Janaïna Milheiro stumbled upon featherwork quite by chance. At textile design school she was encouraged to collect materials. When the moment came to start her end of year diploma work, she delved into her collection and picked out feathers, using them to create a series of small fabrics. Her journey with feathers then unfolded very organically, through experimentation. “I started to work the feathers by weaving and embroidering them,” she says. “Weaving helped me discover this material.” Following her studies, she presented these pieces at a Paris exhibition dedicated to exceptional textiles, kick-starting her career.

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In the neighbourhood of the historically famous Bastille, a variety of craftspeople devoted to the promotion and discovery of craftsmanship can be found. Plan a trip to explore a variety of crafts, from leatherworking to featherworking.

Paris: in the shadow of the Bastille

While visiting the capital, come and take a walk in the historical neighbourhood of La Bastille. Follow our 12 recommendations to discover this area and its resident master craftspeople and workshops.

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The geometric forms of this translucent framed feather design generate a number of symmetrical patterns such as triangles and diamonds, evocative of classical mosaics. The meticulously cut feathers create a petal-like pattern. Janaïna proposes an experimental, technical approach inspired by textile handcrafts such as lace, weaving and embroidery.

Mosaïque

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A brass net holds gold and purple goose feathers arranged into a pattern that evokes leaves on a branch. This ceiling-hung feather installation was first presented in an exhibition at Robert Four's Paris gallery.

Feuillages

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A net of gilded goose feathers has been carefully sewn onto an old fragment of an Aubusson tapestry by Robert Four. Created from the assembled feathers, the pattern is reminiscent of leaves. The piece was exhibited in the Robert Four exhibition room in Paris among old and new hand-sewn tapestries with classical motifs.

Verdure

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Designed by John Galliano, this gold colour dress was made from an assembly of turkey feathers gilded with gold leaf for Maison Margiela's Fall / Winter 2017 Runway.

Robe articulée

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The Institut pour les Savoir-Faire Français (the French Savoir-Faire Institute) is a public-interest association working under the umbrella of the French Ministry of Economy, Finance and Industrial and Digital Sovereignty, the Ministry of Culture and the Ministry of Education. It provides support to businesses in the artistic crafts sector as well as those certified as Living Heritage Companies. The Institute helps promote French savoir-faire throughout France and the world. The Institute's actions include the coordination of European Artistic Craft Days (6,000 events in France each year); efforts to promote joint undertakings by professionals, institutions, businesses, decision-makers and influencers; the production of sector-related data and reference documents; the Maîtres d’art-Élèves programme; awareness-raising amongst young people and support for training initiatives; and management of the French government’s 'Entreprise du Patrimoine Vivant' (EPV) – Living Heritage Company label. The French Savoir-Faire Institute designs and champions actions geared towards promoting an artistic crafts sector that is accessible and inspiring – an ambassador of world-class French excellence in craftsmanship.

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Looking back over the years, there is sometimes a moment that stands out, drawing a line between what was and what is. For Eric Charles-Donatien, that moment was when he met the man who would become his mentor, André Lemarié. While studying at the Ecole Duperré in Paris, Eric was working on a dress for an exhibition and wanted to incorporate feathers into his design. A woman working for a South African ostrich farm gave him the material to do so, and was so enthralled by his work that she introduced him to her friend Lemarié, the Parisian master of featherwork. Lemarié decided to have Eric temporarily assist in the modernisation of his archives, and Eric ultimately stayed with the company for 15 years, becoming its creative director.

Charles-Donatien, Eric

Flying high in the Paris fashion world

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Stéphanie Dunand’s career as a floral designer sprouted in Africa and blossomed in France. It all started when she was living in Senegal. A flower lover since childhood, she met Ousmane who shared her passion, and together they decided to launch a florist's especially for expats, as there was no such thing there. The business flourished: "We wanted the best for our customers, so we used to get a great variety of flowers from Holland: lilies of the valley, tulips, orchids and many others," she says. Yet, soon Stéphanie got bored with the shop. As she dreamed of shifting her focus from selling bouquets to arranging flowers for weddings and big events, she moved back to her native France, where her luxury atelier So Art Floral was born.

