Ref: Elle Déco, December 2021
Born in 1920, Wiatscheslav Vassiliev, known as Slavik, was entrusted with the aesthetic direction of the Publicis group by its CEO Marcel Bleustein-Blanchet in 1954. A Russian émigré who studied at the School of Decorative Arts and IDHEC, Slavik designed the Champs-Élysées and then the Saint-Germain-des-Prés, with their characteristic ambiance, partly drawing inspiration from the modernities of the Vérot-Dodat passage in Paris.
A workaholic, he designed more than 300 decors for brasseries, nightclubs, restaurants, and hotels. The book overflows with drawings, models, fashion posters, and advertisements, each more stunning than the last. It then becomes clear: Slavik was the decorator of a wild era when the economic crisis was still distant, when profusion, audacity, and the frantic pace of innovations marked the world’s progress.
With their legendary rigor, Norma editions drive this dynamic throughout the pages. Ah, how one would love to browse this little marvel of publishing in one of the rococo-baroque alcoves of the lamented drugstore!
