Maison & Objet Paris is underway and brings us some of the finest that the world of interior design and decor have to offer. We take a look at four design-related exhibitions outside of the Paris Nord Villepinte exhibition centre.

“Imparfait – Nobody’s Perfect” through February 4, 2017, Merci

Concept store Merci is celebrating the broken, the irregular, the flawed and the wonky, embracing a trend that rejects the smooth, the perfect and the artificial. “Imparfait – Nobody’s Perfect” presents a series of objects damaged in accidents or featuring manufacturing faults, with objects that are broken, worn, holey, burned and torn. The exhibition also highlights how they can be patched up for a second life, notably with the Japanese ceramics technique “Kintsugi” or “Be Ga” for textiles. Design fans will recognize the iconic “Le Parfait” jar, distorted by artist Nadia Gallardo, and classic Duralex drinking glasses revisited by designers Loris&Livia.

Innovation Beyond Time and Space (Innovation par delà le temps et l’espace): four exhibitions celebrating Japanese design and craftsmanship,through February 4, 2017, L’Atelier Blancs Manteaux

The L’Atelier Blancs Manteaux concept store is celebrating Japanese arts and crafts with four exhibitions presenting the skills of various artisans. “More Than” focuses on a group of Japanese small and medium-sized enterprises and producers who have joined forces to present typically Japanese products and services to foreign markets. “Densan” looks at “Japan Artisan Material,” a collective of creators working with high-quality materials or using unique techniques from various regions of Japan. “Neo Densan” focuses on design duos, pairing Japanese designers with French designers. Finally “Kyoto Contemporary” seeks to bring “Kyo-mono” — quality traditional crafts used for centuries in Japan — to contemporary life.

“L’esprit du Bauhaus” (The Bauhaus spirit), through February 26, 2017, Musée des Arts Décoratifs

From 1919 to 1933, the Bauhaus art schools in Weimar, Dessau and Berlin (Germany) trained a host of students who went on to become major names in the world of design, such as Marcel Breuer, who designed tubular furniture, as well as photographer Florence Henri, who studied under Paul Klee and Vassily Kandinsky. Bringing together painters, architects, craftspeople, engineers, actors, musicians, photographers and designers, the institution helped reinvent living spaces by combining these disciplines. The Musée des Arts Décoratifs is paying homage to this fundamental artistic movement, exploring the periods and forms of art that helped shape the spirit of the Bauhaus — from the Middle Ages to Asian arts — while also presenting historical Bauhaus pieces.

“Jean Nouvel, Mes Meubles d’Architecte” (Jean Nouvel, the furniture of an architect), through February 12, 2017, Musée des Arts Décoratifs

While the architecture of Jean Nouvel is world renowned, his furniture designs are less well-known. However, from 1987 to the present day, the architect has designed more than 100 pieces. These creations will be on show in the Middle Ages, and 17th- and 18th-century collection galleries of the Musée des Arts Décoratifs, as well as in the museum’s section dedicated to advertising, designed by Jean Nouvel in 1998.