Béatrice Saint-Laurent, a former executive at the French Ministry of Culture, gave her name to the gallery and will stock pieces by established stars like Gae Aulenti, Joe Colombo and Martin Grant, as well as newcomers and material experimenters like Nacho Carbonell and Djim Berger.
Saint-Laurent wanted a space that would encourage cross-pollination - between disciplines, periods and modes of expression. She got it in the ribbon-like interior designed by architect Noé Duchaufour-Lawrance of Néonata, whose white Corian envelope was the first object of the collection and lends homogeneity to widely varying pieces.
'I have designed an object which enlarges the perspectives of the space, creates different atmospheres in a unique body and adds rhythm and movement to the gallery,' he explains. With this single gesture, visible from the kerb, the BSL's sculptural shell declares Saint-Laurent's intention to make grand statements.
More of the interior here