Dunand, Stéphanie

The bride's fairy godmother

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Valérie Tanfin is a master featherworker who draws from her experience working in haute couture and performing arts. The juxtaposition of these two worlds allowed her to acquire a unique and broad savoir-faire. From the lightness and delicacy of a feather, to its movement and volume, Valérie’s work is a constant quest for pure refinement. Light holds a particular place in her creations, she likes to play with it to reveal the nuances in each feather. Whether for interior decoration projects, adornment accessories or works of art, Valérie’s feathers unfold gracefully and highlight the poetry of this natural material. Besides her fascination for nature, she is inspired by many artists such as Frida Kahlo, Pierre Soulages and Anish Kapoor.

Tanfin, Valérie

Magic feathers

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There is a turning point in everyone’s life. For Elena Borg, it was the year she spent in Australia after studying communication, press and graphic design in France. Living abroad gave her the opportunity to discover herself. When she went back home, she still didn’t know that she would become a flower designer, but she soon realized that she would rather work by herself with nature and creativity than in an office. One year later, her atelier Tepee Sauvage was born. Elena took a course to learn the basis of floristry, then she attended many workshops both in person and online, learning from French and American floral designers. Today, Elena specialises in weddings and events, both in the Landes region where she lives, and the surrounding regions.

Borg, Elena

Walking on the wild side

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Your authorizations

Developed in partnership with Fondazione Cologni dei Mestieri d’Arte and made possible by the support of Cartier, Homo Faber in Città gives you a rare chance to visit over 70 artisan workshops. The project is developed in collaboration with Fondazione Giorgio Cini, Confartigianato Imprese Venezia, CNA Venezia, Consorzio Promovetro Murano, The Venice Glass Week and Venezia da Vivere.

Our Partners

Step inside the workshops and ateliers to learn the secrets of local master artisans and manufacturers

Try your hand at different crafts with an authentic experience

Marvel at examples of fine craftsmanship by doing our itineraries

This september, the second edition of Homo Faber in Città invites visitors to step off the beaten track and discover the artisanal addresses where Venetian craftspeople create objects of exquisite beauty. A rare opportunity to witness Venice’s master artisans and young talents demonstrating their crafts and presenting the tools, materials and skills involved in contemporary Venetian craftsmanship.

Enrich your experience beyond Homo Faber 2024: The Journey of Life

Account and data history

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Homo Faber Guide is an online portal dedicated to contemporary craftsmanship, showcasing artisans, ateliers, museums, galleries, shops and experiences. Create your user account for access to exclusive features on Homo Faber Guide: save your preferred pages, hear about hot topics first, leave recommendations for your favourite artisans and much more.

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Although the Michelangelo Foundation researches the talents for its projects autonomously, collaboration with our ambassadors is fundamental. Over 120 associations, schools and institutions allow us to map the continents for craftsmanship and to have partners in each country who share our vision and goals. In addition, we have asked well-known personalities in the craft, design and art world to be our ambassadors in the cities where they live, so that their recommendations can offer a unique insight into craftsmanship in the major cities of Europe and beyond.

Who are our ambassadors?

Download our free Homo Faber Guide app (iOS and Android) to discover artisans, museums, galleries, shops, and experiences by location. Search Homo Faber on the App store on your mobile device.

Find craftsmanship destinations on the go

Discover the addresses of esteemed manufacturers, well known for producing high quality objects across a wide variety of crafts. Read their stories and find out where you can shop their contemporary pieces, see their archive collections and even in some cases visit their workshops. Find exceptional ateliers where artisans collaborate creatively to create fine pieces of craftsmanship. Reach out to them to commission something special.

