Emmanuel Hugnot

At the intersection of experimental design and digital craftsmanship, Emmanuel Hugnot stands apart with a radical, deeply personal approach. A designer who builds his own machines to push the boundaries of 3D printing, he explores clay, bioplastics, and composite materials through singular processes that merge generative code with manual intervention. Whether creating seating, lighting, totems, or sculptural assemblies, Hugnot develops parametric protocols that articulate robotic precision with the expressive gesture of the hand.

He embodies a rare kind of verticality: from concept to fabrication, every stage of the process is conceived and executed by his own hand. More than a question of control, this self-sufficiency reveals the curiosity of an artist fully committed to his path: a form of ongoing, open-ended research where nothing is ever fully resolved.

Each of his objects — from totemic lamps to modular structures — bears the layered depth of iterative experimentation. His work inhabits the tension between low-tech materiality and algorithmic logic, where code and clay coexist. Favoring sustainable materials such as PLA bioplastic, natural clay, or industrial offcuts, Hugnot engages in a thoughtful, purpose-driven practice. As a result, his lighting pieces and sculptural forms resonate strongly in contemporary interiors, blurring the line between functional object and collectible design.

With a background in art and design education (ESAD Orléans, ENSAD Paris), Hugnot teaches design and regularly exhibits across Europe — from the Biennale Internationale Design Saint-Étienne and the Rotterdam Design Biennale, to the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris. His “Squish Totem” lamps, emblematic of his hybrid process, combine parametric design with manual distortion, resulting in luminous, one-of-a-kind sculptures.

Chosen by Tempo for the uncompromising depth of his practice and singular universe, Hugnot is an artist who invites us to slow down, look closer, and reimagine how carefully crafted design can transform our spaces, awakening us to the need to feel and perceive the layered complexity of each object.