Living Edge In Print 04

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A NEW HERMAN MILLER CHAPTER BEGINS

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istinctive architecture and gracious public spaces made New York’s Flatiron District a natural choice for Herman Miller’s new flagship.

The Renaissance-Revival building at 251 Park Avenue has historical ties to Herman Miller. It served as the home of George Nelson & Associates from 1962 to 1973—during the final decade of Nelson’s tenure as Herman Miller’s Design Director. It has accommodated the corporate offices of Maharam since 1992.

Occupying nearly half of the 11,000 sq m building, the flagship not only brings together many Herman Miller brands in one location, but houses the company’s first North American retail store. “The opening of the flagship marks a purposeful shift in our efforts to connect with consumers in a new and impactful way,” said Chief Executive Officer Brian Walker.

A three-level Living Office showcases Herman Miller’s human-centred approach to work and workplace. Maharam textiles and Geiger furnishings share residence with authentic modern design from Design Within Reach, and a full range of Herman Miller tools and furnishings.

“WE HOPE TO INSPIRE ALL OUR VISITORS TO IMAGINE BETTER PLACES FOR WORKING AND LIVING.” – Ben Watson, Executive Creative Director, Herman Miller, Inc.

“The New York flagship represents the first time in our history that the variety and versatility of our total offering has come together in a single location, giving our customers a truly holistic experience,” said Executive Creative Director Ben Watson. “Herman Miller and its family of brands are unique in the strength and breadth of their offer. By bringing to life this singular flagship experience, we hope to inspire all our visitors to imagine better places for working and living."

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Q&A BEN WATSON

Bird's Eye View On his appointment as Executive Creative Director of Herman Miller in 2010, Ben Watson filled a position last occupied by design giant George Nelson.

Former CEO of Italian furniture house Moroso, and Global Creative Director for Nike, Ben's thesis at Harvard had a singular focus: the Eames chaise.

You’ve been Executive Creative Director at Herman Miller for just over six years. What are the biggest changes you’ve observed in the industry in that time?

It’s a shift that’s been coming for more than six years, but the biggest change I’ve observed is how workplaces have evolved considerably to keep pace with technology and the prevailing direction in management and organisation.

People are more empowered than ever before, and companies have begun to see the value in creating more distinctive workplaces that bring their culture to life—not just for the sake of doing it, or saying something, but because they recognise that a workplace can act as a tool to help bring a strategy to life. It’s certainly something that we’ve incorporated into our own strategy—we’ve utilised Living Office at our corporate headquarters, and in our field sales showrooms, not just to demonstrate its efficacy to customers, but to help us—and our people—reach our goals.

With this shift, there has been a visible explosion of variety and choice in workplace furniture—which I think is a really positive change for Herman Miller and our industry. It means there’s less of a race to the middle, and that design can become a very powerful differentiator.

George Nelson once described the state of the furniture industry as confused and contradictory, with “more than a trace of catalepsy, and some exciting potentials....". What do you think he’d make of it now?

He would likely have something equally acerbic to offer—and if you look at the big picture, it’s pretty hard to argue with his critique.

It’s fairly shocking how little the industry has evolved—and quite honestly, I think he would be somewhat shocked by the current popularity of midcentury modernism. At the same time, I think he would be pleased with his royalties.

One of your first priorities at Herman Miller was to define ten central tenets through which to evaluate good design. Like that solutions must be both beautiful and useful, and not one or the other. How much does accessibility impact the final solution?

The expanded statement for that particular design tenet asks, “Do people want to own what we make?” People might lean toward wanting something because it's highly functional and solves a particular problem, or they might be attracted to it on purely aesthetic grounds. We think it needn’t be a trade off in one direction or the other. To recall another Nelson quote, he wrote in his introduction to the 1948 catalogue that "the public, as always, buys what it is shown and does not clamour for things that do not exist." Our job isn’t to play follow the leader, it’s to provide fresh solutions to new and old problems.

