Ekhi (pronounced “EKI”) comes from the Basque coast, and carries a first name that highlights her origins from the Southwest of France. Ekhi is a designer and artistic director, she designs objects and scenographies where art, architecture, and societal issues intertwine. These traits are the roots of her personality. Her goal is to link creativity and service.
She attended Boulle School, which helped her determine her path and also trained her in drawing (a practice that is disappearing), which today brings uniqueness to her creations.
The Boulle School is a reference in the field of art and design in Europe. Indeed, it was founded in 1886. It is a public institution that has survived two world wars. It is both a school of applied arts and a high school of crafts, interior architecture and design. Today it is located in the 12th arrondissement of Paris.
Ekhi has a Mediterranean Basin identity with a broad outlook, many challenges around light as well as earthy atmospheres.
For Ekhi, the word passion rhymes with the word work. Indeed, the creativity she develops daily fully fulfills her. The great value promoted by Ekhi is a creativity in the service of the common good. Indeed, she highlights objects that serve the general interest. She sheds light on societal issues. This is not just about design, but also about warning messages.
A Profession of Creativity and Service in Rhythm
During our conversation, Ekhi shared with us the realities of her profession. She specified that there were common points between product design and retail design because the methodology remains the same. The only thing that changes is the brands' commitment level. Indeed, in recent years companies have become increasingly invested in building their image. We can see that customers place more importance than before on a company's values (even if these sometimes do not reflect reality).
For example, the Made In France, also promoted by Aire, Ekhi advises certain companies she supports to align with the values they uphold. In recent years, there has been a questioning by the population regarding their consumption in light of climate challenges. Made In France has become fashionable again, which appeals to Aire and also to the planet. Let us remind that the short supply chain is essential to improve our carbon impacts. Moreover, French manufacturing ensures respect for working conditions for the people who worked on the product. Finally, buying Made In France means participating in the economy of one’s country.
First of all, every project begins for Ekhi with a question: “where do clients want to go? ”. Then, she analyzes the resonance between what the brand conveys and what she wants to express through the brief. In case of inconsistency between the statements made and the company’s reality, Ekhi may refuse a collaboration. So it can be said that Ekhi is true to her values.
The best projects are born when there is a resonance between both parties. Her commitment goes from the drawing to the product’s commercialization.
The methods
Her daily work is paced by several stages:
- Hand drawings with black tips
- 200g glossy white paper that enhances her lines
- Her computer for 3D stages and illustrations
Ekhi is then supported by other talented profiles who complement hers in technical production follow-ups and 3D renderings. Indeed, she has a qualified team she cannot do without.
A designer dedicated to creativity and service
The new commitments of brands in the face of climate change are, for Ekhi, a creative renewal. Above all, it is a challenge and an exciting new playground. New laws can sometimes make life harder for our designers. New codes must be established and addressed to a new generationShe therefore combines creativity and service.
Ekhi is part of this new generation. She believes that everyone, on our own scale, can make a difference regarding global warming. Every small action matters. Today, we must correct the mistakes of past generations by changing our consumption habits. We are not asking you to become vegan overnight either. But in 2022, you should at least sort your waste and pick up the paper you just dropped.
Ekhi is currently looking for projects with an increasingly strong impact. Her collaboration with the brand can be found GWILENThis is the most committed project she has undertaken so far. Indeed, it is furniture made from marine sediments.
Collaboration Ekhi Busquet and Gwilen
"The coming day"
Ekhi loves to highlight projects that do not yet have media power and that could become tomorrow’s key players. For her, it is a way to give a boost thanks to the name she has already made for herself in the field.
Brands and the Mindset Ekhi "creativity and service"
The brands Ekhi works for are known at different scales. These companies contact her to create a global identity of a strong brand. You have to respond to environmental challenges without ever setting aside the “beautiful.” This is what characterizes her profession. Ekhi manages to find the balance between the environmental impact of her work and the aesthetic she wants to give it. She must “find the balance” between creativity and service.
She meets her client’s demands through a creative methodology that remains close to mathematics. Indeed, let’s crush the prejudices: being a designer requires not only creativity. It is a profession where you also need to know how to use your calculator.
