Lighting artist based in London and Paris
'Lotus' and 'Honeycomb' installed at historic French estate
Works sold out at Grand Palais exhibition in Paris
Connecting classical architecture and natural form through light
Maison Blanche is already a beautiful piece of architecture in its own right, with a long history and stories to tell. I thought carefully about how to keep my work from being overwhelmed by the space, while also making sure it didn't float there like an object disconnected from it.
— Cho Min-sang, lighting artist
Korean lighting artist Cho Min-sang, who works between London and Paris, has drawn attention in France for two pieces installed at Maison Blanche, a historic estate in Louveciennes.
The works — titled "Lotus" and "Honeycomb" — were commissioned directly by the estate's owner, one of the first female CEOs on Wall Street and a prominent art collector. After a project spanning roughly a year and a half from commission to installation, the estate was selected as a filming location for a new feature by French director Méliane Marcaggi, produced in partnership with TF1, France's largest commercial broadcaster.
Héloïse Lecointre de Winter, the film's production designer, said she "got goosebumps" upon seeing Cho's work.
The relationship between artist and client began at an exhibition held at the Grand Palais in Paris in early 2025. The owner of Maison Blanche, captivated by Cho's pieces on display, visited his Paris atelier several times and, after many conversations, commissioned the works.
Maison Blanche sits on a hill in Louveciennes, a historic upscale residential area near the Palace of Versailles. The estate encompasses a building of approximately 800 square meters, grounds surrounded by a bamboo grove, and a swimming pool. It is said to have been acquired by François Coty — founder of the global beauty company Coty and a renowned perfumer — for a woman he loved.
The two pieces were installed in the estate's grand ballroom, the centerpiece of the property. The owner had wanted to replace a 19th-century antique chandelier in the ballroom with works that embodied Cho's sculptural vision.
Through the paired works, Cho sought to draw the natural surroundings of the villa seamlessly indoors. Taking the lotus flower and the honeycomb as their starting points, the pieces reinterpret natural forms through light, connecting the landscape outside the estate with the interior of the ballroom.
Lotus was born from an imagined view — looking up at a lotus flower on the water's surface from below on a rainy day. The design was originally conceived as an outdoor installation and was first presented at the Milan Design Fair in 2017. The version created for Maison Blanche develops that sculptural idea anew, tailored to the proportions and atmosphere of the grand ballroom.
Honeycomb made its debut at IFA Berlin in 2018. The hexagonal form, combined with the golden glow the piece emits when lit, creates the impression of honey melting and dripping. The nickname "beehive," which arose naturally from that image, eventually became the work's official name.
This December, Cho will reinterpret his works — pieces that have graced spaces like the Grand Palais and the Louveciennes estate — for a new context. Through his eponymous brand Minsang CHO, he will present table lamp versions of Lotus, installed at Maison Blanche, and another signature work, "Behind the Radiance."
Behind the Radiance drew wide acclaim at the 2025 Grand Palais exhibition in Paris, where every piece on display sold out on opening day. The product project is part of an effort to bring Cho's work — previously seen only in galleries and private collections — into everyday spaces, allowing more people to experience his light.
"I want to create lighting that holds its own as an independent sculptural object when placed in a gallery, while at the same time feeling as though it has always belonged there when installed in an actual architectural space," he said.
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