Since 2012, Maison Perrier-Jouët has collaborated with Design Miami/ in order to offer contemporary artists and designers an international platform for their creativity. As part of this mission, Maison Perrier-Jouët commissions talents, both emerging and established, to reinterpret its enduring relationship with art and nature – and in particular its Art Nouveau heritage – through the prism of the 21st century.

For Design Miami/ 2020, Maison Perrier-Jouët is renewing its long-standing collaboration with the Austrian design practice mischer’traxler studio, founded by Katharina Mischer and Thomas Traxler. The work presented this year, Curiosity Cloud, continues mischer’traxler’s reflection on the relationship between man and nature, and enriches it with considerations of the influence of human activity and the importance of biodiversity – a mindful approach the designers share with Maison Perrier-Jouët, which has launched an ambitious programme to promote sustainable viticulture and reduce its own environmental impact, in line with its 200-year heritage of evolving in symbiosis with nature.

The Curiosity Cloud chandelier is composed of 22 mouth-blown glass bulbs of three different sizes, specially created by the renowned Viennese glassware company Lobmeyr. Each contains a delicate, hand-crafted replica of an insect common in the United States, speaking to the America(s) theme of Design Miami/ 2020. However, among the native insects are also a number of invasive species, illustrating changes to nature and biodiversity that have been brought about by human activities such as global travel and transportation.

From a distance, the insects are quiet and still. Just one or two seem to come to life, their vessels emitting a soft, glowing light. As the intrigued spectator is drawn towards them, more insects start to move, swirling around inside their glass bulbs, their fluttering wings creating a subtle soundscape. As in a cabinet of curiosities, this sensory installation presents the beauty and diversity of nature, yet also highlights its fragility and vulnerability, prompting reflections that have an even greater relevance today.

With this new phase in their collaboration, mischer’traxler and Maison Perrier-Jouët have created a moment of re-enchantment that opens up the possibility of a truly meaningful and transformative experience.