How do you describe your creative/reflective design process?
There is no “standard” process, each new project is a new story that is conditioned by the codes, culture, strengths and constraints that a client may have.
The first phase always involves an analysis of the company.
We believe it is essential to understand the client as well as possible in order to build the most successful partnership possible.
Then we usually do a brainstorming to identify and frame the cultural and aesthetic references that we think define the project. We share it with the client to reach a consensus on this first phase of the project. After that, the concrete proposals begin.
What would you highlight about the craftsmanship?
There is something fascinating about craftsmanship. The very specific thing about craftsmanship is that it seems that you can perceive the hand of the craftsman who has made the piece, you can perceive the know-how that has been transmitted through the ages.
And each piece is unique, that is what gives it such a special value.
What aspects and characteristics would you highlight about working with a material like ceramics?
Craftsmanship brings with it the idea of a slower time. In our very accelerated daily life, it is a great value. Learning not to have everything at the moment, but to know how to appreciate the time it takes to make things.
Another point: industrial processes seek perfection and perfect reproduction. Although there are incredibly precise craftsmen, in general craftsmanship accepts and even plays with imperfection, irregularity as a value that transmits warmth and closeness. It has a complexity and richness precisely in the finishes, colors and textures superior to an industrial piece.
We think of an enamel versus a flat lacquer, or an irregular fabric versus a regular and industrial one. It is more “natural”, while an industrial object seems more “artificial”.
To reproduce this industrially is very complicated and can easily look “fake” – in a handcrafted piece however it is authentic and true.
“Craftsmanship accepts and even plays with imperfection, irregularity as a value that transmits warmth and closeness”.
Do you think craftsmanship contributes to a better world because….
A bit like I said before, craftsmanship means another, slower pace. Speed is often comfortable but it is contradictory to a better world, especially talking about sustainability.
Craft for the eye, can even induce a certain meditation, which connects us with ourselves and with others.So yes, craft can contribute to a better world.
What inspires you when designing and creating?
The first thing that inspires us is the cultural environment of each client.
We soak ourselves in what we perceive of it.
That generates connections with our personal imaginaries. And these imaginaries are inspired by many things: landscapes, travels, food, books, exhibitions…
Where does the idea of the product Terra come from?
The Terra project was born from the idea of connecting craftsmanship and industrialization, with the intention of enhancing the ancestral know-how of potters, while also taking advantage of what today’s technology has to offer.
What is the message/intention of the piece?
Our intention with the Terra project was to put the raw material, clay, at the center of the proposal.
We started from an archetypal table lamp shape, timeless, to leave the protagonism to the characteristics of the earth: its colors, its malleability that allows us to play with textures.
What were the challenges you faced during the process?
This intermediate point between craftsmanship and industrialization has its challenges. We started from an archetypal shape, very simple, almost geometric, and that implies a certain precision. While ceramics is not a very precise material. There are variations depending on the drying of the clay, percentages of dilatation…..
A very good point of control has been reached, and the mini mismatches that can sometimes appear, are a reminder of the DNA of the raw material. And in the end that’s good. It changes the idea that we can have about perfection.
What value do you think it brings to brands/companies (hotels, restaurants, architects, interior designers)to be able to work with objects and products made from a design with a great artisanal value?
Craftsmanship has this layer of human proximity that connects you immediately with what surrounds it. Craftsmanship captures attention because of the poetry that emanates from it. And it seems that this same poetry spreads over its surroundings.
Craftsmanship is not usually anonymous, it usually has expression, presence.
These are very important characteristics when defining a space.
It is like the jewel that one wears and that can modify the interpretation of what surrounds it.
