©Maurizio Pighizzini
News
New books
Village, Éditions du Livre
NEW HORIZONS BolognaRagazzi Awards 2026
Paréidolie, Éditions Les Grandes Personnes
New furniture design
Horse Shelf, Hermès Petit h
Upcoming textile edition
Fleurs, Éditions OK DES Paris
A collection of 3 cotton throws
Julie Safirstein’s work revolves around color and volume. She applies her approach on various scales, ranging from book-objects to installations, and develops it across different fields: drawings and paintings, prints, art editions and children’s books, short animated films, installations and set designs, object and furniture design.
Her work has recently been exhibited at Studio Fotokino (Marseille) and Galerie Sagot Le Garrec (Paris), at the Centre Georges Pompidou, the Centre d‘Art Mille Formes (Clermont Ferrand), and the Cité du Design (Saint-Etienne). She also participated in the Itinéraires Graphiques Biennal (Lorient) and the Illustrator’s Biennal (Moulins). She regulary collaborates with Hermès on window displays and set designs, and imagines furnitures for Hermès Petit h. Julie Safirstein is also the author of several children’s books published by Éditions du livre, Les Grandes Personnes, Albin Michel Jeunesse, Hélium Éditions and MeMo Éditions; and of five art editions published by Maeght Éditeur.
“I seek to use color to create volume—or the illusion of volume—as well as movement and depth. I explore the ambiguity between planes and volumes: either through forms that can be interpreted as flat (art books, installations, etc.), or through the illusion of volume on a flat surface (overprints, embossed drawings, etc.). The colors I use—vibrant and contrasting for the density and depth they convey—echo, reflect, or overlap with one another to reveal new forms, a new space, and a vibration. Movement—whether it is the viewer’s shifting position or the reader’s manipulation—is an integral part of the dialogue between the work and the viewer. This physical movement reinforces our shifting perception of the object and heightens this vibration, evoking something akin to life itself. This process creates a sense of disorientation that allows me to question our perception of the world around us; and invites us into a joyful space, open to interpretation and the imagination.”
Visual artist born in 1977, lives and works in Paris.
Graduated from the Institut Supérieur des Arts Appliqués in Paris in graphic design & illustration
École Supérieure des Beaux-Arts in Marseille, painting district
Exhibitions (selection)
2026 Eau + papier, solo show, Galerie Sagot Le Garrec, Paris 6
2026 Hexacolore, La Cabane, Cité du Design, Saint-Étienne
2025 Pochette surprise : des designers et des jouets, group show, Fotokino, Marseille
2024 Panorama, group show, Biennale Itinéraires Graphiques, Lorient
2022 On ne bulle pas, group show, Atelier RLD, Centre d’Art Graphique de La Métairie Bruyère, Parly
2021 Hexacolore, immersive installation, Centre Georges Pompidou, Paris
2020 Hexacolore, immersive installation, Centre d’Art Mille formes, Clermont-Ferrand
2018 Image - magie, solo show, Galerie 0fr, Paris
2017 LUX, solo show, Galerie 0fr, Paris
Art prints editions
2026 Cheval, woodcut print, limited edition of 20 copies numbered and signed, Éditions Sagot Le Garrec
2024 Formes argentées, 4 silkscreen prints, limited edition of 15 copies numbered and signed, Éditions OK DES Paris
2024 Cartes pliées, 16 embossed cards, limited edition of 20 copies numbered and signed, Éditions OK DES Paris
2022 Fleurs, 3 woodcut prints, limited edition of 10 copies numbered and signed, Éditions Atelier RLD
2022 La gymnastique des objets, 45 woodcut prints, limited edition of 10 copies numbered and signed, Éditions Atelier RLD
Children’s books published
2026 Paréidolie, Éditions Les Grandes Personnes
2025 Village, Éditons du Livre
2021 Et j’ai rêvé le jour, Albin Michel Jeunesse
2020 Bloom, Éditions du Livre
2017 Night and day, Princeton Architectural Press
2014 Le jour la nuit tout autour, Éditions Hélium
2013 Mémo des fleurs, Éditions MeMo
2013 Mémo des feuilles, Éditions MeMo
2013 Poisson d’avril, Maeght Éditeur
2013 Les papillons, Maeght Éditeur
2013 En sortant de l’école, Maeght Éditeur
Art editions
2017 Ah! Sunflower, painted books, 10 numbered and signed copies, Maeght Éditeur
2014 Rubai’yât, painted books, 10 numbered and signed copies, Maeght Éditeur
Objects & furnitures editions
2026 Horse Shelf, Édition Hermès Petit h
2023 Dragon Bookcase, one-of-a-kind piece, Édition Hermès Petit h
2023 Pheasant Shelf, one-of-a-kind piece, Édition Hermès Petit h
2022 Elephant Bookcase, one-of-a-kind piece, Édition Hermès Petit h
