For the tenth consecutive year, Industries Françaises de l'Ameublement is pursuing the process of reflection it set in motion in 1993 with the launching of the Les Villages series, renamed this year DESIGN &. Since 1993, DESIGN &'s annual, thematic publications have explored different areas of reflection underpinning the design and production of contemporary furniture.

In 1993, by naming the collection Les Villages, Jean-Claude Maugirard wanted to draw attention to the 'human relationships' that characterise the village: 'nobody is responsible for building a town except time, the multitude of craftsmen who first built it then the people who have lived there since'. The series' new title, DESIGN &, remains faithful to this aim to put design back in its context, to see it in terms of in its relationships with industry and the host of specialists who play a part in furniture design, production and retailing.

The collection has always kept an eye on new talent and has, over the years, played a part in the emergence of a generation of French designers who have helped establish Paris as a major centre of contemporary European design: Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec, Radi Designers, Pierre Charpin, Christophe Pillet, Thibaut Desombre, Delo Lindo, Jean-Marie Massaud, Frédéric Ruyant, Xavier Moulin and Olivier Peyricot, Vincent Beaurin, to name but a few.

The aim of the series, which was born at the end of the eighties, a decade marked by the spontaneity of its young designers and their high media profile, is also to step back and objectively question not only movements and trends but also the things that remain unchanged.

Once a year, it invites us to throw off everyday constraints and industrial necessities and open up paths of reflection on themes underpinning the conception and production of contemporary furniture: the evolution of comfort typologies, the influence of organised ranges on design, the influence of archetypes on design in the nineties, etc.

The collection has also set itself the task of highlighting the creative dimension of furniture making and production. It aims to cover the whole process, of which design is just a part, and gather and cross-pollinate the views of all its protagonists: manufacturers, retailers, marketing consultants, draughtsmen, sociologists, etc. In this context, it has passed on the experience and know-how of many French manufacturers, including Grange, Roset, Allibert, Flos, Herman Miller, etc.