Atelier blam: collective intelligence and the genius of possibilities

That same night, a second piece from the workshop took flight. EDF originally envisaged a flame without combustion and had some promising ideas, though these still needed to be fleshed out, so they brought in blam right from the early preliminary design stages. Designed by Mathieu Lehanneur, the basin was conceived and produced by the studio: a ring approximately seven metres in diameter where 200 nozzles disperse a mist that 40 LED projectors transform into an electric fire. Within six months, the team had won the support of EDF, the organising committee of the Games, and subsequently the International Olympic Committee.

It was a huge gamble for the company. Aurélien Meyer took it on with the conviction of an entrepreneur for whom the value of a decision is measured by its soundness. His appetite for risk runs deep: he comes from a line of creators and entrepreneurs and was raised by nature-loving parents to be bold. The studio is quick to persuade and patient in refining details, and has brought these two approaches together in the basin.

To truly appreciate the area, you must visit Couëron. The workshop is located on the edge of a marsh, where the young Jean-Jacques Audubon — the future painter of American birds — created his first sketches. The banks are inhabited by little egrets and storks, the Loire flows nearby and at night, the area belongs more to wild boars than to humans. The site preserves the memory of an industrial utopia: in the late 1980s, this industrial estate was home to the production of Venturi French grand tourers, which were renowned for their superb styling. In the 2000s, a building was constructed there for the assembly of heavy frames for Naval Group, and blam now occupies a cathedral-like hall with exceptionally high ceilings and a workbench measuring around one thousand square metres, which is exceptionally flat and capable of supporting one hundred and twenty tonnes. The workshop produces everything from tiny, delicate parts to monumental assemblies, such as the masts and curved copper-aluminium tubes that adorn the forecourt of the Bourse du Commerce in Paris.

The permanent staff comprises around twenty people. On major projects, the team grows to around fifty. Engineers, architects, designers, workshop managers, metalworkers and a metalworking apprentice all work together at blam, each playing their part. Aurélien Meyer places great value on education and the knowledge it brings, as well as on the energy, diversity of backgrounds, and richness of personalities. For him, education is a powerful tool for social empowerment, particularly for those from working-class and middle-class backgrounds. Talent comes from three main sources. Firstly, there are schools, which Aurélien has always valued: his workshop colleagues deliver masterclasses at institutions ranging from Centrale to the University of Technology of Compiègne, as well as at architecture and art schools. They engage with young people who are eager to turn their ideals into reality. Secondly, the Nantes area, home to several flagship French industrial companies. Finally, culture is the most precious source of talent in his view. Nantes is home to the Royal de Luxe theatre company and La Machine, and a whole community of artists and performance technicians fuels the studio’s projects.

Aurélien Meyer approaches creation with the perspective of a historian. The Renaissance popularised the concept of the individual genius by divorcing the artist from their workshop, while Romanticism romanticised the moment of inspiration. This dual legacy makes it difficult even today to fully recognise the value of multiple contributions. Meyer likes to recount the tale of the Eiffel Tower, which was initially sketched in 1884 by two in-house engineers, Maurice Koechlin and Émile Nouguier. Gustave Eiffel, whose name alone has gone down in history, was initially reserved about the idea. However, the founder of blam sees a new generation that is more attentive to everyone’s contributions. His role, and that of the studio, is growing, with the studio involved in every project from conception to installation. This dialogue has nourished his long-standing collaboration with Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec, from the six crystal fountains on the Champs-Élysées to the Belvédère overlooking the Vilaine in Rennes. They are brought together by similar educational backgrounds – Ronan studied at the École des Arts Décoratifs and Erwan and he himself studied at the École des Beaux-Arts – and shared values: design rooted in the long term, precision, and lasting emotion.

At blam, productivity takes a back seat to the long-term perspective—that of precision. This is exemplified by Clair-Obscur, which involved three years of research into glass forms, anodised finishes and assembly systems. The result was twenty-three pieces designed by Ronan Bouroullec and exhibited at the Galerie kreo in 2025. The pieces are made of smoked, amber or clear blown glass and anodised aluminium. Behind their apparent simplicity lies a complex assembly process, the result of a long and rigorous development process. The workshop reserves the right to decline commissions with overly tight deadlines, as doing things properly takes precedence above all else. This approach now guides its major heritage project. For the future Bayeux Tapestry Museum, blam is designing the table that will house the embroidery – nearly seventy metres long – in collaboration with the RSHP agency and the exhibition designers at FL & CO. A deliberately simple turning mechanism will allow conservators to work on both sides of the embroidery without ever folding it. Designing the setting for such a masterpiece in collaboration with the town, the museum and its curators is a great responsibility for Aurélien Meyer — and above all, a joy.