The installation realized on the occasion of the Journées du Patrimoine and France Design Week relates the genesis of this emblematic site for the Stéphanoises and Stéphanois, but also for the industrial and military history of France, and unveils the architectural and cultural project of the National Design Gallery. From the laying of the foundation stone in 1864 until the opening of the National Design Gallery in spring 2025, the Manufacture has known glorious and then dark hours before reinventing itself by relying on what constitutes its identity: the object.
The past, present and future of this place are honored through texts illustrated by a selection of archives, contemporary photographs and perspectives of the architectural project of SILT, agency chosen to reveal this heritage.