Hauvette and Madani Bring an Eclectic Mix of Eras to Interior Architecture
In a world swallowed by minimalism, interior architecture team Hauvette and Madani bring an eclectic mixture of design eras—from Art Deco to postmodernism—into personal and public spaces.
Guided by their cultural upbringing and shared experiences, Paris-based interior architects Samantha Hauvette and Lucas Madani have established a unique approach that centers beauty and craftsmanship at the heart of their work. Coming from a family of painters, sculptors, and interiors enthusiasts, Hauvette initially wanted to become a fashion designer. Eventually, she discovered her passion for interior architecture after enrolling in law school. Hauvette transferred to École Camondo, a five-year product design and interior architecture school in Paris, where she met Madani. “We did all our studies together, from prep to senior year. We took the path of architecture without question,” Hauvette says.
Madani also comes from a creative background: his father is a cabinetmaker, his mother a stylist and culinary photographer. At Camondo, Hauvette and Madani studied under such august professors as Inga Sempé, the renowned furniture designer and Grand Prix de la Création en Design de la Ville de Paris winner, and the late architect Patrick Boulogne, whose passion for the past and present of design continues to deeply influence Hauvette’s and Madani’s work. Shortly after graduating, the duo launched their eponymous agency. Clients gave them carte blanche to create singular spaces early in their illustrious careers. “By specializing in private projects, we were able to appreciate each meeting,” Madani says. “We like the symbiosis between our clients' ideas and ours. In retrospect, it allowed us to find our style. But it didn’t prevent us from working on hotels, restaurants, and even offices. We like to have several types of clients.”
Hauvette and Madani always begin with a blank canvas, gradually adding natural materials like wood or marble before infusing furnishings, color, artwork, and other embellishments. Their work is about appreciating precious materials but not in an imposing way. Instead, they prefer to play with delicate details and meticulous craftsmanship; the kind of delicate details you might not notice at first glance, but will appreciate over time. Their style is distinct, blending different periods and genres from Art Deco to mid-century modern to ‘70s postmodernism. “It looks like a weathered interior, but not outdated. We like the feeling of experience.”
"It looks like a weathered interior, but not outdated. We like the feeling of experience."
The team’s significant works include the renovation of an apartment/workshop at architect André Lurçat’s Villa Guggenbühl, which lies opposite Montsouris Park in Paris. For this project, Hauvette and Madani started with simple, clean lines before implementing timeless wood and natural fibers on the walls with polished, ultra-modern stainless steel in the kitchen.
For the renovation of an apartment along Avenue Montaigne, the designers eloquently executed the clever, unexpected twist of aesthetics that’s become their signature: a Sarah Crowner fireplace juxtaposed with a vintage Egg Garden armchair, a Jean Prouvé daybed flanked by a Franz West sculpture. Both projects exemplify the duo’s emphasis on a mixture of styles that bring to life a space’s architecture, furnishings, and artwork.
Hauvette and Madani’s public projects include the Hotel Wallace in Paris and Egyptian chef Omar Dhiab’s eponymous Michelin-starred restaurant near Places des Victoires. At the moment, they’re working on a new hotel in the Camargue by Les Bains Douches owner Jean-Pierre Marois, and on the renovation of a gallery-apartment in London in collaboration with Zürich gallerist Maria Bernheim. They developed a collection of furniture called Amuse Bouche that debuted at Paris Design Week in 2021, and their next collection will roll out this year.
While more architects today are rushing to incorporate AI and 3-D modeling in their practices, Hauvette and Madani remain somewhat ambivalent about the place of new technologies in the final outcomes. “They serve to inspire us, but never to make a finished product. AI is perfect for testing ideas, like [having] a conversation with back-and-forth, but certainly not one-way. Our customers are [obsessed] with 3-D modeling, but the image is not comparable to the experience or the eye. 3-D presents an idea of the volume and the general atmosphere, but that’s all. Its use has become an obligation, and it is a part of our work process, but the eye remains our best ally.”
