As a textile designer trained in the Royal Academy of Fine Arts of Brussels, Aurélia Leblanc masters different hand-crafted skills: weaving, printing, silkscreen printing, and embroidery. Her activity rests on the creation of exceptional handmade weavings as well as exclusive patterns and prints for haute couture, luxury ready-to-wear and high-end furniture. In 2018 she won the Grand Prix de la Création de la ville de Paris, in the « Emerging talent for artistic professions ».
Portrait picture : Maxime Gandon
Interview by Kinto
What made you want to do this career?
During a first professional experience in the paramedical field as an Orthotic, I created a corset for a teenager who had a strong scoliosis. When I gave her the corset, she melted in tears because it was for her a shame to wear. So, I customized a corset by making her a "couture" piece, and that's when I got the bug! I decided to let creation seize my life and I took up studies.
Where did you get your know-how?
I studied at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Brussels, where I learned all the craft techniques: weaving, patterns, printing, embroidery, dyeing, etc. It was a fabulous place and a very professional education.
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How do you distinguish between your different practices? Do they represent a set?
My practice is a signature, a universe, it represents a set indeed. The patterns I create use the same chromatic choices as the threads of my weavings, the same preferences, the same attractions.
What idea defines the drawing that you made which represents the universe of Opaline?
The freshness of a bouquet in the spring (a season I particularly like in Brussels), and flowers that interweave with the wind and create a mix of colors.
Could you describe your inspirations in a few words?
The urban environment, in its resonance between the hyper-solidity of its constructions and its transparency is one of my main inspirations. Reflections between buildings, their fluidity too. I love cities with water, the lightness and metallic colors.
In 2018, you received the Grand Prix of Creation awarded by the city of Paris in the category "Emerging Talent for the Crafts". How do you see the future?
This award was an important recognition when I came back to France to create my company. I hope I can continue to practice my passion with my values, continue to work with colleagues I esteem and living in a world of creation. I think the adventure is beautiful and worth it!