Nike is often described as a creator brand—one that actually shapes culture. It's even credited with inspiring a fitness revolution in the 80s. Do you think Herman Miller has that kind of influence?

I think Herman Miller has had an enormous impact on culture— there’s not a single modern workplace that isn’t in one way or another descended from the ideas that Herman Miller and Robert Propst began to explore with Action Office in the 1960s. Ideas about sitting—and of the chair as an ergonomic tool with great potential— have largely been shaped by the work that the Eameses and then Bill Stumpf and Don Chadwick undertook with Herman Miller over the second half of the 20th century.

What does Herman Miller’s shift towards being a lifestyle brand rather than an industry focused one mean for its customers?

We hope it means that Herman Miller will become a brand that more people want to have in their lives. What it doesn’t mean is that we’re going to lose any focus or market share in the contract business, but it does give us license to move into and consider all the various places our customers inhabit, and to reach consumers directly. The strategy really has come to life physically in our NYC flagship—where you have all of those experiences and touch points intermingling and overlapping.

HERMAN MILLER AERON®: REMASTERED

Bill Stumpf and Don Chadwick designed Aeron using a deeply human-centred design process and never-before-seen technology, and the result forever changed the way people sit at work. Now, 22 years after the launch of the original, Herman Miller has released a new Aeron chair, evolved for today’s different needs and new technologies.

Original co-designer Don Chadwick and a dedicated team of scientists, engineers, materials specialists, and researchers worked for over two years to redesign the Aeron. The new design incorporates latest insights in anthropometrics and ergonomics with two decades of advancement in materials, manufacturing, and technology. It features stronger and smarter materials, better adjustment capabilities, intuitive controls, enhanced aeration, and a more comfortable sit.

The new Aeron retains the familiar, iconic silhouette of the original, but every component of the design has been updated.

While the classic Aeron supported numerous positions, the frame angle of the new chair has been adjusted 1.8-degrees forward to seamlessly support the body across a wider range of postures, for continuous, optimal ergonomic support.

Aeron’s celebrated PostureFit technology now incorporates adjustable sacral and lumbar support, supporting the natural S-shape of the spine, rotating the pelvis forward, and activating healthful posture— all while sitting upright. A secondary pad supports the lumbar region of the spine. Together, they help strengthen the spine to give the sitter greater posture control.

Woven with nine unique shades of weft yarn, Aeron's new 8Z Pellicle uses varied zones of tension in the seat and back to provide firm support where you need it. More compliant zones conform to the sit bones and distribute weight evenly.

Aeron’s original design made it possible for the user to adjust the amount of recline and resistance to suit their preference. The new chair offers updated user adjustments for intuitive fine-tuning; with less time required to customise a personal fit.

The new Aeron chair will be available at Living Edge in February 2017.

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A Discreet Charm

The harmony of the Bouroullec Brothers' portfolio belies—and perhaps capitalises on—two different approaches to the primacy of design.

Here, they (separately) discuss the ongoing tension between mass versus craft, the problems with a 100€ spoon, and why they never formed a band.

Erwan and Ronan Bouroullec's studio is midway along a notably undramatic street in northeastern Paris. Inside, the three level space hums with activity; it's part office, laboratory, library, wood shop, and archive, with examples of greatest hits from two decades of collaboration with brands like Vitra, Cappellini, and Samsung, and the tools of the trade: an antique sewing machine, power tools, and a 3D printer.

What’s it like being the younger brother in such a durable collaboration?

Erwan: Ronan started alone. At 15, he decided to go to applied art school; he made a number of decisions that led to design. I never experienced the kind of fright that he did, the fear of not having a job or not knowing what I would do. Ronan can sometimes be harsher, more difficult, because he’s more of a fighter than I am. I never needed a super fighting spirit to exist in the world. The beginning of the studio was established when I joined; our first project was with Cappellini. It’s like you start to play football and you’re playing for Liverpool.

