“Subversive, ethical, ecological, political, ironic...this is how I see my role as a designer”. So says Philippe Starck of himself, and we would also add “tender” and “poetic”, in view of his latest architectural and interior work: the Curio Collection (By Hilton) chain hotel with 104 rooms, 2 restaurants, 2 bars and event spaces in Metz, in the Lorraine region of France.

“Maison Heler” stands out in the dynamic district of l'Amphithéâtre like a construction sprung from an artist's dream (Magritte?) or from a telluric cataclysm: a monolithic and austere 9-storey volume, marked out by a serial pattern of openings, on the top of which stands an improbable little house reminiscent of the nineteenth-century dwellings of the region. A composition that springs from the unexhausted creative vein of Starck, who conceived the work as if it were the home of Manfred Heler, an imaginary character, prolific inventor and explorer of worlds, whose adventures the designer recounts in the story he composed himself, “La Vie Minutieuse de Manfred Heler” (published by Allary Éditions).

And this fantastical narrative permeates the entire design process: from the unusual shape of the building, ideally generated by a telluric shock that, on a spring afternoon, "ejected" the young orphan Manfred with his entire house on the top of a block that emerged from the bowels of the earth, to the interior design rs that recount his life, his inventions and his “stilnovist” love for “his” Rose.

On the ground floor, in the reception area, the immaculate ceramics contrast with the elegant dark furnishings, while in the brasserie, the white wrappings play with the pink tones (in homage to Rose, of course) of the finishes and crockery, the charcoal-coloured furniture, the giant origami aeroplane hanging from the ceiling and the photos of Heler's amazing inventions.

From the second to the eighth floor, the rooms and suites reveal essential but refined spaces, where each material states its own chromatic signature, from the white cotton in the textiles, to the grey cement on the ceilings and walls, to the natural leather furniture.

On the upper floor, there are event spaces while at the top, with a spectacular view of the Cathedral and the Centre Pompidou, La Maison de Manfred invites guests to gather in the family dining room: a warm and cosy space, featuring natural wood and leather furniture, textured green embossed leather finishes in the columns, terracotta tiles in the walls and monumental stained glass windows, casting an iridescent, dreamlike light.

A magical and enchanting place from which (much more realistically) one can even leave with a souvenir of Manfred's “meticulous” life: from crystal hammers to plaster anvils, from double-ended axes to upside-down rocking chairs, among the many objects on display in the hotel's showcases.