louis barthélemy: a deep-dive into culture

louis barthélemy is a multidisciplinary artist, creating works of illustration, tapestry, clothing, and decorative objects. leaning on an illustrious career in fashion, barthélemy’s fascination with arabic heritage informs and nurtures his work. far from being an outsider, he immersed himself through frequent travels to cairo, marrakesh, and beirut, studying the panoply of cultures – focusing on the mystical frescoes of egyptology – and working with artisans, who still use the techniques of their predecessors. barthélemy is here to revive ancient crafts and put artisans at the forefront.

interview by philippe ghabayen

you’ve had quite an interesting career that led you to the world of art. tell me more about this journey.

my journey into the arts is an ever-evolving one. i was trained in london, at central st. martin's, with the intention of working exclusively in fashion and becoming a women's wear designer. i was in my very early twenties, and my dream was to work for john galliano. i was lucky to get a job with him during his tenure at christian dior. i started developing prints and embroideries under galliano’s direction. it was a wonderful experience. during my four-year stint with the house, i lived through the departure of john and the arrival of raph simmons, who was an excellent colorist. however, i never felt quite comfortable in the corporate world. this socio professional theater i was immersed in left me feeling disillusioned. that is when i decided to move to morocco. it was spontaneous and not preplanned, but i had this longing to discover new horizons, new cultures, and forms of otherness. that is when i started to experiment with craft people without any specific agenda. i was just trying to translate personal drawings through different techniques. later on, these drawings came to life during my travels to egypt. y

our fascination with egyptology is apparent in your work. it is almost a study of those ancient frescos, their codes and the overall richness of that heritage and its craft. where did this obsession come from? were you a pharaoh in a past life?

i might have been! i grew up in london. when my parents would take me to the british museum, i would spend all my time in the egyptian wing and i developed a fixation with the culture. later on, i discovered the work of a french artist, denis daille. he created these poignant family portraits of egyptian bodybuilders with their mothers, which nourished my intrigue further. it wasn’t until i was 25 years old that i was finally able to visit egypt and immerse myself in the culture.

i wanted to fully understand the history. it really felt like going back to school to learn the foundation of iconography and art history. i wasn’t just drawn by the heritage, but also by the living crafts, which have survived against all odds. it was probably the first time in my life where i was not evolving in a social context that i fully understood. i was sort of lost in the midst of it. i brought my drawings with me and was looking for a way to bring them to life. it is through my contact with artisans that i have woven myself into the human fabric of egyptian society. the journey started off with the masters of khayamiya appliqué, which dates back from the ottoman time. then came the kilim weaving, a rural practice, where i truly immersed myself with the weavers. they were very hospitable, and welcomed me in their homes. i guess this whole phase of experimentation lasted a couple of years, until it caught the attention of some collectors and journalists.

this encouraged me to affirm myself as an artist. it was not a conscious act to become an artist. i was just seeking emotions for myself. i wanted to be moved by what i do. however, later on, when it had echoed with an audience, it was extremely encouraging. that is when i started branching out, and playing with ceramics in england, with wooden marquetry in damascus and so on. this has been my journey. occasionally, i am called back by fashion brands to collaborate with them, and to endorse the role of fashion designer provisionally.

how do you navigate between appropriating a culture and paying tribute to it? how do you commit to giving artisans a platform through your creations?

i was raised with this very western-centric and exclusively european vision of taste and sophistication. having the privilege to travel around the world with my parents at a young age, i was exposed to so many forms of beauty outside of that academic frame, which i found boring. this feeling of wanting to break-free really reached its climax at dior, where i felt a sense of rejection of not only where i was from, but also of this cultural supremacism that is unconscious and embedded in europe. i wanted to step out of it and have a personal reading of different cultures. i was led to those incredible craftsmen by genuine appreciation for what they do, what they defend, what they endure, and what they represent.

i wanted this work to be seen and appreciated back home: i made it my mission to bridge between both worlds, and bring the stories behind these crafts through my drawings. it came from a desire to celebrate humanity and the things we all share and have in common. at times, i have been accused of cultural appropriation, and i do acknowledge that. some see it a form of celebration, while others see it as appropriation. it depends on who you ask. i am trying to be honest with myself; i see a genuine admiration and love for the culture that i am in constant dialogue with.

you’ve worked and have been immersed in moroccan, syrian, and lebanese cultures. what struck you the most about each of these cultures, and how have they inspired your work?

what inspires me continuously in the region is the human aspect, the humanity that comes out from the people i work with and the spheres i evolve in. i always find it extremely graceful. every time i come back to paris, it feels terribly tepid. unfortunately, i don't find this grace, this warmth, this generosity anywhere else. i think what keeps me coming back, what drags me back to the region is really the hospitality, and the sensitivity of people. once there, i explore, and i look around me. the region has always been a cultural hub. it's close to the mediterranean and sits between two or three continents. it's also this hybrid and deeply layered heritage that fascinates me. in egypt, you feel roman and ottoman influences, mixed with a hint of british architecture and manners. the country is a mosaic, which regroups different worlds, characterized by its distinctive cacophony. it is this lack of order that gives a creative mind a lot of liberty. the idea of absolute harmony is extremely muzzling for an artist because the paths of expression are being restricted. ultimately, i enjoy telling these stories.

"this feeling of wanting to break-free really reached its climax at dior, where i felt a sense of rejection of not only where i was from, but also of this cultural supremacism that is unconscious and embedded in europe."

speaking of playfulness, your approach to art is very eclectic. you created your own niche. what are some artists and art movements that have inspired you?

it is hard to pick, but there are two modern figures that i deeply admire. one is the italian artist alighiero boetti, and the other one is the egyptian architect ramses wissa wassef. i feel both have a similar approach in their work by using textile as a medium. they would develop tapestries, not by themselves, but always with a collective of people. wassef worked on this project in what used to be a rural area outside of central cairo, which is now part of the city. it was a foundation where everyone was allowed to come in and learn a craft. as an incentive to build those skills, they were offered food and education. i love the idea of reviving crafts by making them lucrative for people. the space had a beautiful dome and a great garden, designed in the spirit of the incredible architect hasan fatih. what is beautiful is that he gave no academic art background to the children nor to the people involved in the initiative; they would express raw emotions. this resulted in a very intuitive form of expression. the textiles that came out of his foundation were extremely new and fresh – he pioneered a style which is being repeated after his passing. till today the foundation remains, recruits and welcomes a lot of people from giza. i find it very admirable, not only from a creative perspective, but also from a social one. similarly, alighiero boetti’s work was meaningful and socially disruptive. he was italian based in kabul, where he set up the “one hotel”. it is an artistic commune where he created large colorful embroideries, commissioning women at an embroidery school in kabul to embroider his tapestries. boetti's maps reflect a changing geopolitical world. a period that included the collapse of the soviet union and the fall of the berlin wall. through the flags of each nation, he documented the evolution of the diplomatic scene, change of borders, and the creation of nations at a time where blocks were imploding and the geopolitical climate shifting. boeti followed the artists and the weavers, who moved to refugee camps at the border of pakistan. he carried on developing sublime works by taking a technique out of its initial context and giving it a much more universal aspect. his work, and the work of those women, is seen in the biggest museums around the world... so yeah, these two artists have deeply inspired and moved me.

beautiful. and if you were a piece of art, which one would you be?

ha! maybe one of those voluptuous frescoes, which you see in the villa de mysteries in pompeii.