So he was set, as a teenager, on a life in design. Were you?

At that point in my life I was more interested in music—all this indie music from England and America: Pavement, The Stone Roses and many more. None of them could play music properly, and none of them were professional—they were just doing things on their own and with a lot of independence. I was living near Quimper, in the countryside, and once a week going to the record shop. There was only one.

Why not have a band instead of a design studio?

It was a different kind of energy. By the time I joined Ronan, I was 22 or 23. What was similar was that those bands were, most of the time, making the sleeves by themselves, recording by themselves, finding a way by themselves. And Ronan and I were doing the same, by ourselves.

"Part of the mission of design is to make things exist in quantity: How can you charm someone every time?" ­—Erwan Bouroullec, Designer

How does that practically translate into the way you create work?

I think we feel quite at ease and try not to conform to the idea of “professionalism.” If we’re making a video, we do our best, but we’re not going to hire someone to finish the colouring. We like the challenge of working in a new field, testing, exploring and trying things out.

What are the advantages of this approach?

Our relaxed, product driven, and autodidactic approach is one way we connect to something more human. That’s a method we’ve always had.

We’re in a time of science and engineering, but they’re not necessarily making the world more clear or more simple.

How did you come to work together?

Ronan: It happened in a very simple way—a family way. I knew very early on, at 15, that I wanted to be a designer. When I was 19, I made a small table, which had a certain interest among the press. Then, very quickly, I needed some help, and Erwan started to help me, when he was 19 and I was 24. It was a family situation, not a decision.

Where did the desire come from, to work in design?

I don’t know. Our parents are not linked to architecture or design or art.

They do not care about it—which was lucky, I think. But when I was five, I went to the fine art school of Quimper, every Wednesday for a few hours, and this was extremely important to me. Otherwise, I was not good at school. By chance I enrolled at an applied art school in Quimper and it was a rebirth. We did 20 hours a week in photography, graphic design, furniture, fashion, drawing. It was marvellous. It was like getting on a train, and it kept going. I am still passionate about all of these things, from the photography of our work, done by us, to this television, and now the urbanism project. I want to do architecture. I want to build a city.

Are you tempted by the freedom of presenting design as art—when price points and economics are no longer important?

We have a gallery for which I’ve designed some objects—but in general I don’t think creating objects for a gallery produces interesting things.

I’m sure you have colleagues who sidestep many challenges by presenting a piece as a work of art.

Because they are lazy. It’s easy to do a piece for a gallery. In design you have to deal with 200 people. It’s like making a movie. Very often, I see an interesting object that could have been produced in quantity, but was not because the thought behind it was lazy, or there wasn’t enough intensity in the research. Part of the mission of design is to make things exist in quantity: How can you charm someone every time? Of course, there are marvellous things which we see in the context of the gallery. Ultimately, I care more about being touched. I don’t care if it’s art or not art, a book, a scientific discovery.

With thanks to Vitra and Freunde von Freunden.

Words by Diane Vadino, images by Thomas Chéné.

Where will you build this city?

I don’t know where. But the urban project in Rennes is full of research.

Lately I’m a bit frustrated as a designer. I’m interested in design because of the idea—a good idea—and to reproduce it and share it in a certain way is the most important thing for me. A company has to fight to produce an object at a certain price, which sometimes means that we design objects for rich people because we didn’t find a platform to generalise an idea in the widest way.

How do you manage the desire to produce a beautiful, and perhaps expensive, objects, with the desire to influence our daily experiences on a large scale?

Each one interests me for different reasons. Plastic can be interesting if used in a good way. At the same time—perhaps there is a specific glaze, which people need to be paid for. There are craftsmen with extraordinary savoir-faire. This is one of the treasures of the world, and it’s produced in small quantities at a certain price. The price is fact—I can do nothing about it. I don’t want a world in which everything is built by robots or machines.

