyday design use despite its warmth in architecture, it possesses exceptional qualities that evoke purity, finesse, and ethereal lightness. The graphical intrigue derived from layering glass and exploring transparencies inspired us to craft a highly geometric design for the MONOLOG collection,” comment the two designers.