Updated on June 24, 2025
Art at the service of nature: this is the proposition of designers Andrea Trimarchi and Simone Farresin, from the Formafantasma studio. Invited by Maison Perrier-Jouët and Hôtel Hermitage Monte-Carlo, the Milanese duo are presenting their installation L'Îlot de Biodiversité in the Jardin Belle Époque throughout the summer. This is a work that interacts with its surroundings, inviting us to take a break in the heart of the city.
Your work explores the interactions between humans and ecosystems: how is this reflected in your installation L'Îlot de Biodiversité?
Formafantasma: This installation is a habitat in itself. It features ceramic columns, 32 of which have cavities for pollinators such as bees and wasps. Even the materials have been chosen with the greatest care: unglazed ceramics to allow air to circulate, and light colours to prevent the cavities from overheating. This is not an ornamental piece, but a space where priority is given to non-human life. This was at the heart of our thinking. Nature has rights too.
L'Îlot de Biodiversité in Champagne
The work presented in Monaco echoes the one installed since 2024 in Perrier-Jouët's Agusons vineyard in Ambonnay, Champagne. The famous champagne house called on the Formafantasma studio for an artistic collaboration inspired by the world of botany. “The heritage of the House of Perrier-Jouët is rooted in a deep respect for nature that reflects our own approach to design. We were particularly touched by their move towards regenerative viticulture and their desire to move from a symbolic awareness to a tangible impact. Like us, they see design as a cultural and ecological force, not just an aesthetic”.
What is so special about the installation on show in Monaco?
Formafantasma: Our vision for the Jardin Belle Époque at the Hôtel Hermitage was to create a satellite to the larger Perrier-Jouët vineyard project. We wanted this satellite to take on its full meaning in a different setting, an urban garden accessible to the public. This meant making a full commitment to the site and ensuring the development of progressive vegetation in order to create a public space serving the human, plant and animal community.
Tastings in a green setting
From May to September, the Jardin Belle Époque takes up residence at Square Beaumarchais, opposite the iconic Hôtel Hermitage Monte-Carlo. An ephemeral space where the House of Perrier-Jouët brings together art and nature around the tasting of champagne, in the Belle Époque elegance so dear to these two institutions.
What experience do you want visitors to have?
Formafantasma: In Monaco, the installation is no longer nestled among the vines, but in the heart of Square Beaumarchais, a public garden open to all. This change in context is changing the relationship between people and our work. It's not just a question of enhancing biodiversity in a cultivated landscape, but of rethinking the way we share space with nature and local biodiversity in an urban environment.
We hope that this interpretation of our work will promote dialogue and education on biodiversity and the interconnection between species to better inhabit our world.
We misunderstand design as something that is made for us humans. L’Îlot de Biodiversité invites us to reflect on the fact that we are not alone, that the city is also a shared ecosystem.
"A space of serenity where humans and non-humans can learn to coexist, in all humility". Formafantasma
How would you define your role as artists and designers? Is it your goal to raise awareness?
Formafantasma: Raising awareness is part of our role, but the most important thing is to ask different questions. Design is too often reduced to introducing new objects into the world. For our part, we're interested in knowing whether or not to introduce this or that object. How can it serve others? Not just humans, but other species too?
In this project, for example, we deliberately avoided creating an ephemeral installation that would tour the art fairs. Instead, we came up with a concept that was firmly rooted in place, specific to the site, but also useful, particularly for non-human life. For us, this is the essence of design: not just an aesthetic result, but a long-term systemic contribution.
A green commitment
Luxury, refinement... and "For Ever Green" : the Hôtel Hermitage Monte-Carlo is committed to sustainable development on a daily basis. Through rigorous management of energy resources and the promotion of short supply chains – notably using vegetables from its kitchen garden in the hills above Beausoleil – the "connoisseur's hotel" embodies a demanding approach to eco-responsibility. It has also been awarded Gold certification by Green Globe,a prestigious international label promoting sustainable tourism.
Is it important for you to work with institutions that uphold the values of eco-responsibility?
Formafantasma: Absolutely. Our practice is based on regular, in-depth discussions with our collaborators. Ecology requires shared responsibility: we can only design meaningful projects if our partners commit to respecting these same values. This is what happened with Perrier-Jouët. They were very open and invited us to Champagne. There, they told us: "Familiarise yourself with our craft, our work in regenerative viticulture, learn to understand the culture we're trying to establish in our estate in terms of ecology, and help us express all of this in a design or artistic creation".
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