An Arts et Métiers engineer Arts et Métiers trained at the Bordeaux-Talence campus, Pierre-Antoine spent ten years working in various environments, from start-ups to large companies, in France and abroad, in positions ranging from production management to sales and project management.
Howdid you come up with the idea of starting your own business?
In my first year at the Bordeaux-Talence campus, I set up a project that won me the Crédit Agricole entrepreneurship competition. Recently, I joined entrepreneur networks and kept myself informed. I wanted a project that reflected who I am and was rooted in my values. I discovered ceramics by chance, thanks to a friend who is a ceramist. I immediately fell in love with the feel of the clay, the concentration required, the technical skill involved, and the joy of creating my own objects. I wanted to practice more often, but I realized that it was difficult to do ceramics outside of pre-established class schedules and that having a ceramics studio in my Paris apartment was a very bad idea! That's how the idea for Les Céramistes workshop was born: a place open to everyone, with long opening hours, so that anyone who wants to can easily practice ceramics!
What are ceramists?
The idea is to make working with clay accessible to as many people as possible thanks to a 100 m² workshop dedicated to ceramics in the heart of Paris. The workshop is open to everyone, regardless of skill level, and combines open access practice with classes.
In a world that is constantly accelerating, we all aspire to take the time to disconnect and rediscover the value of objects by creating them ourselves! Working with clay allows us to refocus, find another form of self-expression, and develop our sensitivity and creativity. Manual practice allows us to rediscover the richness of simple objects, those we make ourselves or with the help of others, for a different relationship with consumer goods.
How has your Arts et Métiers education contributed Arts et Métiers your entrepreneurial journey?
Among ceramic artisans, my training in industrial engineering and my skills in heat treatment and materials science have given me a different approach that stands out and appeals to people. Engineering techniques are used to serve artists.
The workshop was designed with ergonomics in mind, like a factory: optimizing workstations and workflows. The result is a pleasant, uncluttered space where people can find the tools they need right where they need them. Working with an interior designer added the aesthetic touch needed for a general engineer. The firing process, including the storage of pieces, has also been optimized to limit work in progress and accidental breakage of the workshop artists' creations.
The 28kVA kiln, usually a mystery to ceramists, can be understood and mastered thanks to the skills in heat transfer and power electrical engineering acquired at Arts et Métiers.
Finally, ten years later, my welding skills enabled me to make the workshop furniture myself, giving the place character and personality.
