Valérie Maltaverne : An artistic vision of the world
Valérie Maltaverne first worked as a producer for film and television before creating YMER&MALTA in 2009, a company dedicated to the creation of art furniture that revives the French tradition of excellence.
Passionate about architecture and design, Valérie Maltaverne is a self-taught artist who creates collections of furniture and objects in small series, at the frontier of design, art and craft. In this way, she combines creative innovation with the highest level of craftsmanship and aesthetic excellence. Fascinated by nature, which she finds full of poetry, delicacy and elegance, she regularly draws her inspiration from it.
Valérie Maltaverne approaches design like a producer conceives a story, allowing each object to weave a beautiful narrative. She combines her extensive knowledge of design with her extensive relationships with major figures in the field, and has developed projects with designers such as Benjamin Graindorge, Sylvain Rieu-Piquet and Normal Studio.
Her design studio also collaborates with major national and international institutions, such as the Cité Internationale de la Tapisserie d’Aubusson, the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris, the Musée National d’Art Moderne – Centre Georges Pompidou, the Louvre Abu-Dhabi and the Noguchi Museum in New York (USA).
Passionate about images, she agreed to answer our questionnaire…
Website : www.ymeretmalta.com
Instagram : ymeretmalta
Your first photographic trigger ?
Valérie Maltaverne : David Hamilton, I loved his photos, I had his posters in my room, like many girls of my age at the time. Unthinkable today.
The man or woman of image who inspires you?
Valérie Maltaverne : Agnes b, she is motivated by passion, discovery.
The image that you would have liked to realize?
Valérie Maltaverne : There are so many.
The one that moved you the most?
Valérie Maltaverne : The photo of Seidou Keita that I offered to my husband for the birth of our eldest child. A huge African man sitting with a little girl in his arms.
The one that made you angry?
Valerie Maltaverne: I don’t see any, or maybe the ones that we see every day in the news and that we forget as we go along.
A key image in your personal pantheon?
Valérie Maltaverne : “Look at me” by Malik Sidibe, all his photos give off such a joy of living.
A photographic memory from your childhood?
Valérie Maltaverne : Sarah Moon, a new air, very feminine photos.
With no budget limit, what would be the work you would dream of acquiring?
Valérie Maltaverne : A set of photos from Sugimoto’s Seascapes series.
According to you, what is the necessary quality to be a good photographer?
Valérie Maltaverne : To see or stage what is happening in front of the camera
The secret of the perfect image, if it exists?
Valérie Maltaverne : Simplicity, Energy, Poetry, a photo that we never get tired of. With invisible imperfections that add to the emotion.
The person you would like to photograph ?
Valérie Maltaverne : A very old person, and that my photo reveals the story of his/her life.
An indispensable photo book?
Valérie Maltaverne : The one you find by chance forgotten in your library.
The camera of your childhood?
Valérie Maltaverne : A Kodak camera with its natural leather pouch.
The one you use today
Valérie Maltaverne : My phone.
Your favorite drug?
Valérie Maltaverne : Champagne.
The best way to disconnect for you?
Valérie Maltaverne : Travelling.
What is your relationship with image?
Valérie Maltaverne : Omnipresent in my professional life.
Your greatest quality?
Valérie Maltaverne : Curiosity, not a bad quality at all.
Your last folly ?
Valérie Maltaverne : Sequined pants.
A picture to illustrate a new banknote?
Valérie Maltaverne : A striking image, like an ocean full of plastic.
The job you would not have liked to do ?
Valérie Maltaverne : A job without passion.
Your greatest professional extravagance?
Valérie Maltaverne: Creating the YMER&MALTA Studio.
What do you think are the bridges between photography and design?
Valérie Maltaverne : I sometimes get inspired by photos I have taken or seen, with which I create my mood-boards.
What city, country or culture do you dream of discovering?
Valérie Maltaverne : Iceland for its landscapes, an ode to nature essential inspiration to YMER&MALTA’s work.
The place you never get tired of?
Valérie Maltaverne: My home, both my creative studio and my home.
Your biggest regret?
Valérie Maltaverne : I don’t have any, I don’t live in the past at all.
In terms of social networks, are you rather Instagram, Facebook, Tik Tok or Snapchat and why?
Valérie Maltaverne : Instagram for its large artistic community, this network is based on the image.
Color or B&W?
Valérie Maltaverne : B&W to look at but colors to create.
Daylight or artificial light?
Valerie Maltaverne: Daylight.
What is, according to you, the most photogenic city ?
Valérie Maltaverne : Paris, for its light and its architecture.
If God existed, would you ask him to pose for you, or would you opt for a selfie with him?
Valérie Maltaverne : A selfie, that would be my first selfie.
If I could organize your ideal dinner, who would be at the table?
Valérie Maltaverne : A dinner with Brad Pitt, he is said to be passionate about Decorative Art and Eileen Grey.
The image that represents for you the current state of the world?
Valerie Maltaverne: Something chaotic.
What is missing in today’s world?
Valerie Maltaverne: Taking time.
If you had to start all over again ?
Valérie Maltaverne: Everything the same but with different mistakes.
Your last word ?
Valérie Maltaverne: La Vita e bella.
