Before she set up her Paris studio in 2015, Chloé Nègre worked with designer India Mahdavi. You may sense something of Mahdavi’s masterful flair for colour in Nègre’s characterful spaces, which combine classical lines with playful touches and are intended to serve as ‘vessels of emotion and connection’. But, in fact, her influences are harder to pin down.
‘I’m inspired by vernacular architecture and anonymous interiors – places shaped over time, where imperfection and layering create a form of authenticity that can’t be designed artificially,’ she says. ‘These references guide me less in terms of style, and more in terms of attitude: a way of creating spaces that feel grounded, timeless and quietly expressive.’
Nègre, who grew up in Orléans, studied at the Ecole Camondo, where she learned how to craft furniture as well as shape interiors. She still creates custom furniture for every project and, in 2024, established her brand Laclaux alongside fellow designer François-Xavier Fonbonnat. Its aim is ‘to restore excellence to furniture’, focusing on sustainability and craftsmanship. Made in limited quantities using certified natural materials such as oak and rattan, the collection carefully considers the life cycle of objects, and each piece is made to endure. Laclaux designs are on show at Studio Chloé Nègre’s showroom-apartment near Palais-Royal, a ‘lived-in space brought to life with joyful sophistication and colour’.
What are her recent projects? Nègre works across typologies – hotels, shops, private residences – and sees these cross influences as essential, ‘each project informing the next in a natural and enriching way’. She has recently completed Highstay Vintimille, a group of 11 apartments in Montmartre, for hospitality firm Highstay, which fuses luxury hotel concepts with residential-style design. ‘The goal was to create a place where guests can experience a certain idea of Paris, but in a way that feels intimate, almost personal,’ she explains. ‘What makes the project distinctive is an interplay between restraint and character. I like spaces to feel layered and alive, never overly polished.’
The designer is also creating a Paris apartment for an American collector, imagined as a combination of hosting space and pied-à-terre. ‘It’s something between a gallery and an intimate art club – sophisticated yet lively and welcoming,’ she says. ‘The approach is to preserve the elegance of classical Haussmannian volumes and details, while introducing a New York sensibility through materiality. A refined mix of noble stones and darker finishes creates a subtle tension between tradition and a more contemporary, urban energy.’
What is she currently working on? Nègre is designing a rooftop apartment for a Parisian diamond dealer, conceived as a hybrid interior – part formal reception space, part workspace, part discreet retreat. She is also working on a hotel in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, which foregrounds shared spaces, local materials and the work of regional artisans. ‘The intention is to tell a story shaped by Abidjan’s cultural richness, drawing on African references in a way that feels contemporary and respectful,’ she explains.
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She says: ‘I’m not interested in imposing a signature style, but rather in revealing something that already exists, then elevating it with precision and sensitivity.’ chloenegre.com; laclaux.com
Expert advice
Chloé Nègre on how to design a space with real character
Emotional impact comes from intention rather than excess, and joy comes from harmony rather than intensity. Colour should feel intuitive: the kitchen in our Paris apartment-showroom was tall and tiny, so we enhanced this with shiny lacquer cabinets in raspberry pink and burgundy, and a giant curtain in Manuel Canovas linen.
Embrace restraint – a limited palette and controlled contrasts allow a space to feel calm but atmospheric. I never apply colour decoratively, but rather to shape a mood, often in nuanced tones that evolve with the light. Pattern is used sparingly, almost like punctuation, to bring rhythm and tension.
Texture, light and materiality shape how a space is felt. Natural, tactile elements – plaster, linen, wood – bring warmth and depth. This is how we work in our Paris apartment-showroom, which is all about being immersed in a sensorial space.
Art gives an almost narrative dimension to an interior. It doesn’t need to be dominant – often a single well-placed piece is enough to anchor a room and create a quiet emotional connection. I also like to introduce vintage furniture, often sourced at auction, for a sense of history and unpredictability.
