Interview with the stunning Jenna Haugmard

It's the turn of the magnificent Jenna Haugmard to share all her anecdotes with us! The mom behind the "The Kiss" chocolate bar tells us EVERYTHING, absolutely EVERYTHING, and it's hilarious :)

 

The portrait

 

Your background?

I did a literary baccalaureate in plastic arts & audiovisual in Nantes, followed by a preparatory course in applied arts in the lands of the Puy du Fou eagles in Vendée. Then I moved to the capital to join the Duperré school and two years later the Estienne school. Finally, since I knew nothing about the internet, I thought it would be good to do a master's in web at the Sorbonne. After that, my parents told me it might be time to start working. There was light and deer heads at the Leg agency, so I went in. That's where I started doing advertising without realizing it, alongside Christophe Dru, a super talented guy in illustration. A year later, I left for DDB Paris to assist Jean-François Boucher and Jessica Gérard Huet, two drawing enthusiasts who had just won a bunch of awards thanks to the sublime Nova campaign. I've always drawn a lot alongside advertising, first for myself and gradually for brands and magazines.

 

Your style?

I really don't know, I'd say quite naive and colorful. I haven't progressed much since the 5th grade when I learned to color well and match colors with each other. I just hope people don't think it's girly. That would break my heart. Which is, by the way, a very girly thought.

Your inspirations?

I read a lot of graphic novels and try to visit illustration exhibitions as regularly as possible. Either to see friends or to drink. Often to do both. Right now, I want to work with pastels, colored pencils, and markers like Simon Roussin. This summer, I had time to reread "David Boring" by Clowes, a classic among classics, always as captivating, and I finally read "L'été Diabolik," which I received almost a year ago; the graphic style pays homage to 60s drawings.

 

Your proudest work?

In all sincerity, I think it's Jeanne & Serge's kiss, because it wasn't planned and I enjoyed doodling it without constraints. They're an iconic couple that fascinates me.

 

 

How did the LCDF x Jenna Haugmard adventure begin?

After the "Easter for the Eyes" exhibition for a charity at Sergeant Paper gallery, Le chocolat des Français kindly offered to release the Kiss chocolate bar, which had been very popular. I immediately accepted and was delighted to see it at Le Bon Marché or Colette a few months later.

 

Your current projects or new projects for the fall?

I have many ongoing projects, but whether they are advertising or personal, they all revolve around illustration and publishing. I've had the chance to collaborate with Ugo Gattoni for a few months now, whose work I've admired for a long time. It's for these kinds of opportunities that I love my job as an artistic director so much. I can't really say more, but I'm eager to see it all take shape.

JENNA'S QUICKFIRE QUESTIONS

Who wouldn't you even give a square of chocolate to?

To subway gropers, especially in Paris in the summer.

 

If you hadn't been in advertising, what would your dream job be?

At 5, I wanted to be a weather presenter because I thought they worked three times a day and decided what the weather would be like here or there. But in the end, I think I'd much rather be a full-time illustrator in a studio filled with super cool people.

 

What's yellow and waiting?

A banana at a red light.

 

 

Your favorite color?

Green. Did you know it's the color the human eye perceives best? A chlorophyll story, as Jamie would say. A food story, as usual. Plus, my mother says it's the color of hope, so there's that.

 

The word whose spelling you always have to look up?

Appeler (to call). I know there's a rule, but I don't remember it.

 

Where would you dream of seeing your illustrations exhibited?

In a gallery in Wynwood, Miami, at the Getty Villa in Los Angeles, at the Guggenheim in New York, or more realistically, at Attrape Rêve, Slow Galerie, or Sergent Paper in Paris.

 

Your go-to bar/restaurant in Nantes?

Le Lieu Unique. It's the old LU factory very close to the train station, converted into a restaurant, bar, performance hall, exhibition hall, bookstore, and hammam.

 

If we drop by tonight, what would you cook for us?

Well, I love hosting, but I don't think I inherited my dad's genes, who is a chef-pastry chef. If you warn me in advance, I can make you super good buckwheat galettes and sugar crepes for dessert, because I have a special, super heavy pan that I lug around every time I move, so it might as well be put to use.

 

Your favorite pastime?

I think what I like to do most is go out for drinks on a terrace with my friends when the weather is nice. But since that sounds like an alcoholic thing to say, let's just say I also really love drawing. I also like to take notes of all the little phrases people say.

 

The last link you sent to all your friends?

