Family album: the Bouroullec Brothers unveil their first solo show in France

Despite being probably France's most exciting and dynamic young design duo (major commissions include works for Vitra and Alessi, and their fresh and playful approach took the design world by storm when they first emerged on the scene at the end of the 90s), the Bouroullec Brothers (Ronan, b. 1971, and Erwin, b. 1976) have never previously held a solo show in their native country. 

album, on view at the arc en rêve centre d'architecture in Bordeaux from 27 January (until 27 March), redresses this balance by functioning both as their inaugural French exhibition and as something of a retrospective; the show is a multi-themed panorama of their working practices which also encompasses the scope of their projects to date. 

Arranged thematically in six exhibition areas, album presents around 800 framed pieces - from documents and inspirational drawings to archive photographs - referencing everything from industrial product design to architecture. A key aim was to present the documents on one level, regardless of their content or the work they may relate to, and as such each visual is framed in exactly the same way regardless of whether the subject is a sketch for an item of furniture or a photograph of a finished building. The whole effect is both a unified and multi-faceted look at all the projects and approaches that coexist at any one time in their studio. 

As part of the exhibition, arc en en rêve, in partnership with Frac Acquitane, will be organising a conference exploring philosophical and sociological perspectives between the worlds of art, architecture, design and industry. Blanc d'essai: art, architecture, design, will take place on 28 January.