M/M (Paris): The Carpetalogue

At the Gallery Libby Sellers, Parisian studio M/M celebrates its twentieth anniversary displaying a limited series of colourful, whimsical rugs, while simultaneously launching a monograph edited by Thames & Hudson.

To celebrate the twentieth anniversary of Parisian studio M/M, and coinciding with the publication of the book M to M M/M (Paris), London's Gallery Libby Sellers commissioned a series of rugs for the exhibition The Carpetologue, which will runs through 15 December.

Michaël Amzalag and Mathias Augustyniak — who describe themselves as "a factory of images and meaning" — established M/M (Paris) in 1992 as a graphic design practice. Through their ongoing collaboration with the world of music (with artists like Madonna and Björk), fashion (Yohji Yamamoto was one of the studio's first clients, followed by the likes of Balenciaga, Givenchy and Stella McCarthy) and contemporary art (clients include Philippe Parremo and Pierre Huyghe as well as institutions such as Tate Modern and the Pompidou Centre in Paris), they have built up a multiple, complex and diversified identity that has earned them a prominent place in 21st century graphic design.

The window onto the street of the London gallery, where passionate and ambitious projects are always shown, presents an image that has characterised the studio for many years: the two designers with television-screen heads, which represents a metaphor for M/M's approach, a collaboration between the two with the world outside. They appear on one of four carpets — all hand-made in Varanasi, India — and refer to a hypothetical cover for an imaginary catalogue of the work of M/M.

Top and above: M/M (Paris), <em>The Carpetalogue</em>, installation view at the Gallery Libby Sellers, London — Top and above: M/M (Paris), *The Carpetalogue*, installation view at the Gallery Libby Sellers, London

Another carpet continues the idea of a page/carpet that combines an illustrative design created for Givenchy — an abstract photograph set against a pixelated background — whose contrast highlights the way that M/M combine a strongly digital spirit with another linked to illustrative images in the form of pencil drawings. The third carpet is an exact reproduction of a page of notes, sketches and visual annotations in which the pair appear again with other classic images from the studio's repertoire. The series of carpets concludes with a large eye that symbolises the invincibility of Japan, made as a contribution to Designers for Japan Relief, a fund-raising initiative in response to the 2011 tsunami.

M/M (Paris), <em>The Carpetalogue</em>, detail of one of the rugs — M/M (Paris), *The Carpetalogue*, detail of one of the rugs

These rugs by M/M (Paris) combine the ability to create free and imaginary shapes — first drawn by hand and then reproduced digitally — with rigorous geometric compositions, the leitmotif of the studio's work. They make up a limited edition of 12 pieces displayed on coloured wooden stands. While providing the backdrop to the exhibition and therefore serving a very specific function, these stands bring to mind the tables designed for a graphic design exhibition at the Triennale in Milan.

These rugs by M/M (Paris) combine the ability to create free and imaginary shapes with rigorous geometric compositions, the leitmotif of the studio's work

M/M (Paris), <em>The Carpetalogue</em>, production — M/M (Paris), *The Carpetalogue*, production

The opening of The Carpetologue exhibition has also offered an opportunity to present in London the extensive catalogue bringing together — through the association of images rather than in chronological order — the work of Michaël Amzalag and Mathias Augustyniak. Published in the United Kingdom by Thames & Hudson, M to M of M/M (Paris) is edited by Emily King, and includes a preface by Hans Ulrich Obrist. The volume features a portrait of one half of M/M (Paris) on the front cover, and the other on the back. Both meet up at the centre of the book, as if to reflect not only on Amzalag and Augustyniak's past work, but also their approach to working together — something they have always given much consideration to. Maria Cristina Didero

Through 15 December 2012
M/M (Paris): The Carpetalogue
Gallery Libby Sellers
41-42 Berners Street, London

M/M (Paris), <em>The Carpetalogue</em>, rug details — M/M (Paris), *The Carpetalogue*, rug details

M/M (Paris): The Carpetalogue

At the Gallery Libby Sellers, Parisian studio M/M celebrates its twentieth anniversary displaying a limited series of colourful, whimsical rugs, while simultaneously launching a monograph edited by Thames & Hudson.

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