Brands contact her directly. But sometimes, she takes the initiative and reaches out to brands that inspire her by combining creativity and service. Ekhi shared with us her interest in Maximum, iconic brand of thecircular economy. They offer furniture made in France, of quality, recycled, and of course at affordable prices. Industrial waste represents 65,000 tons of material per day. She is attracted by the company’s creativity and its ability to develop furniture from industrial waste surpluses. It is an ideal resource for our recycling geniuses. As the brand itself says: they create solutions from problems.
Moreover, there are certain brands that are “historic” to her and have accompanied her since the creation of her studio, with whom she greatly enjoys working.
The Generation Trait d'Union
What sets her apart from other designers is undoubtedly her environmental commitment taken very early during her studies. Indeed, anxiety about her future appeared during the Subprime crisis. This is justified because experiencing an economic crisis as a student calls future prospects into question. But unfortunately, our generation has lived through others (including an unprecedented health crisis) and will face more to come. For Ekhi, crises are not crises. We are in a cycle where several problems accumulate, and we must provide solutions.
Ekhi ensures to sign collaborations that align with her values of creativity and service. Her first major collaboration was signed with Emmaüs. For Ekhi, there is a generation she calls “the hyphen generation”. It must face environmental challenges and find solutions for cleaner production. This is a concern that only this generation truly takes seriously. Naturally, they want to live as long as possible, and so do their descendants.
Green Materials
The crucial issue that will drive us for the next 10 years will be greenwashing.
Let’s start with a definition of green materials: material of natural origin, available in large quantities, recyclable, modified with respect for humans, harmless, low energy-consuming, and durable.
The “green materials”, these materials announced as sustainable and impact-free necessarily require resources. Ekhi does not believe the marketing claims of these new products. Why? According to her, it does not revolutionize the production model. We cannot just take a so-called “virtuous” material and continue in parallel to design our objects as at the beginning of the century. A deeper paradigm shift is needed.
For Ekhi, “it is not healthy to produce paper objects in large quantities if in your use you consider them disposable.” It is truly counterproductive and we must tackle usage.
However, just because we produce plastic (while we have entered an era where it is banned (according to her, wrongly)) does not mean we are not concerned about the environment.
A life cycle
A product must be studied throughout its entire life cycle. A 360° analysis will allow a better understanding of the production of necessary resources, the recycling phases, and then waste treatment. Because some “green materials” have no recycling solution in France. They are new and we do not yet know how to process them. These materials will end up buried underground, with all the negative impacts related to it. soil pollutionWe remind you that soil pollution will inevitably have an impact on humans. It disrupts plant metabolism and reduces the benefits of crops. It makes crops dangerous for consumption.
For example: seaweed, when heated, transforms into a kind of plastic. It will then take more than 80 years to decompose. We are therefore far from the organic behavior that makes this material strong. For now, it is simply a marketing argument.
It is necessary raise public awareness on this subject, by all of us working together to find solutions. Every effort multiplied by the number of people would work wonders.
It is a reinvention of the way of thinking, consuming, and desiring. So let’s be inventive!
More Collective in Design
His greatest fear in his profession is seriousness. Indeed, theidentity the designer’s identity is sometimes more highlighted than the content.
Ekhi dreams of a more collective design world, where actors would put their talent at the service ofissues of general interest.
Indeed, their creativity can help highlight certain societal issues. Moreover, the name of some creators could be a significant lever. Or even their audience on social networks, as Ekhi uses.
His Inspirations
Ekhi is an engaged follower on the profile of Usbek et RicaIt is a French quarterly magazine founded in 2010. They write about social issues and explore the future. They discuss international problems that few media highlight. It is therefore a good way to stay informed about the latest news.
She shared with us the account of her latest collaboration GWILEN. This name comes from the longest Breton river. But above all, it is about Yann. Yann is an architect and engineer who embarked on developing a transformation process to produce his sediments. The goal is very clear: limit energy consumption during the transformation process. The first tests were carried out in 2016. Four years later, Yann succeeded in creating his company. This year, he is launching a research and development program to develop new architectural applications.
In short: this is a natural process of sedimentary rock formation that solidifies these natural wastes. This project required high-temperature firing. This saves energy compared to traditional methods.
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