3. Joe Paine’s design journey demonstrates his knack for creating unexpected twists on the everyday

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VISI / REASONS

DESIGN JOURNEY

Joe Paine designs everyday objects with delightfully unexpected twists – from pot-plant screens and origami-like bird feeders to coffee tables with nifty storage solutions.

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I studied industrial design at Wits Technikon, and started working in the industry straight away, for about four years. During that time, I designed Kreep Planter, which later became my first product under the Joe Paine brand. Indoor plants, which are essentially works of art, were not being given the correct interior application in those days, and I saw an opportunity. Planters became my infatuation; I’ve explored many different designs over the years.

The Marlena Candle Holder is a tongue-incheek take on the time when Marlena Evans was possessed in Days Of Our Lives, and levitated. It’s a very conceptual, technical product, with powerful neodymium magnets that push away from each other so that the candle appears to levitate higher as it burns and becomes lighter. For me, the way one interacts with a product is its own aesthetic. There’s an emotion – it’s not purely visual. I try as much as possible to bring that to my pieces.

TRACY LYNN CHEMALY PHOTOS SUPPLIED WORDS

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I designed the Mechanical Bureau for Southern Guild: using gears, arms, racks and pinions, it transforms itself to protect your laptop when you are not using it. Old-world writing bureaux similarly closed up to keep work hidden and protected. I had become fascinated by old mechanics, which have now been replaced by motion sensors, buttons and lights. Using such accessible, hand-operated technology meant I could easily learn and apply gear ratios to make my own kind of machine.

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The Wrap Bureau defines a work space and offers privacy in an open-plan office or at home. I included a ceramic vase that can be used for stationery if not for a plant. Back then, it was part of my design DNA to incorporate plants into my products. For my pieces, I use tube and mild-steel sheeting, a versatile material that lends itself to my industrial vernacular.

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The simple structure of an arch intrigues me. I used it in the design of the Kelly Capwell Drinks Cabinet, giving it both visual and physical properties. When you flip up the door it becomes a serving top, which is something that is hidden until you engage with it, giving you that element of surprise. Such multifunctionality is massively important to me – not just existing as one thing, but having the ability to convert to something else. It allows additional joy to be imparted through the use of the product.

I started designing lighting in 2018 [Joe’s Stilt Light won Best Lighting Design at 100% Design South Africa that year]. I love the interactive aspect of lighting – it has so many nuances, yet multifunctionality has not really been applied to it, which is something I’m exploring. These new lights – Purple Rain, Sarah Silverma’am and the Luminol standing lamp – are both sculptural and hugely practical. The standing lights have an adjustable shade so you can play with task and ambient lighting. They all have an anodised finish, in colours that are not ubiquitous, giving them a retrospective look from the 1980s or ’90s, with a futuristic aesthetic too. joepaine.com