Taking the Reins

Hermès taps architect Lina Ghotmeh to create the saddle workshop of the future

- DANA THOMAS

For its first saddle workshop outside its historic Paris headquarters, Hermès chose the equestrian region of Normandy, in the commune of Louviers. As the company's artistic executive vice president, Pierre-Alexis Dumas, noted at the inauguration in April, "Thierry Hermès was a saddlemaker for 10 years in Normandy before starting the company in the mid-19th century."

Even with this respectful nod to the past, the Maroquinerie de Louviers, designed by French Lebanese architect Lina Ghotmeh, is 100 percent 21st century in concept, with eco-responsibility at the forefront. For the construction of the 66,700-square-foot building, which sits on some 10 acres, Ghotmeh commissioned local artisans to hand-make the half million red bricks that now enrobe the pinewood frame, minimizing carbon emissions with what she calls "materials from nature" while supporting traditional Norman craft.