As it approaches its 50th anniversary, New York design studio Ralph Pucci International is being celebrated with a major exhibition at Château La Coste. in Provence. Known for its hand-sculpted mannequins, collectable furnishings and innovative lighting, the studio is showcasing an extensive collection of white Plasterglass designs within the confines of the estate’s Oscar Niemeyer-designed pavilion.

The chalky hand-sculpted forms have been arranged within the architectural purity of  Niemeyer auditorium, a floating serpentine form in concrete and glass. Appropriately, curators have called the exhibition Pure. The subtitle — Made in New York: A celebration of a sculpture studio at Château La Coste — reflects Pucci’s status as the world’s only design gallery to manufacture and sell luxury furnishings on site.

The Pucci business has been a going concern for 70 years, since the late Nick and Lee Pucci began repairing shop mannequins in their Mount Vernon workshop. Yet it wasn’t until their son Ralph joined the studio in 1976 that the company diversified, hand-sculpting artful human forms, then representing their top designers in high-end furnishings, lighting and abstract forms.

This standalone show explores the studio’s vaunted hand-craftsmanship, featuring work by 13 Pucci artists and designers, including Nina Seirafi, Olivier Gagnère, Vladimir Kagan, Patrick Naggar, Ilkka Suppanen, Paul Mathieu and its in-house master sculptor. Pucci is the first American name to be represented at the French institution. All pieces in the exhibition are available for purchase.

The studio’s innovative Plasterglass material imparts the look and malleability of plaster with a singular durability. And though it takes pigment beautifully, the exhibition features only white versions of its sculptural seating, tables and lighting. To demonstrate, the master sculptor will appear at regular intervals to conduct live sculpting sessions to a soundtrack of jazz.

Pure runs until 21 September 2025.

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