HISTORY

Very early impassioned of mechanics and beautiful bodywork, Caroline “blaksonnait” the Peugeot 403 family one or cleared the jet of her mother's 2 cv since the 10 years age, seeking to understand by which miracle makes it turn a key made start an engine… After having followed the School of " Beaux- Arts" of Clermont-Ferrand and the faculty of Letters (History of Art and Visual arts ), she becomes teaching by “wisdom” but the passion of the car remained omnipresent.

Child, Tristan assembled and collected the models cars, and when he did not find the model wished, it made it itself out of resin! He had then a “reasonable” beginning of professional life by creating its laboratory of dental prosthesis and exploiting this one lasting a score of years.

In 1984, they meet on the road side of a racing circuit, give up their respective activities and very quickly put in commun run their lives and their passion. Thus was born the "ATELIER FOURNIER", fine model cars 1/8 scaled studio. They manufacture on ordering of the models qualified of goldsmithery, very detailed, very mechanical and especially entirely hand made, which makes each one a single part. The preoccupation with an authenticity, the quality of materials and the exceptional completions very quickly fill with enthusiasm the art lovers like Hervé OGLIASTRO-VUITTON, Pierre BARDINON or Alain PROST…

Already are made the BUGATTI Brescia of 1920, Type 18 Indianapolis of 1914, Type 22 of 1913, Type 18 Roland Garros of 1912, Type 37 of 1925, ROLLS-ROYCE Legalimit of 1906. The traditional and flattering question which is asked to them systematically is to know if the engine functions. Unfortunately the resistance of materials does not allow it upon this scale and in any case, Caroline and Tristan do not produce toys but static "objets d'art", even if they get busy for their pleasure and that of the customers to make function on the model all that one can handle.

Soon requests for FERRARI follow : initially one 308 GTB, then five Daytona of race and a street version more sophisticated much , with its retractable headlights since the dashboard, wiper sweeping the windshield, and the unlocking of the trunk and the fuel trap door since two levers inside. Exposed to the Hotel Byblos de Courchevel, first Daytona held the attention of Alain PROST who advises to them to carry out the F 40 with same materials as the true one, namely in carbon-kevlar for more “sticking” to reality! A little later Jean REDELE, creator of Alpine RENAULT, lavishes the same council to them. Caroline and Tristan decide to take up the challenge and give up temporarily sheet hammered to learn how to handle composite materials. The final result is as convainquant than five specimens are ordered successively.

One did not have to give up for as much the bugattists: will follow a type 32 (Grand-Prix de Tours 1923) and a type 57G (Le Mans1937), both called “Tank” because of their shaped body unlike the stripped shapes of the racing cars of the time. To carry out the type 32, Caroline and Tristan go to the Museum of MULHOUSE where the only authentic specimen is surviving. They launch out in the creation of a very mechanical model, where the accelerator actuates the linkage of the carburettors, the hand brake lever applies the brakes in the rear drums , the gear shift lever makes it possible to feel the notches of each report, etc…. The 57G type will profit from the same kind of functional mechanisms; to announce in more the adjustment of the advancing ignition from a lever on the dashboard who orders, by reference of linkage and kneecaps, the rotation of the magneto! Photographs of time provided gracefully by the grand-daughter of the victorious pilot Robert BENOIST made it possible to reproduce the folding windshield imposed by the regulation at that time for the cars on 2 places disputing the "24 Heures du Mans".

Arrive then the ordering of the AUTO-UNION Type C of 1936, revolutionary technical racing car for the time… This model obtained the prize of S.E.M.A. in 2005 (Société d'Encouragement aux Métiers d'Art).

Lastly, they decide to accentuate the side work of Art while choosing to carry out a model where a patina with acid replaces painting, the wings are in varnished mahogany tree, the bench “Chesterfield” in skin of lamb, the accessories gilded with fine gold 24 carats and the rear light provided with a red crystal SWAROVSKI : the Standard BUGATTI 22 of 1914 !... which obtained the prize of S.E.M.A. in 2008.