ART BY FRIENDS - Opinel Series

5 questions for ART BY FRIENDS

Presentation

Surname: Regnaudin

First name: Camille

Age: 35

Town: Annecy

Country: France

Profession: Artistic Director

My favourite Opinel knife: N°08

What is Art-By Friends?

Art By Friends is a collective of artists, a group of friends and a team of artistic adventurers that have been based in Annecy since 2008. Art By Friends is also a cultural venue which includes an art gallery, a showroom and artists' studios ... This year, we're celebrating 10 years of activity!

Why did you choose Opinel as a material/artistic medium to work with?

For several years, we have been specializing in reworking objects. In particular, for skateboards produced mainly using Canadian maple. For these themed exhibitions, we have always wanted to work with wood materials with a strong identity. In search of something more original and to energize our exhibitions, Opinel was naturally too good to miss. A new original and creative challenge for our artists.

Oeuvre Tank Popek - © photo Laurianne Conesa

How are the artists selected and are they given guidelines to follow for their work? The diversity of the artists presented is part of Art By Friends's DNA. That's why, you’ll find illustrators, graphic artists, tattoo artists, sculptors, designers and painters throughout this exhibition ... art school students alongside renowned artists from here and all over the world. We work on each project with a main core of artists (right from the start), which gradually expands through invitations, recommendations and introductions. We aim to promote work from both emerging and already established artists, who put 100% into their work.

In the first phase of the exhibition, we put forward creative and presentation guidelines to the artists, for example a certain opening angle for the blade, the handle positioned to the right, a clean background frame format for No.8 and No.13, changing around the handle and blade ... but in the end we decided not to impose these guidelines so as to allow for artistic freedom.

Teaser Exposition Opinel Series - Bayreuth (Allemagne)

Do you remember your first Opinel?

My first memory of Opinel, goes back to my childhood and the first time I saw my "Grandpa" Marcel, a farmer in Auvergne, using his Opinel ... A No.8, which was always with him, and served as both his work companion and table knife. I think it was him who gave me my first Opinel. Just as a little anecdote aside, having worked for a few years in a skateboard shop, I also remember regularly using an Opinel No.8 as a tool to cut grips*.

* Layer placed on the top of boards to create adhesion

What is your relationship with the Opinel brand? (personally and professionally)? From a professional perspective, it's an amazing opportunity to work with Opinel. The company and its team have always been great to work with on our various collaborations and projects. For the Opinel Series exhibition, the artists and Art By Friends had carte blanche and this originality must be emphasized!

From a more personal perspective, having been able to work with Opinel in recent years, has brought Opinel back into my everyday life. So I would say that my professional and personal relationship with the brand is the same. One of high quality and one of trust.