However, in my kitchen, I need a spoon, and I don’t want to pay 100€ for it because it was made by a specific craftsman. It should be produced in a very efficient, machined way—and it is a way to change the world, to create beauty in mass production. I do not see these as in opposition.

This is what I learned from Italian designers: the wish for a better world in mass production, and the wish for a world of diversity from craft, and how to find the treasure in all of this. The robots could be a treasure.

This page, clockwise from top: Slow Chair, L'Oiseau and Vegetal by the Bouroullec Bros for Vitra.

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Main: Laurent 02, Laurent 06, Laurent 07 Bottom row, L-R: Beaubien Wall Double Shade, Dot Suspension, Beaubien Suspension, Beaubien Simple Shade

LAMBERT & FILS

Minimalist Brilliance Samuel Lambert, founder of Montreal-based lighting design studio Lambert & Fils, is a former video editor and café owner whose design career began as a hobby.

Bored of increasingly adminstrative responsibilities at his post-production company, Lambert began collecting and refurbishing vintage lamps, giving them a second life.

Craftsmanship was a familial tradition—as a child he had spent time in his father's pottery studio, and he found satisfaction in working with his hands again. Deciding to leave the film business, Lambert opened a small boutique and showroom in 2010, offering custom lighting fixtures that he designed and assembled from vintage parts.

Today, Lambert & Fils has developed from a one-man operation to a 12-employee company.

It operates out of a larger boutique and showroom and has separate manufacturing premises.

Along with Lambert, the studio’s designers collaborate in the creation of a constellation of floor, wall, and suspended lamps using brass, powder-coated aluminium, and marble. While vintage lamps are no longer part of the offering, the studio's contemporary pieces take cues from mid-century Modernism, the Industrial Age, and Lambert’s own minimalist aesthetic. Its collections are distinctive and meticulously crafted, and an emphasis on tailored solutions and custom projects remains.

Lambert & Fils launched its latest lighting range, Laurent, at this year’s ICFF, following the success of last year’s Beaubien launch. The new range features opalescent glass spheres arranged in various configurations and held in graphic powder-coated aluminium, chrome, acrylic or brass panels, resulting in uniquely sculptural fixtures.

Lambert & Fils is available now at Living Edge.

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Fabric and Fabrication Konstantin Grcic's rigorous design approach combines deep research with investigation into emerging technologies. Yet at the core of his practice lies a profound appreciation for craft. PIN-UP magazine’s Felix Burrichter visited Grcic in his Munich studio.

Felix Burrichter: What inspired you to design a collection of bags?

Konstantin Grcic: Michael Maharam invited me to contribute ideas to a new collection of bags to be launched as a sideline to their textile business. There was no particular briefing other than to design a bag that I would like to use myself.

FB: What kind of bag do you use yourself? Was your ambition to design bags that would come close to it?

Sure, I was interested in designing bags of superior quality. What gave me confidence in achieving this was the immediacy of the process: designing through making and being able to go over and over the same details until the result was finally satisfactory. We did not create sketches for any of the bags; we just let them evolve organically. This way of working isn’t untypical for me. Material and construction are key elements of my design process and are the determining factor for how the product ends up being and looking.

FB: How many dummies did you end up making for these bags?

Do you sew yourself?

KG: We probably made thirty to forty mockups and prototypes of all the different styles. Using a sewing machine is a very fast, simple process. Once we got the hang of it, we were able to knock out an average of two to three bags a day.

I sew a little bit, but my assistants are of course much better at it. I want to know how it works, but in the end I don’t have enough time and practice to be efficient. But I am still very involved in all the details, because that is really what drives the process. Working out the precision of how to place a zipper or trying out alternative ways of creating three-dimensional volumes from a two-dimensional cloth are all essential steps in realising the product. For me, it is very much about learning by doing and that is always great fun.

FB: Is it the first time you’ve worked so extensively with fabric?

