Through minimalist and innovative pieces, designer Jean-Baptiste Anotin, who heads the studio Waiting for Ideas, expresses his deep fascination with sports and automobiles. The 33-year-old designer has transformed his passion for athletic movement and automotive design into striking artistic installations that blur the lines between functional furniture and conceptual art.

Anotin's journey to becoming a designer began with an unlikely combination: architect Charlotte Perriand and COVID-19. To understand this surprising equation, one must look back to his high school years. Anotin describes himself as an unremarkable student who struggled academically. "In my sophomore year, I dropped out. Unfortunately, or perhaps fortunately, I let myself go a bit. I didn't give myself the means to find what I wanted to do," he recalls. Following his friends' lead, he studied marketing without enthusiasm, drifting through his academic years without clear direction.

It wasn't until October 2019 that Anotin experienced his creative and professional epiphany. This wasn't a religious revelation, but rather an encounter with the career and work of Charlotte Perriand. The influential 20th-century design figure, who worked alongside the famous architect Le Corbusier, was the subject of a comprehensive retrospective at the Louis Vuitton Foundation in Paris. The exhibition awakened childhood memories in Jean-Baptiste: "My father used to take me to the Auto Show, where I saw all these drawings and prototypes. I was fascinated by the possibility of starting with an idea and translating it into a physical object."

His decision was made – he would become a designer. In 2020, during the pandemic, he created his first piece. While visiting his parents in the Vosges region, where they operated as Citroën dealers, a car hood in the family garage caught his attention. "I told myself, I'm sure I can make something out of this and transform it into seating," he explains. This moment gave birth to the "No Seatbelt Required" armchair, presented as a tribute to his childhood and the automotive industry.

In 2021, Anotin launched his studio Waiting for Ideas. Just two years later, four of his original pieces were acquired by the Mobilier National, the Republic's furniture repository and guardian institution of French decorative arts. This recognition marked an exceptionally promising beginning for the young designer's career.

Sports, particularly basketball and auto racing, serve as primary sources of inspiration for Anotin's work. "I practice a lot of sports and have done so since I was very young, because I love it, I need it to live, and I like to integrate it into my work. I integrate it in a really literal way, either by hijacking it, or rather by hijacking a moment of sport, and ultimately turning it into an artistic installation," he explains.

Multiple athletic disciplines flow through many of his creations, beginning with the Neo S stool inspired by surfing. "Its metallic part evokes a fin, while the colorful seat, captured in transparent plexiglass, recalls a board in the water," Anotin describes. Another sport that commands his attention is basketball, which he has practiced since his early youth and which he showcases in the surprising "Practice Your Swish" basketball hoop, designed with complete minimalism.

This basketball-inspired creation reflects his observation of changing playing styles in the NBA, influenced partly by Stephen Curry's impact on the game. "Now, most points are scored from behind the three-point line. This piece was designed with that logic in mind, where we remove the backboard from the basket, with the goal of scoring only swish shots," he explains. The world of the orange ball also appears in the glass piece "Airless," created in collaboration with Trajectoire Studio. This creation, full of facets and edges, suggests the silhouette and design of the famous basketball.

Due to his paternal heritage, automobiles and auto racing claim the lion's share of his imagination and, consequently, his creations. "It's something quite present in me, because my father also took me to rallies. Generally, in my pieces, I always try to evoke a sensation of speed. For example, a chair will have a slight three-degree angle to suggest an impression of rapidity," he notes.

These tributes and inspirations also unfold in his latest creation, "Godspeed." Influenced by Formula 1 as well as aerospace design, this aluminum rocking chair displays a sculptural silhouette. "This piece is inspired by an F1 wing, with the very aerodynamic aspect, where air passes, in theory, through the wing, and in this case between the seat and the floor," Anotin explains.

Anotin's work represents a unique fusion of athletic aesthetics and functional design, transforming moments of sporting excellence into tangible artistic expressions. His ability to capture the essence of movement, speed, and competition in static objects demonstrates a sophisticated understanding of both form and function. As his reputation grows and his pieces gain recognition in prestigious French institutions, Jean-Baptiste Anotin emerges as a talent worth following for anyone who appreciates beautiful design and powerful engines.