2022 Horse Bookcase, one-of-a-kind piece, Édition Hermès Petit h
Textile editions
2026 Coeur d’artichaut, embroidered vest designed in collaboration with artist Paul Cox, Éditions Blazers Blasons
2024 Cheval & Anémone, 2 embroidered coats of arms for the Cheval et Botanique collection, Éditions Blazers Blasons
2019 La forêt, set of 40 hand-painted leather placemats for the restaurant Le Plongeoir,Hermès Paris 6
Animated films published
2021 Rythmes bleu, Rythme vert, Rythme rouge
3 short animated films for young children as part of «Mon petit œil», a web series of the Centre Georges Pompidou
Scenographies - sets
2025, Méditerranée, window display for La Maison de Commerce, Paris
2023 Paysages rêvés, windows display of two Hermès stores, Aéroport Roissy Charles de Gaulle terminal 2E & terminal 1
2023 Paysages rêvés, window display for Hermès, aéroport d’Istanbul, Turquie
2021 Chants grecs, windows display for Hermès, Paris 6
2019 La forêt lunaire, windows display for Hermès, Paris 6
2019 La forêt lunaire, scenography of the 1,000 m² interior space for Hermès, Paris 6
2018 L’arbre à sacs, windows display for Olivia Clergue, Paris
Collaborations - Graphic design - illustration (selection)
2027 (to come) Les Arts à Paris, creation of a capsule collection (embossed cards, notebooks, posters, card games, ceramics, silk scarves) for the Musée de l’Orangerie, RMN / Musée de l’Orangerie
2026 Paréidolie, Poster for the “Artists’ books for children” campaign, Éditions Les Grandes Personnes
2024 Au fil de l’eau, illustration for the American Friends dinner menus, Musée d’Orsay, Paris
2022 Double coeur, greeting cards for the Centre d’Art Graphique La Métairie Bruyère, Éditions Atelier RLD
2020 Amoureuse, cover illustration for Nathalie Kuperman’s novel, L’École des loisirs
2016 Boussoles, Ici & ailleurs, Correspondances, press drawings for 3 issues of Air France Magasine
Awards
2026, NEW HORIZONS - BolognaRaggazzi Awards for Village, pubished by Éditions du Livre
2026, Coup de coeur des Trophées de l’Édition Awards organised by Livres Hebdo for Village, published by Éditions du Livre
2022, Coup de coeur du Jury Awards Artist’s Book category of the Grand Est Book Award for Bloom, published by Éditions du Livre
2013, Prix Sorcières awarded by the ABF and the ASLJ for Le jour la nuit tout autour, published by Éditions Hélium
Grants
2026, Création d’Aide à l’Écriture Grant awarded by the Centre National du Livre for Sur la Terre (working title)
2020, Création d’Aide à l’Écriture Grant awarded by the Centre National du Livre for Et j’ai rêvé le jour, published by Albin Michel Jeunesse
2013, Aide à la Création Littéraire et Artistique du Conseil Général du Val de Marne Grant awarded for Le jour la nuit tout autour, published by Éditions Hélium.
This album was given to the 20,000 newborns in the department in 2014.
Bibliography
2026 Paréidolie, Éditions Les Grandes Personnes
2025 Village, Éditons du Livre
2021 Et j’ai rêvé le jour, Albin Michel Jeunesse
2020 Bloom, Éditions du Livre
2017 Night and day, Princeton Architectural Press
2017 Ah! Sunflower, Maeght Éditeur
2014 Le jour la nuit tout autour, Éditions Hélium
2014 Rubai’yât, Maeght Éditeur
2013 Poisson d’avril, Maeght Éditeur
2013, Les papillons, Maeght Éditeur
2013, En sortant de l’école, Maeght Éditeur
2012 Mémo des fleurs, Éditions MeMo
2012 Mémo des feuilles, Éditions MeMo
Depuis 2014 Collection des Livres Pauvres de Daniel Leuwers
Print media
Animaux en forme - by Fabienne Jacob, Livres Hebdo N°65, june 2026
Maison de papier - by Lora Lemaréchal, Livres Hebdo N°63, april 2026
Chez Julie Safirstein - Magazine House Mook & Premium, february 2024
Assaut d’astuces dans l’atelier petit h, by Marie Ottavi, Libération N° 12770, tuesday july 12th 2022
Le livre bouquet Bloom - by Xavier de Jarcy, Télérama N°3750, november 2020
Une « sorcière » de talent - by Didier Berneau, Magazine Val de Marne N°311, april 2014
Un bel album graphique - Paris Mômes, supplément Libération N°89, january 2014
Le monde version pop-up - by Sabrina Silamo, Arts Magazine N°83, january 2013
Editions très spéciales - Magazine côté Paris N°30, december 2013
Livre d’artiste - Milk Magazine N°42, december 2013
Rencontre avec Julie Safirstein - by Amélie Pacaud, DADA Magazine N°186, october 2013
Lire des poèmes - Air France Magazine, december 2013
Œuvres d’art, les « Poésies dessinées » - Bubble Mag N°30, winter 2013
Leçon de choses -by Didier Berneau, Magazine Val de Marne N°306, november 2013
Le conseil général distribue un livre aux nouveaux nés - Val de Marne Matin, 18th of novembrer 2013
Concentration - Milk Magasine N°38, december 2012