The Phiori bag: imagining shape-memory leather
The origins of Phiori
Phiori is an ode to craftsmanship, the result of the combined talents of three artisans: leatherworker Juliette Angeletti, origami master Junior Fritz Jacquet and master folding artist Karen Grigorian.
The golden ratio
Phiori is a combination of Phi and Origami. The name also refers to the Italian word fiori, meaning "flowers". Many flowers respect the golden ratio in the way their petals grow.
The Phiori bag is made from a single piece of leather whose length divided by its width makes 1.618. Each fold is also created according to this ratio.
Originally, Juliette, the designer, wanted a simple, spectacular bag. Soft and foldable for travel, but the pleating technique is not the domain of a leatherworker.
A meeting with Junior Fritz Jacquet enabled her to give volume to the bag, starting with a paper design. Junior pleats paper to create monumental aerial sculptures or ephemeral garments for fashion shows, always with incredible delicacy. Junior Fritz Jacquet is an international master origamist and folding artist, who has exhibited at the Mingei International Museum (San Diego, USA) and is considered a Living Heritage Treasure in Japan.
Karen Grigorian created the leather pleating. He is passionate about pleating and creating new patterns. Karen Grigorian makes her cardboard molds and pleats entirely by hand. Karen created La Maison du Pli Paris and developed a steaming oven that enables leather to retain the memory of folds, even after many uses. He works in secrecy for the greatest French and international luxury houses, who entrust him with the creation of the most complex and precise pleats in a wide variety of materials.
The leather is inserted between two interlocking cardboard molds, then steamed and pressed for several days. The same mold can only be used once.
Each Phi 1.618 creation is numbered. The Phiori handles are in vegetable-tanned leather, a raw material that contrasts strikingly with the softness and suppleness of the full-grain calfskin body.
It'll be with you all day long, and folds up as soon as you want to put it away or take it on a trip!
