About

Cédric Etienne, an interior architect, understands the challenges of living in a fast paced society in which the speed of data overloads our lives where more and more is happening in a shorter time.

In response, he is dedicated to creating immersive narratives that engage our senses and inspire us connect with stillness.

Born in Belgium in 1980, Cédric pursued interior architecture at the Faydherbe Academy in Mechelen / Belgium and completed his master's degree at Politecnico di Milano in Italy.

During the initial years of his career, he gained extensive experience in the poetics of space, working with luxury brands like Giorgio Armani, Yves Saint Laurent, Dior, and Chanel.

A meditation journey brought him to a vipassana retreat in Japan in 2015, where he embraced silence and discovered the concept of 'Ma'—the pause in time or emptiness of space.

This journey inspired Cédric Etienne to dedicate himself in creating contemplative atmospheres and infusing stillness into our daily lives.

After a few years of research and development, Etienne launched the brand Corkinho in 2017. Numerous trips to Portugal exploring the harvest and production of the material cork had offered him enough knowledge and stable relations to set out on an entrepreneurial quest of bringing this natural material into contemporary interiors. With its granular texture and warmth and its inherent sound absorption properties, cork would become the essential fundament to design calming interiors and noble ritual objects.

Based on a personal wish to slow down and to travel inwards, Etienne has built up a creative studio around the philosophy of shaping dialogue between silence and space. Studio Cédric Etienne takes a modern-day obstacle serious by proposing interiors, objects and contemplative experiences which cater directly to the senses and remind us of the present moment.

Today, stillness is the signature of Studio Cédric Etienne. In 2020 he has established the first still room in a maritime heritage building located in Antwerp’s harbor. Influenced by sacred architecture, still rooms invites to seek inner peace and harmony, using noble materials and objects with a narrative to provide a poetic atmosphere for meditation and rebirth.

Through his creative practice, Cédric Etienne specializes in crafting tranquil environments in collaboration with architectural studios for various projects, including residential, office, and hospitality spaces.

Cédric Etienne’s signature language not only cultivate a dialogue between architecture and inner space, it inspires to elevate our perception of conscious presence.

connect