After training at the Bordeaux Arts Academy, the Ecole Boulle design school, and La Grande Chaumière art school, Etienne Rayssac then spent 11 years at the Fancelli Père studio studying and restoring historic monuments and rooms that decorate France’s castles. He then successfully founded his own workshop and now enjoys both small and large-scale projects with National Heritage sites, private luxury clients, and renowned designers. Although his early training was strictly classical, he has worked in Art Nouveau, Art Deco, and a variety of contemporary styles. “I don’t mind combining the classic with modern materials and techniques. I like the back and forth, it’s very enriching.”
Read the full interviewPhoto: © Atelier Rayssac
This bas-relief of a crocodile clambering up a rock was created following a design created by Maison Cartier in Paris. The bas-relief was modelled in clay then moulded in plaster and finally hand gilt. The panel can be found in Cartier international boutiques.
Length 160 cm
Height 90 cm
Photo: © Atelier Rayssac
This bas-relief of Maison Cartier’s emblematic panther was inspired by an Art Deco design. The panel, found in Cartier international boutiques, was modelled in clay and moulded in plaster to its final form and finally hand gilt.
Length 160 cm
Height 90 cm
Photo: © Maison Cartier
Five oak panels have been handcrafted and fitted to one another creating a 4 by 3 metres bas-relief composed by Laura Gonzales. The design of the panel features Maison Cartier’s emblematic panther, walking in front of a cityscape of Stockholm. The panels were created on commission for Cartier’s boutique in Stockholm.
Length 500 cm
Height 300 cm
Photo: © Atelier Rayssac
This wooden panel was handcrafted for the restoration of the Cabinet of the Dauphin in Versailles Palace. Each panel was meticulously sculpted from a single piece of oak, based on the original panelling in this space.
Length 90 cm
Height 350 cm
Photo: © Atelier Rayssac
These wooden panels were sculpted in oak for a restoration project of the six doors of the coach house in Place Vendôme, Paris. The Louis XIV style sculptures were based on two different models. Following a six-month survey of the gates, they were reproduced in plaster before being sculpted in wood.
Length 40 cm
Height 150 cm
Michelangelo Foundation
Homo Faber
