I was diving off a raft in Saint-Jean-de-Luz, in the Basque province of Labourd in southwestern France, when I first noticed the work of Robert Mallet-Stevens. In 1928 the architect and designer constructed La Pergola, the impressive pavilion on the beachfront of the medieval town, to house shops, a casino, a movie theatre and a hotel. Best viewed from the water, it dominates the landscape like a vast ocean liner that will never depart – a geometric, modernist experiment. A year later, Mallet-Stevens became the founding leader of the Union des Artistes Modernes, a hugely influential modernist group.I became a fan. I sought out his cubist villa in Paris’s 16th arrondissement and made the trip to Château de Mézy, another maritime-inspired wonder built for a couturier, Paul Poiret. Mallet-Stevens’ work is full of narrative and his buildings have a drama that reflects the patrons for whom he built. He also designed tourism posters, retail spaces, furniture and sets for cinema, working on films such as Marcel L’Herbier’s L’Inhumaine.