Matter and Shape 2026 returned to the Jardin des Tuileries in Paris for its third edition (6-9 March), gathering more than 70 exhibitors across furniture, objects and decorative arts. This year’s theme – scale – invited designers to consider the relationships between objects, bodies and spaces, from the monumental to the minute.
While collectible furniture and architectural lighting often dominate the fair, a number of designers turned their attention to much smaller propositions. At this scale, design thinking becomes unusually concentrated; materials, ergonomics and fabrication must resolve themselves within a few centimetres of space, sharpening every decision. Across the salon, the most intriguing works were sometimes those designed for the hand, where the smallest gestures carried the greatest precision.
Comb and mirror by Christian + Jade, presented by Aarticles
Among the smallest works at the fair were a comb and compact mirror by the Copenhagen duo Christian + Jade, presented by Aarticles. Made from silver-plated metal and polished stainless steel, the pieces have the clarity of small instruments. The comb measures 9cm × 7cm × 1cm and the mirror slightly more, at 10.5cm × 5cm × 1.5cm, dimensions that draw attention to proportion and balance across their reflective surfaces. Up close, their appeal lies in the way they reward handling and inspection, objects composed for the hand as much as for the eye.
Fred Aartun of Aarticles, the Copenhagen-based design archive and marketplace he co-founded with Kasia Sznajder, notes that the hand remains the primary point of calibration. 'The hands are not only a tool for making the objects, but also for measuring the functionality and tactility of the objects,' he says, describing the way handling determines whether an object feels resolved or slightly off.
‘When scaling down, the objects become a more concentrated study where we have to renegotiate what detailing looks like’
Christian+Jade
Christian + Jade approach the scale as a form of compression. 'For us, what makes a design exciting and unique always lies in the details,' they explain. 'No matter how small or subtle, it is what gives the piece layers of complexity and characteristics. When scaling down, the objects do become a more condensed and concentrated study where we have to renegotiate and explore what detailing looks like. At this scale, the context shifts as well, from how a design piece occupies a space to how it exists in relation to the body, in a hand or a pocket.'
‘PWML3’ frame by Peter Wiesmann for Cassetta
Peter Wiesmann’s ‘PWML3’ frame, produced by Copenhagen-based brand Cassetta, is carved from boxwood and suspended on a silk cord so the small hinged case can be worn on the body or placed on display. Inside sits a photograph by Matthieu Lavanchy. The format brings the framed image away from the wall and into close proximity with the person who carries it.
For Wiesmann, this scale follows the body directly. 'The scale of the objects I design relates directly to the scale of my body,' he says. 'Being able to hold something in your hand allows you to comprehend it not only theoretically but also in a haptic and intuitive way.' Smaller objects remain mobile. They can be touched or carried, changing their environment and relation to other objects. This mobility also means they can be stored away when not in use, giving the object what he describes as 'a certain lightness and charm'.
Cecilie Manz of Cassetta reflects on designing at this scale; while many objects support aspects of the good life around socialising or functionality, she suggests that smaller objects also allow 'a poetic freedom'. Linked to touch and movement, these interactions can trigger what she calls 'plenitudes of perception'. 'Touch is personal and fulfilling,' she says, noting how even the small sounds of placing and turning can become part of the experience. In arrangements of smaller objects, their aesthetics and meanings can also shift in unexpected ways.
‘UFO acorn’ lamp by Simon Dupety
The French designer Simon Dupety began his ‘UFO acorn’ lamp with a single acorn shell fitted with an LED. The larger lamp is built from repeated lighting units, each a small luminous capsule set along a slender aluminium structure. At Matter and Shape, the individual element could also be handled on its own, demonstrating how the larger structure grows from a single tiny component.
Dupety describes the thinking in terms of systems. 'I feel that the smaller an object is, the more it becomes a functional system: like a paperclip, a screw, or a shirt button,' he says. Objects of that scale often contain ingenuity and play because their function must be resolved within very limited dimensions.
The project developed from this idea. The shell harvested from oak trees became the housing for the LED, bringing together what Dupety sees as two forms of serial production: one generated by nature, the other by industry. 'The very nature of a system is that it can be multiplied,' he explains. Starting with this single lighting element allowed him to construct a larger architecture of light.
'Working on the details allows to infuse poetry, especially when they are functional,' Dupety says, describing how an entire structure can depend on a small element that carries both ornament and purpose.
‘Lama’ letter opener by Delfina Delettrez
Delfina Delettrez’s ‘Lama 925’ letter opener, shown as part of her ‘Objets De Vie’ collection, is made in engraved sterling silver and conceived for the hand. The form follows the gesture of opening an envelope, translating the scale and precision of jewellery into a domestic tool.
For Delettrez, designing at this scale centres the relationship between object and body. 'There is a great focus on the relationship between the object and the body, especially the hand and the gesture,' she says. With ‘Lama’, the design is not only about cutting paper but about how the object sits when it is used. Small variations in thickness or curvature can change the movement required to open a letter.
That sensitivity comes directly from her background in jewellery. 'Working at a smaller scale definitely sharpens the design process because every detail matters,' she explains. Designing ‘Lama’ meant working slightly larger than the pieces she usually makes, while maintaining the same attention to proportion and movement.
‘Squeeze’ vase by Wendy Andreu
Wendy Andreu’s ‘Squeeze’ vase is a small glass vessel whose form appears compressed by hand. The piece was produced at CIRVA Marseille (International Centre for Research on Glass and Plastic Arts), where Andreu developed the object as part of her ongoing ‘Jardin mécanique’ series. In photographs by Vanni Bassetti, the vase reads as a compact volume of glass drawn inward at its centre, as if the material had briefly yielded to pressure.
For Andreu, scale shifts the design process itself. ‘While designing, scale is very important,’ she says. Materials behave differently depending on whether the object becomes jewellery, furniture or architecture; reducing the size of the piece removes many structural constraints, allowing ideas to be projected more freely.
In ‘Squeeze’, that freedom appears in the way the glass holds a moment of deformation. The form suggests a gesture applied directly to the material, preserving the impression of pressure within the finished vessel.
‘Orphée’ liqueur glass by Justine Ménard’s
Justine Ménard’s ‘Orphée’ liqueur glass approaches scale through the sensual language of the table. Hand-blown in borosilicate glass, the piece rises from a dense base into a slender bowl that seems almost weightless above it, a form that balances delicacy with a surprising sense of gravity.
The proportions draw on the codes of the digestif glass, where size compresses flavour and atmosphere; a liqueur glass holds only a small measure, yet its presence carries a particular charge at the end of a meal. Ménard frames the design through the figure of Orpheus, evoking what she describes as a poetic duality and 'the sound of the feminine'. The reference lends the glass a faintly mythological register; held lightly between the fingers, it brings ceremony to a modest quantity of liquid.
Placed alongside the other miniature works at Matter and Shape, ‘Orphée’ demonstrates how even the most modest vessel can carry an atmosphere of hospitality. Within a few centimetres of glass it holds not only a drink, but the small theatre of its serving.
See our full highlights from Matter and Shape 2026