We sit down with Marine Koprivnjak, colorist and interior designer to hear more about her colorful life with partner and artist, Victor Chabaud, to discuss their passion for elevating the everyday.
I am a Color Artist and Interior Designer from Suresnes born to a Parisian mother and Croatian father. I grew up in Provence and I fell in love with the south of France. Although I don't come from a family of artists, I started drawing at a very young age and developed a passion for art books, movies and museums. Even as a child, I was rearranging the furniture in my room and immersing myself in new scenarios while gaining a curiosity for design.
When I was admitted to the school of Fine-Arts in Marseille at 17, I thought I would be specializing in interior design. But after my first painting class, I knew that I had to pursue a Masters in the Fine Arts and later graduated with a specialization in painting, photography and publishing. This deepened my knowledge related to materiality and my expressiveness. Through this experience, I became confident in getting a specific color right by mixing various paints together and eventually developing a sensibility for creating palettes.
After various artistic jobs as a graphic designer, art teacher and museum coordinator, I got an opportunity to work on set designs for cinema. It was the perfect way to combine my passion for narrative plots in movies with the design of a fully customized environment. I learnt a lot from those early stages like following a brief, staying within a budget, working with a team etc… all while still being able to bring my own vision. Sets need to be incredibly strong and durable but somehow also very versatile, as they are designed purely for a creative purpose vs. a functional one. This ephemeral quality helped me improve my perception of spaces and gave me the chance to experiment with a wide range of textures and finishes.
Victor, who is an artisan painter, used to take me on site visits with him and I really noticed that he was able to create a bespoke range of colors, mixing his own pigments, to suit an environment. I was often asked about color combinations which naturally led me to establish myself as an interior designer. At that point, I decided to go back to school and study decoration and interior design. Since we were simultaneously looking for our first house, I got the idea that it could also double as our working space. An inhabited showroom, as we call it, to display the variety of skill sets that represent us. We co-founded Maison MAVI, a house and an interior design agency near Aix-en-Provence, where we showcase our favorite brands as well as our ability to create a color palette that can define the perception of our space. I would say that my mission is to help individuals and professionals develop a tender and daring aesthetic.
My role as a color artist is in harmony with my need to express my taste in understanding and connecting colors. Just like Charles Baudelaire’s poem, Correspondences, I see my environment through the thread of synaesthesia. An object, a memory, or a place, can invite me to see a color differently. My background as a painter guides me to unfold the chromatic family that completes it. I see my work as a composition coming together. I gain excitement by developing a score in which the colors react with each other. Sometimes I look for the perfect harmony or, on the contrary, a dissonance that captivates us.
I define myself as a Color Artist because it seems to me that it’s the quality that best represents me. I focus on making color connections from the world of art, design and architecture.
I guess that I have a bit more imagination and am more eccentric than Victor, who is quite reserved. He lives in the present and is more action-oriented so I have been in charge of the creative side of designing our house and imagining every detail of it, while he took care of the renovation and all the on-site work. We are a great duo and our strength lies in having both a refined taste and the skills to put ideas into practice. I think this is visible throughout the whole house.
There are 50 colors leveraged in our house, which Elle Decoration called “the 50 shades of MAVI”! I really tried to incorporate as much variety as possible in order to achieve a different look, mindset and feeling for each room, creating an immersive experience. The concept is to guide the guest gradually and gracefully, balancing the visit with breathing spaces (neutral walls) to create an interconnectedness between rooms, letting the fluidity of colors show from every angle.
My favorite room has always been the cellar which is fully pink, electric blue and brown. I love that trilogy and the ceiling, which is our own reinterpretation of the coffered ceiling, becomes a mosaic of squared shapes. I have to admit this room, which will host my studio, makes me feel completely at ease while being completely surrounded by deep purple. There is something very intense and instinctual inside it that makes you want to stay there and immerse yourself in your thoughts.
We have access to an incredible variety of objects and, since we’re always surrounded and immersed in shapes and colors, I’ve developed quite an obsession for specific pieces and items. I always find myself asking “does this bring me joy ? Is this color right for me? Will it feel right to have it in my home ?” Answering these questions leads me to the right decision when I buy them. I prefer to wait for the perfect fit, rather than jump on something that doesn't entirely satisfy me. It is an emotional consideration and a long-term commitment.
Intrigued and at ease at the same time. My interior design practice consists of combining art and functionality. I start from an aesthetic point of view and as you continue to experience the space, you start discovering it. It aims to set the tone and shake your vision at the same time since most of the art pieces that stick with us are usually the same ones that disturb us at first. A functional and practical space will also give you greater comfort. So, everything for me has to be in balance with the concept and must convey the sense that it belongs in the interior. It can be outstanding and daring, but it must simultaneously feel like you want it to stay there.
I am very fond of the work of Marlene Dumas, a figurative painter who often uses dark backgrounds with vibrant human expressions and touches of color.
I also love Miranda July’s work, who has been prolific across a variety of fields. Her graphic design can be very incisive and fun, as well as her writing. Her movies are quite poetic and interesting in the way that she focuses on interiors, almost as if the setting is a supporting character
Currently, the interior design studio I’m obsessed with is YSG, an Australian “women’s gang” which produces inventive combinations of scenes and textures. And I also love Paradowski Studio, a couple from Poland who are amazing at elevating the scale of spaces, almost by creating several layers like in theater plays through the selection of materials.
I usually create a mood board starting with the flooring. A specific surface can attract us like a magnet but provides a stable base to the whole environment. Beyond the appearance, it’s really about creating a style that, unlike a new stroke of paint or a pair of curtains, can’t be sized.
I then move on to the main colors and add my inspirational images on top.
Once I have a clear perception of the atmosphere I am creating, I look for the most outstanding pieces I can find for the decor. It can be a sculpture, painting, a large piece of furniture or a pattern - anything with a strong visual signature. I then proceed with the metals of the appliances and the lighting. When it is all balanced out, I continue with the rest of the furniture, textiles, and accessories, with the goal of complimenting my primary palette.
I really try to pay the same attention to all colors and really use them all as much as possible. Though, depending on what a space can make me feel, I would see a different kind of palette unfold, creating it’s own revelation. I have my basics, which are pinks and browns, and which are really significant for Maison MAVI.
But then a natural shift happens almost every six months, where I gravitate towards different hues influenced by an unconscious exposure to trends from my own research, regardless of whether I end up following them or not.
This year I found that bold pink and red really make the pair. I am very happy about that because they were considered impossible to match for many years, but it is all about the right hue. I found soft yellow and oranges really refreshing and sometimes we may really need that in our environment. It’s like a spectrum of diffused sunlight..
And I will finish with my current favorite trio: lilac, amethyst purple and green. They will rock your world.
I am currently working on the layout design and decoration of a house under construction in the Aix En Provence countryside and am in charge of selecting every color, material and piece of furniture.
I also regularly host Color Workshops for Montana Furniture all over France, helping interior designers, retailers and brand enthusiasts to understand how to use color more freely and courageously. I regularly delve into the history of color and its symbolism, finding it useful to approach this subject from a cultural point of view. For example, orange can mean something different to someone from one part of the globe vs. another, which is why it’s essential to experiment, from research to practice, going beyond what we already know.
It has also been 10 years since I’ve been running artistic workshops for Château La Coste, one of the largest open air art and architectural centers, housed in the heart of a wine estate. I curate custom-made artistic workshops for internationally renowned brands such as Chanel Haute Couture and Armani Beauty, composing specific palettes and paintings on site.
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