Isabelle Emmerique

Lacquerer

©Richard Alcock

©A. Detienne

A world of lacquer

Isabelle combines traditional techniques with a modern aesthetic
Her travels to Asia inform her lacquering techniques
She worked on the first restoration of the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles

Isabelle Emmerique knew from an early age that she wanted to be a painter, so while she was finishing her high school studies she passed the entrance exams for art schools and was admitted to ENSAAMA in Paris. After a foundation year exploring various different art forms, her focus turned very quickly towards mural art. However, one day, by chance, she discovered the school’s lacquer workshop and immediately fell in love with it. “I loved everything. I liked the smell, the precision, the calm and the silence of the workshop... I even liked what they wore. And that was it. It's been 41 years now.”

Interview

©Antony Gilardy

©A. Detienne

Do you remember the first object you made?: Absolutely. It was at school. It was a small work, I had taken a cabbage flower as my subject, and that's what I lacquered. Cabbage has beautiful colours – purple, green, soft green – and I tried to express that, so it became a pretty colourful painting.
How did you develop your particular style of lacquering?: By studying at art school I was able to put in place creative processes and develop curiosity, so although I learned about art in a relatively traditional way, I had the tools to transform it into something else. I have invented quite a few things in my career or reinterpreted things in a different way.
So innovation is important to you?: I enjoy being innovative. I am always on the look-out for new products, new colours and new knowledge. I do historical research by travelling to Asia, at least once a year. Tradition is important but it’s also vital to know how to do things differently, it’s a constant back and forth between the two.
What do you love about what you do?: Spending hours in my workshop working calmly, listening to music. A special moment is when I open the door in the morning and my eyes land on the work I did the day before, and in my head there is a voice telling me if it’s good or not. It’s a unique moment that I can’t share with anyone.

Isabelle Emmerique is a master artisan: she began her career in 1981 and she started teaching in 1982