KG: Yes. I have always had a strong affinity for fabric as a structural material, but I was never really interested in using fabric in my furniture. The way sofas are made always seemed very primitive and uninspiring to me.

On the other hand, I am fascinated by fashion and making clothes.

Some years ago, I had the privilege of working with the master tailor of Italian atelier Brioni. With his help I set out to design my own

suit, but realised that making a jacket is very complex, something I couldn’t possibly learn to do in the short span of our project. Though I do find it all completely fascinating—the way the tailor constructs certain parts of the jacket, the shoulders, or chest into a perfect three-dimensional fit. My way around this was to change the jacket into a cape. The construction became much simpler and I was back in control.

I have also been working on a collection of nonwoven materials with Maharam for a few years now. The first two products, Drape and Rise, launched this year. Nonwovens are very industrial textiles, which are produced using a lamination process that builds up the textile in multiple layers. The sports industry uses them a lot and the furniture industry for more performance-oriented applications.

FB: A big exhibition of your work will open next year in March at the Vitra Design Museum in Weil am Rhein. Will this be the first big retrospective of your work?

KG: I prefer not to think of it as a retrospective since I am still alive and active. Therefore it is not about looking back at a closed oeuvre.

It’s about looking forward. When Vitra Design Museum approached me about doing a show I thought of it as an opportunity to create a substantial design project. Instead of presenting products on plinths, my idea is to create a series of full-size stage sets to resemble life in ten years from now. I deliberately challenged myself into doing complete environments—including architecture, products, lighting, sound, etc.—something I never really get to do as an industrial designer. The exhibition will be entitled Panorama.

FB: And those three environments will be furnished with products from the past twenty years?

KG: Yes, most of the objects already exist today, but the future isn’t all made up of new things anyway.

With thanks to Maharam Stories (maharam.com/stories). Images by Florian Böhm and Konstantin Grcic, courtesy of KGID. Below: Maharam Frame Bag in Indigo, $570, Maharam Tube Bag in Indigo, $340. Available at Living Edge.

KG: When I travel I use a dark blue duffle bag. I have had this for years and it seems to be absolutely indestructible.

Keyn Notes forpeople's philosophy is simple. Each design starts by observing how people “feel, think, and do”. With the Keyn Chair Group, the London-based studio brought their empathic approach to Herman Miller.

Amid early prototypes and samples from the extensive development process, forpeople’s Richard Stevens and partner Joohee Lee joined Nick Savage, Herman Miller's Director of Research, Design and Development with Max Fraser to discuss the project.

Tell us about the working methods you practice in your studio.

RS: The premise of forpeople has always been about understanding people in their everyday lives—and using that knowledge to drive our design. When they're embroiled in the process of developing a product or service, designers often lose sight of why they’re being asked to do something. We ask our team not to think like designers but to think like people first.

We wanted the chair to be upright for when someone is working in a meeting on a laptop but we developed the kinematics so that they can slide into the seat and lean back as they get bored, which is what they’ll do naturally. It’s about opening up the core—it’s that simple.

The aim was to create a crafted feel in the polymer shell and cradle components through a combination of textured and polished features. Each material junction and intersection was considered and crafted.

Over the course of five years, you must have encountered some distinct challenges. What were some of those?

Our studio is made up of individuals with different talents looking collectively at problems to solve. We tell stories that resonate at a business level but also compel people emotionally. We never design one thing in isolation; we design it with a clear understanding of how it impacts everything that goes on around it.

RS: The initial challenge was to design a chair family and make it flexible in terms of its ability to be premium or to be contemporary.

How did you approach this project with Herman Miller?

The thing that I was most worried about not being able to deliver was the seating pad: the challenge was how to manufacture a pad that has to move with the chair, made more difficult by the fact that it’s made up of three different component parts. Also, the pad can’t be impacted when you stack it. Furthermore, the task of making it has to be repeatable by any production operator anywhere in the world.

