BRICKS

Here, the results of a one year collaboration, between HIER and briqueterie HOULÉ.
You can check out the feel of each brick made @fondationboghossian in the exhibition Duos in Resonance up to the 20th of august 2023.

Craftmanship, briqueterie HOULÉ.

The collaboration HOULÉ x HIER is a research project, a work in progress and a story of process, of exchange, of adding and subtracting. A journey of words, drawings, textures, and samples. A process generating multiples possibilities, some explored, and others yet to be explored. A process where mold and brick form a duo, and are a result of a duo.

in PROCESS we trust

 

We have met. We have talked. We have listened.
On one side, there is the artisan, Mathieu, and his machine, semi manual semi automated .
On the other side there is the design party, HIER.

Mathieu Guitoun, a brick maker/artisan, produces bricks using the same techniques, machines & process as the old brick factories from 19th - 20th century.  
That philosophy and respect for tradition offers an authentic look but also a quality that you no longer find with the industrial bricks. The same could be said about the colours: they are not to compare with those of the industrial brick.

Old brick factory
Different approaches

Concept and approach
From the different approaches we could have chosen for this project, the duo decided to use Mathieu’s machine to produce more of his product, the ornamental brick. But more textured, deformed, or stamped.
Our approach is to use the same machine, make use of the freshness and malleability of the product before its drying and then cooking, and find low-budget solutions such as additions to the existing mold or stamps.

 

End game

  • to develop something that could be added to his catalogue of products.

  • develop something smart and efficient that tweaks the standard brick, adds variety to the collection.

Game plan

  • Modifying the pressing mould: add pieces, corners, or layers of textures

  • Manipulating after pressing: explore different stamps and enamelling techniques

 
A journey of words, drawings, textures, and samples. A process generating multiples possibilities, some explored, and others yet to be explored. A process where mold and brick form a duo, and are a result of a duo.
 

Cheers to Wallonie Design. And thank you for this great opportunity and for pairing us together :)
Process photos by @heloiserouard & us. Photos of the exhibition by @silviacappellari and Maxime Legrand - Fondation Boghossian – Villa Empain, exposition Duos in Resonance, Brussels, 2023

Fabrication, ProductsBillas ThomasHIERbrick, clay, design, process