normal studio

Designers Jean-François Dingjian and Eloi Chafaï founded Normal Studio in 2006. Driven by their enthusiasm for industrial manufacturing processes and large collections, the pair set out to explore how existing tools could form a basis for their project.


An object, whatever it may be, is first and foremost the result of industrial history, not from a sketch with no context. The memory of its creation is contained inside the object. Designing new products means rigorously questioning industrial tools and taking stock of the shapes it can produce.

Commendable simplicity can only be achieved when every element of complexity has been explored. First, analyse each element in the project; then assess how necessary it is. Finally, make the project as legible as possible.


We love experimenting. We are driven by our desire to understand the randomness of a texture or the imperfection of a mould, testing the limits of a material, an industrial process or an artisanal technique.

Research also means working for galleries or within national research structures. Through these various elements, the goal is to find porosity between a more limited mass-produced design and the freedom of artisanship in a truly exceptional piece.

Innovation can also come from a shift in use or a change of technique, the simplification of a manufacturing method, or even the transfer of technology.