Objets Trouvés, Harry Nuriev at the Petits-Augustins chapel in Paris – Photos are by Harry Nuriev.
Art, Design. Over a month ago, eclectic Crosby Studios‘ founder Harry Nuriev invited Parisians on Instagram to get rid of forgotten or unused items and exchange them as works of art. That T-shirt you won’t be wearing anymore, that book you read too many times, that unwanted gift or old perfume, electronics, sports and humble objects. With Objets Trouvés, the designer transformed consumerism into a participatory art installation at the Petits-Augustins chapel inside the Beaux-Arts in the heart of the French capital [Until October 26]. During Art Basel Paris, the project is a living experiment in circulation, exchange, and artistic transformation.
To join, you don’t need a dress code or buy a ticket. Bring an unwanted item and collect another one in exchange. There are no rules except to avoid broken, dangerous or dirty objects. Each contribution is certified as a work of art, and at the end of the exhibition, all exchanges will be compiled in a phone book-like directory, transforming this ephemeral process into a permanent archive.
Framed by the stunning scenery of the chapel, stacks of neatly arranged supermarket boxes filled with objects brought in by visitors, their rigid geometry contrasting with the unpredictable nature of human choice. Over the course of the week, the installation evolves organically, shaped by the flow of human interaction, blurring the line between creator and participant, value and disposability.
Exchange becomes social interaction as much as artistic creation. Two core ideas run through the project. The first is transformation as participation — a recognition that art is no longer a static object but a dynamic social ritual. The second is the act of letting go, which Nuriev interprets as a form of renewal rather than loss. In this sense, Objets Trouvés becomes a collective portrait of consumption, revealing both the absurdity and beauty of what we choose to keep, trade, or abandon.
The installation is imbued with Nuriev’s creative philosophy centred on Transformism as the reinvention of existing materials to reveal new meanings. “Objets Trouvés is a reflection on the changing value of matter, but also on the act of letting go,” explains the designer.
“I don’t expect anything — except for people to feel present in the moment of exchange. I want them to enjoy, to find satisfaction in the simple act of letting go. I want them to discover, to encounter new things, and to remember that sometimes giving or exchanging is also a way of gaining.”
All photos are courtesy of Harry Nuriev.