RS: We asked ourselves, how do we design for Herman Miller and where do we fit in their mix? We explored their existing product family and proposed ideas with like-minded DNA. We worked hard on postural well-being. We gained valuable insight around the observation of ‘boring meeting syndrome’. What happens to people when they’re seated for a long time? How do their concentration levels affect their seated position and how can the chair best aid these changes? This research informed the development of the moving seat and back—a totally new innovation.

The solution we’ve come up with looks pretty simple, but over the years there have been literally hundreds and hundreds of tweaks— to the armrest positions, the shell shape, you name it.

Joohee Lee: For me, the challenge was the seat shell and overcoming the complicated engineering to enable material flexibility for its seemingly simple sliding motion. This was also where we could express the Herman Miller DNA within the layout, the geometry and the pattern. We studied it a lot, developing new software that could create any pattern without time-consuming manual digital mapping.

RS: We also learned about how you develop something to meet a particular price. Each component had a cost tipping point; if we exceeded that, it would be gone. It was really strict!

What have been some of the project's most satisfying moments?

JL: Even though it’s an industrially manufactured product, the depth of craftsmanship in the development has been amazing. This chair has taken five years and as a product designer, that’s actually a luxury. We’ve made sure every single part works exactly as it should.

I think we all can look at this chair and know it’s the best it can be.

Top: Joohee Lee and Richard Stevens outside of the South London studio of design agency forpeople. Above, right: Prototypes show the intensive development process. Above, left: Keyn Chair with four-star base, fully upholstered.

RS: All of the details are truly considered. Everything is there for a reason and there’s no frivolity in the chair. A lot of people who sit on it don’t realise it moves, and then you see the look on their face when it does. That’s one of the biggest wins on this project for me.

Read the full interview by Max Fraser on Herman Miller WHY. Photography by Ben Anders. http://www.hermanmiller.com/why/keyn-notes.html

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DESIGN INSIDERS MOST COVETED

Jo Mawhinney, Living Edge

Polder Sofa by Hella Jongerius for Vitra I look at more sofas than most people do, and I think it’s hard to beat Hella Jongerius’s Polder design. It’s a brilliant, absolutely unique form that’s full of character.

It’s super comfortable—I've owned one for six years—and close up, the attention to detail is flawless. The buttons alone are like jewellery.

We asked some industry insiders to share their personal favourites from the current collection.

One of my favourite moments is coming home after work, kicking off my shoes and just taking a few minutes on the sofa to let go of the day.

Max Soans-Burne and Richard Burne, Max & You

Below: Vitra Polder Sofa by Hella Jongerius

Psychedelic Cactus

by Paul Smith® for Gufram We love a good story and are very fortunate that our studio is surrounded by a wonderfully creative and progressive group of friends and collaborators. The Gufram story is really fascinating and reminds us that design can sometimes be taken too seriously and that we should look to play and art as a source of creative inspiration.

This limited edition with Paul Smith (right) is a great example, it takes an object of pop art inspired furniture and combines it with the iconic colours of Paul Smith—a simple merging of two creative ideas that results in a ridiculously fun product that is somewhat impractical but at the same time completely useful!

Todd Hammond, Woods Bagot

Foster 520 by Norman Foster for Walter Knoll

The Psychedelic Cactus would fit in perfectly in our studio... it’s a great reminder to look for the story, remember to play and embrace different ideas and approaches.

One of my many favourites from the Living Edge collection is the Walter Knoll Foster 520 armchair.

It is an understated and sophisticated design that sits comfortably in its surroundings and does not dominate a space. It can be paired easily with other styles of seating and can be formal or casual depending on materials used and the back height. The quality of craftsmanship in a Walter Knoll product is evident in the perfectly executed stitching details and form.

