Who is Sicot?
Sebastien Sicot is a seasoned French metalwork artist working in Vietnam. Inheriting the love for metalwork from his father, who is also an experienced blacksmith, has dedicated 30 years of his life for creating beautiful metal art work.
Having based in Vietnam for 10 years now, Sébastien has created in Ho Chi Minh City a “workshop-school” in metalwork. His know-how and his French style make him a unique craftsman in.
His company, Sicot French Steel has years of experience working on projects in Vietnam and always delivers creative products in top-notch quality. It’s no surprise that Sicot is a name widely respected in the field of architecture and interior decoration in Vietnam.
Ideal work ethics
In a recent interview, Sicot express: “I’m an artisan, not an artist.” Thus, he doesn’t fixate himself to any particular style, but follow the needs of clients instead.
88 Lounge, Vietnam
However, he does show preference for Art Nouveau, for freedom in design and material choice that the style offers. And Art Deco, for outstanding results of visualizing pattern on steel. Overall, he would like to be seen as modern and minimalist.
88 Lounge, Vietnam
Also, he has a love for authentic materials. In his work, Sicot showed many objects made from pure brass and he stays faithful to the shape, while polishing surfaces just enough for a clean look. “Authentic materials are timeless”, he elaborated.
Sebastien Sicot’s products attract high end customers in Vietnam, architects, foreign and local designers and the French community. He even goes as far as having a feng shui ‘master’ to make sure everything he does is consistent and doesn’t yield bad omen.
“They check for example that the number of steps of a staircase is even, this number is normalized”. “They also look at whether the dimensions are good and correspond to a good feng shui.” Sébastien now works “upstream with these masters to avoid having to start all over again”.
Passing down his arts
Creation, innovation, and the attention to detail characterize Sicot’s art of French metalwork. Bringing all these skills together, Sebastien naturally won the 2017 Art of Living Trophy sponsored by Air France.
Also, Sicot doesn’t keep his talent all to himself. He has a number of apprentices at his workshop. There, he teaches them not only the skills, but also nurture they love and dedication to French steelwork.
In a interview, one of Sicot’s apprentices explains the ultimate goal of metalwork. “Good blacksmiths slowly turn a lifeless piece of metal into something with a soul”. He believes that blacksmiths have the ability to imbue vitality into a lifeless piece of metal by putting their own soul into it. “But only when they work with their hands,” he adds. “Shaping metal with factory molds and machines don’t give it a soul”.
It may sound a bit cheesy to us, but for artisans like Sicot or his students, metalwork doesn’t just pure skills, you invest passion and love in every creation for the sake of art and craft mastery. Otherwise, your products won’t carry the ‘soul’, the core, or the spirit, which is what people of culture are after when they consider handicrafts.
