Our story
This artistic movement was conceived in 2012 and developed by ELINOR brand founder Raphaël Bellier. The designer was keen to explore the full potential of art to express his inner intuitions. Motivated by his passionate and melancholic temperament, Raphaël Bellier seeks to capture the sensation of liberation and rapture associated with dreams. This is enshrined in principles which are aesthetic and moral. What makes ELINOR’S values distinctive is their roots in an ethos of refined cultivation.
An authentic philosophy
ELINOR represents the pursuit of beauty, of a harmony which is both intrinsic and tangible. ELINOR expresses this concept in the design of luxury accessories made with a precision reminiscent of the jeweller’s craft from the finest materials, including metal, silk, crystal, leather, natural stone, wood, porcelain, enamel, and mother-of-pearl.
Made in France
ELINOR also works with French manufacturers who boast pedigrees of between 70 and 300 years. This movement is a response to a society which no longer adds lustre to women’s natural beauty, but presents them in a degrading light as objects of seduction.
- REFINED DISTINCTION
- ELEGANCE
- AESTHETICISM
- KNOW-HOW
- EXCELLENCE
- FINESSE
In the past, France boasted a legacy of timeless cultivation – quintessentially Gallic elegance existed harmoniously alongside major artistic, philosophical and industrial developments without challenge. These two seemingly divergent worlds were mutually enhancing.
The gold, brass, and copper used by craftsmen featured in new industrial machinery, which in turn provided inspiration for the decorative arts of refined Parisian soirées.
“Once upon a time, there was the dream of Elinor”
These golden eras were also reflected in the accessories of Marie-Antoinette, the colours of Monet, the sleek lines of the Eiffel Tower, the décor of Parisian brasseries, and haute couture designs, all of which offer a rich seam of inspiration.
Industrial Romanticism – a major artistic movement – is the heir to 300 years of French history.
In pursuit of Beauty and Harmony, it seeks to transcend this lost duality and reinfuse the world with poetry. This movement has found its natural culmination in a French luxury label
– MAISON ELINOR.
Founder
of Maison Elinor
Raphaël Bellier
Raphaël Bellier has discovered his true spiritual home in Industrial Romanticism because it echoes his own roots in two worlds, which at first glance appear to be diametrically opposed.
On a professional level, his industry background and training as an engineer has defined his career to a great extent.
On a personal level, his temperament has been shaped by the French culture of refinement, over the course of a quintessentially Parisian life
This dual focus is at the root of his drive, sensitivity, originality, and fertile imagination. He could easily have let himself be swept along by the stream of contemporary life, but this would have meant ignoring his deepest dreams. When an engineer listens to the urgent promptings of his inner Romantic, he becomes a visionary, a Cartesian dualist with the capacity to harness and harmonise energy around him in all its guises.
The French culture
of elegance
has shaped
his personality
over the course
of a quintessentially
Parisian life.
Our world
I dreamt that Marie-Antoinette
used to meet Gustave Eiffel at Versailles.I dreamt that Art Deco found its way into Giverny.
I dreamt that we could reinfuse our world with
the spirit of poetry.INDUSTRIAL ROMANTICISM
I dreamt that we could restore a sense of enchantment
to the world around us.I dreamt that there was beauty in everything.
I dreamt that matter encountered light.
I dreamt in a timeless realm.
I dreamt of Elinor.