Creative Minds

Creative Mind: Invisible Collection

This venerable resource for collectible designs opens the door to hard-to-access furnishings by Laura Gonzalez, Charles Zana, Aline Asmar d’Amman, and more

By Jill Sieracki

March 10, 2023

Elegant room with patterned wallpaper, colorful drapes, green chair, and decorative gold-framed mirror next to open door. — Laura Gonzalez’s Mawu chair installed in the Invisible Collection’s townhouse in New York. Photo: Rodrigo Rize

There was a time not so long ago when if one wanted a chair by Aline Asmar d’Amman or lighting by Joseph Dirand the only way to procure it would be to hire the actual designer for the full interior commission. That changed when Isabelle Dubern-Mallevays, the former creative director of Dior Maison, coveted the Pierre Yovanovitch Papa Bear chair her friend Anna Zaoui, a longtime arts collector and patron, had. Inspired by their shared love of design, the women launched an online gallery of exclusive furnishings and named their company Invisible Collection after a short story by Austrian novelist Stefan Zweig.

Three women posing in a casual setting with a neutral background, dressed in comfortable and stylish outfits. — Invisible Collection’s (from left) Anna Zaoui, Lily Froehlicher, and Isabelle Dubern-Mallevays. Photo: COURTESY OF INVISIBLE COLLECTION

Seven years after its inception, Invisible Collection represents nearly 200 global design talents whose projects offer a “breakthrough in the design but always within our aesthetic,” says Zaoui, who, along with Dubern-Mallevays, brought Lily Froehlicher on board to steer the company.

Elegant living room with striped green armchair, patterned curtains, decorative black vases, and a red coffee table. — Laura Gonzalez’s curation of the Invisible Collection townhouse in New York featured the designer’s Soho armchair and Medusa gueridon. Photo: Rodrigo Rize

Elegant interior with floral wallpaper, colorful curtains, a green chair in the background, and a decorative mirror on the wall. — Laura Gonzalez’s Mawu chair installed in the Invisible Collection’s townhouse in New York. Photo: Rodrigo Rize

In the past year, the firm debuted an immersive townhouse in New York that opened with a curation by Garcé & Dimofski followed by a Laura Gonzalez installation. It will next open a physical location in Paris and introduce Club Room, a new line of decorative objets, on its website. “We have grown a lot, but we have remained true to the philosophy and spirit of the beginning,” says Dubern-Mallevays. “I believe we have brought out a new generation of talent who would not have dared to create furniture without Invisible Collection.”