Ateliers & Manufacturers

All the artisans and small workshops featured in Homo Faber Guide have been carefully researched and selected. They are presented and narrated through a selection of images and an interview, which allows readers to immerse themselves in the universe of these makers who exemplify excellence in their individual fields or are promising talents of the future. Find masters and rising stars who share the same passion and determination, and whose workshops are ready to share their secrets with visitors.

A selection of the best artisans

Are you eager to discover a city through craftsmanship? Do you wish to spend a few hours visiting an applied arts museum or attending a course on a craft with one of the masters featured in Homo Faber Guide? Browse the section dedicated to experiences and find your next adventure.

Experiences

An expert artisan is an accomplished artisan who has been in activity for more than ten years. He or she may also be engaged in passing on their knowledge to the next generations, but they have been doing so for less than seven years. Beyond this, they will become a Master artisan.

Who is an Expert artisan?

Homo Faber Guide provides you with a selection of the best addresses across Europe and further afield, where you will be able to discover and purchase exceptional objects, some of which are created by artisans featured in Homo Faber Guide.

Galleries

Homo Faber Guide is an online platform dedicated to craftsmanship that allows you to discover artisans and their masterpieces; explore museums, visit galleries and shops selling unique objects; enjoy experiences in cities across Europe and beyond.

Homo Faber Guide is a signature project developed by the Michelangelo Foundation for Creativity and Craftsmanship, an international non-profit organisation based in Geneva, Switzerland, which was set up in 2016 thanks to the intuition of Franco Cologni and Johann Rupert. The Michelangelo Foundation’s mission is to celebrate and preserve master craftsmanship, and for this reason it has created a map of the most significant representatives in this field, with the aim of connecting all its protagonists: artisans, designers, gallery owners, art curators, collectors and enthusiasts of high-quality handmade pieces.

About the Guide

Are you an artisan, atelier or manufacturer? Would you like to be featured in Homo Faber Guide? The Michelangelo Foundation encourages self-assessment initiatives and is pleased to evaluate new members to appear on the Guide or in other projects. Thanks to the Master’s Touch Evaluation Tool, every artisan can send their application: register and access a questionnaire to see if you fulfill the 11 criteria for excellence that stand behind all the activities of the Michelangelo Foundation. If your answers reach the minimum requirement, your application will be brought to our attention; if, on the contrary, you should score below the minimum requirement, we will give you some points for improvement, in the hope that you may participate in future initiatives of the Michelangelo Foundation.

Join the Homo Faber Guide!

Our artisan labels

A master artisan is an accomplished artisan who has been in activity for more than ten years, and who has also been engaged in passing on his or her expertise to the younger generations for more than seven years. This is in keeping with one of the key values of the Michelangelo Foundation: the transmission of knowledge in craftsmanship.

Who is a Master artisan?

Find museums handpicked for their links to contemporary craftsmanship and the exquisite collections they have on display. In each city, discover a museum of interest and organise your visit. From Italian museums displaying coral collections, glass pieces and ceramics to decorative art museums in Russia and Greece, marvel at the variety of museums exhibiting masterpieces, showcasing techniques and recounting histories.

Museums

A rising star is an artisan who has been active for less than ten years, and who is capable of expressing his or her craft with competence, creativity and originality. Whether self-taught or trained, the rising star represents the future of craftsmanship, in creativity, concerns and approaches.

Who is a Rising star?

The artisans featured in Homo Faber Guide have been selected through a meticulous assessment process based on the 11 criteria for excellence, identified by Alberto Cavalli, Executive Director of the Michelangelo Foundation, in the volume The Master’s Touch, written with researchers Giuditta Comerci and Giovanna Marchello. The members of the Michelangelo Foundation’s network who have been invited to participate in sourcing artisans for the Guide use an evaluation tool based on these criteria. In this way, they can identify the most suitable artisans to include in the project.

Simple rules for a transparent selection

In which city does the artisan work?

In which country does the artisan practise?

What craft does the artisan practise?

What is the artisan’s Instagram page?

What is the name of the artisan you are recommending?

Does the artisan have a website?

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