It's the music video for "Bouli le bonhomme de neige" (Bouli the snowman), because that's the name of a bar we went to the night before.

 

The last news that made you laugh out loud?

Celine Dion x Vogue. Queen of fashion. I think that says it all.

The last time you checked your bank account?

I only check my bank account at the beginning of the month, just on payday. Otherwise, it depresses me too much. My grandmother always said, "You won't be buried with your money." I've always taken that as encouragement to spend my money as long as I have it. So I'm always overdrawn. Thanks, Grandma.

 

What's on your nightstand?

There's a pile of old Lui magazines that I collect, and a Hawaii snow globe I received for my 30th birthday, a notebook where I jot down my dreams (which are often very silly, like that night I was trapped at Marineland d'Antibes, a big fail), "A Confederacy of Dunces" by John Kennedy Toole, my current read, "L.A. Story" and "Running with Scissors," my two favorite novels that I keep close, and a bottle of Fiji water because through the water you can see a tropical landscape, so it allows you to hydrate and travel at the same time. Clever.

 

What sweet treat do you always crave?

M&Ms. I can't just eat one M&M's, it's not possible. I have the same problem with peanuts.

 

The best part of your day?

Early morning. I feel like anything is still possible, that I'll manage to do everything I've planned. It's like the beginning of a movie, just before the disruptive events and twists and turns arrive.

 

 

One-on-one evening with Donald Trump, what do you do?

I think I'd talk to him about that orange Pantone problem on his face. Maybe he'd listen and opt for a foundation a shade lighter. Because obviously talking to him about immigration and ecological problems is a lost cause.

 

The video you've watched way too many times?

The music video for Pacific Sound 3003 - Paradis de rubis. The guy is magical. I invite you to discover his universe.

The thing you pretended to know before checking Wikipedia?

The lyrics to "Bullet with Butterfly Wings" by Smashing Pumpkins.

 

The most absurd phrase you've ever typed into Google?

Robin Hood bestiality.

 

The best advice you've ever been given?

It was my mother's advice: "If you want to be happy, you have to be rich, and to be rich, you have to work hard in school." Well, I'm still not rich, but as Heraclitus would say, everything is relative.

 

What time is your alarm set for tomorrow morning?

7:00 AM. Normally, as soon as the alarm goes off, I jump out of bed, unless I'm going out tonight, which will make it much more complicated. Everything will be fine until the elevated metro dives into Anvers station.

 

The ad you dream of directing?

Right now, I'm working for the Biodefense agency, and this topic fascinates me. I'd love to create a funny and intelligent ad to promote organ donation. A kind of Boogie Nights. Set in the 70s, with the aesthetic of the Fargo series. Every light and every shot would be carefully composed. There could be dialogues between a fat Kristen Dunst and a skinny Tom Hardy, for example. It would take place in California. We'd shoot for six months, staying at the Beverly Hotel. Hans Zimmer would do the soundtrack.

 

Nantes or Paris?

Paris. I think I feel much more Parisian today, with all the qualities and flaws that entails, like getting annoyed when someone isn't walking fast enough in front of me or being offended that a store isn't open on Sundays.

What do you say when you stub your toe?

I say "putin sa mère la pute," which is redundant and vulgar, I admit.

First thing you do when you wake up?

I check the weather on my iPhone. I have a strong addiction to weather apps. I even have several.

Empty a well with an eyedropper or super cut grass with scissors?

Cut grass with scissors. Or even more satisfying, cut churro dough with scissors.

The country you'd like to visit?

Japan, but I think I'd have a problem with the number of souvenirs I'd bring home. Given that even their toilet paper roll packaging is cute, we'd be heading straight for economic disaster.

If you could witness the filming of any movie, which one would you choose?

Fight Club, because it's Brad Pitt's best period and he's shirtless half the movie.

What power would you like to have?

I'd like to be able to draw as well as Bastien Vivés (Last Man is a masterpiece). Otherwise, teleportation is cool, but you'd have to be able to take people and suitcases with you, because walking around alone in flip-flops must get frustrating after a while.

Eat a maggot or lick the back of a toad?

Definitely lick the back of a toad, hoping it's hallucinogenic.

Which artist inspires you the most?

That's super tough. In painting, it would be Gauguin for the colors and Picasso for the audacity.

 

Which artist would you have liked to meet?

I would have loved to meet Gainsbourg, because his character and poetry fascinate me.

 

 

 

Jenna's Multiple Choice Questions

 

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