Right: Paul Smith® Psychedelic Cactus

Below: Walter Knoll Foster 520 Chair by Foster + Partners

for Gufram

Alpha­Chair­by­Brodie­Neill­ for Made in Ratio When it comes to domestic and hospitality furniture, another chair that I am excited by is the Art Nouveau inspired Alpha Chair by Made In Ratio. We’ve recently started to see furniture and architecture giving a nod to the decorative arts movement which drew inspiration from nature's organic lines. The Alpha Chair’s reference to Art Nouveau has been carefully coupled with a minimal aesthetic and functional, stackable requirements achieved. And it’s designed by an Australian doing well on the world stage.

Right: Made In Ratio Alpha Chair in Ash by Brodie Neill

w

Dana Tomic Hughes, Yellowtrace

Stellar Works Triangle Chair by Vilhelm Wohlert

“It would make a great banquette for a dining table.”

“It's a piece that transcends decades and styles... a little quiet achiever.”

Ingrid Richards and Adrian Spence, Richards & Spence

Together 290 Corner Seat by Norman Foster for Walter Knoll

I've loved this chair from the moment I saw it, but I must admit I hadn't realised it was originally designed in 1952. And to top it off, the person who designed it is the late Danish architect Vilhelm Wohlert—the mastermind behind the sublime Louisiana Museum of Modern Art—one of my all time favourite museums in the world. I find the chair's aesthetic to be quite progressive for the 1950s—it's a piece that transcends decades and styles, firmly standing on its own two feet as a little quiet achiever.

I would fix myself a cool drink, wear my favourite sarong, recline in it, close my eyes and pretend I was lying in a hammock somewhere on a tropical island. Too far fetched? No, I don't think so either.

Below: Stellar Works Triangle Chair by Vilhelm Wohlert

Walter Knoll's Together Seat has a visual lightness and formal restraint which is not typical of upholstered sofas. It would make a great banquette for a dining table.

Above: Walter Knoll Together 290 Corner Seat by Norman Foster

Art Noveau with a minimal aesthetic and stackable functionality.

Nic Graham, Nicholas Graham + Associates

Vitra Cité Chair by Jean Prouvé The Prouve Cité chair, designed in 1930, is a timeless, on point masterpiece. The leather strap is a perfect, almost feminine accessory to its cool masculine recliner shape.

It’s the consummate, go-to, signature chair with a great and varied selection of finishes.

Below: Vitra Cité Chair by Jean Prouvé

LT04 Colour by Daniel Rybakken and Andreas Engesvik­for­E15 From colours, geometry, scale, to the almost mysterious quality of the overlapping glass slabs that create such a beautiful atmospheric light.

It's a floor light that breaks all the rules by being completely open to individual compositions.

First, I would buy a better house—the one that has an amazing mantle piece above an extraordinary marble-clad fireplace. I would put the light there and admire it all the time, and probably stare at it instead of watching television.

Or… I could just lean it agains my existing wall, absolutely any wall really, and elevate an ordinary room into a so-cool-it-hurts space.

Below: e15 LT04 Colour by Rybakken and Engesvik

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THE ART OF ENTERTAINING

High-Class Hosting

Cook something that you've made before. Simple is best—quality, fresh ingredients and a relaxed cook are a recipe for success.

Set the mood with an artful tablescape.

According to Eames Demetrios, Ray Eames was known to obsess over the details.

"Mealtime was always a presentation-picnic,­ whether outside or in the kitchen."

Consider the soundtrack.

Designer Kelly Wearstler asks guests to submit a song request with their RSVP, and creates a playlist customised for the crowd.

"One drink, not two, while you’re cooking,­or­people­are­going­to­fi­nd­ fi­ngers­in­the­soup."

Once you know your menu, talk to the patron at your local wine shop about the best options in your price range and stock up ahead of time.

Robert Bound, Culture Editor, Monocle

Accept if someone offers to lend a hand. Some of the best dinner party conversations are had in the kitchen.

Experiment to get the right lighting combination and ensure everyone has a comfortable seat.

Clockwise, from top: Lambert & Fils Waldorf Suspension Lamp, $2,150, Walter Knoll Andoo Extendable Table in solid wood $POA, e15 Chopping Boards, from $270, e15 Salina range, from $170, Walter Knoll Cuoio Dining Chair $POA, Muuto Corky Carafe, $80 and glasses, set of four $65, e15 TA22 Holborn Table in European Oiled Oak $POA, Vitra Rotary Tray in White $95, PER/USE Etna Vase in Oak or Walnut with metal insert in Small, Medium or Large $POA, Muuto Elevated Vase in Rose $175, Vitra Standard Chair in Natural Oak/Ecru $1,275, Vitra Brass Candleholder Group $220 each. Centre: Vitra Geometric Tablecloth in Black $595.

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Q&A DAVID CAON

Skyward Trajectory Fresh from the launch of his new cabin interiors and seats for Qantas Dreamliner, David Caon takes pause to reflect on his trip so far.

It's been a big year for you. Tell us what you've been working on.

We've recently completed the cabin interior design for the upcoming Qantas 787 Dreamliner. We designed the seats, the furniture and lot of bespoke finishes and fabrics. It will be fully released and flying routes in another 12 months or so, and we're really happy with what we have created for the airline, and to have done something in the aerospace arena.

You’ve worked with some great designers, from George Snowden and Jerszy Seymour to Marc Newson. Are there key learnings that you’ve taken from each?

All were very different experiences. I worked for George first and met his whole network in Milan. He really taught me that design is a community where we learn from each other. I recall one party we had in the studio with De Lucchi, Mendini, James Irvine, Stefano Giovannoni and Nathalie Du Pasquier all in the same room! From Jerszy I learnt how important art is to design and how they both speak the same language. He taught how we should live and breathe what we do, even though most of us could never achieve his intensity. With Marc I learnt how to work with serious, important clients on large project that can span years rather than months and also how important it is to have the right people around you.

Who would you love to collaborate with, dead or alive?

In design it would have to be Joe Colombo. He really considered how design could make life better especially for the average human being. He wasn't concerned with luxury but made functionality really special. Nuccio Bertone comes a close second because the designs that his company brought to life have inspired so many and been so reflective of the times.

Is there a brand you’d love to design for?

Vitra springs to mind. Or Herman Miller. The history associated with them both and the level of investment would mean we could explore advanced manufacturing methods. I'd love to work with brands who are expert in a particular product or material because I think that is how you learn as a designer. Brands like Glas Italia, Kvadrat, Aesop, Nike or even Santa Maria Novella would mean a project that could really enrich us as much as our ideas could be new for them.

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Can you give us some insight into your creative process?

Firstly lots of research in order to learn about the project, the client and the process. Often we are designing for materials and manufacturing methods that are new to us. I try not to look at the market too much to ensure we can think creatively and propose new ideas to the client. We draw on our inspiration, which comes from a lot of different sources, and create the initial concepts.

Lately we are working in a much more old school way, with mockups and sketches rather than directly in 3D. When everyone is happy with the idea, we work very closely with the client or manufacturer to massage our idea into to a design which can be realised.

How does that process differ for self-initiated projects?

Only in the fact that I am the client and that maybe the creative phase can be longer and more relaxed and contemplative.

Charles Eames said that the key to effective design solutions lies in the the designer’s ability to recognise as many of the constraints as possible, and his 'enthusiasm' for working within them. Have you had experiences where design constraints have brought you to an unexpected or more satisfying outcome?

Our Aerospace projects typically present us with a lot of constraints.

In some cases, I find that a large part of our work becomes about steering a design through the project limitations, preserving a connection to an overall ethos to achieve an elegant outcome.

Constraints can be good in that they force restraint. The key is to direct your efforts and find the point at which your design amplifies the result rather than conflicts with it. I find myself in this situation often and the satisfaction is in being effortless with our inputs and making something better.