Q: Can you tell us about your background? How did design come to have such an important role in your life?
Growing up in India, my mother engaged me in a lot of a activities that involved making and working with my hands. A seamstress herself, I learnt the art of sewing and embroidering from her. My father an engineer with a technical bent of mind and my late uncle, a carpenter; together the three influenced the artist, designer and maker in me. With a bachelors in architecture, I primarily worked in hospitality design where I soon realized my passion for furniture design. I found a medium where all my influences could come together and find expression in functional objects. I didn’t have to choose between being an artist or designer, through furniture, I could be both.
Q: What served as the Hooked’s main source of inspiration?
I wanted the design to embody a sinuous loop like a ribbon. To do this I incorporated the technique of bent lamination. It fascinates me that wood, which I perceived to be a rigid material, can also be so flexible, and so I wanted to explore the material’s resiliency by exploring bending techniques to create challenging forms.
Q: How did you get the idea to use bent lamination wood to create the sculptural forms of Hooked table?
I was introduced to bent lamination during my graduate studies at SCAD in a specialized class designed around wood bending techniques. The prompt was to design a side table with a secondary, unexpected function. At the time, I lived in a small room and anything I designed needed to be space efficient with the possibility to be put away when not in use. “Wouldn’t it be great if I could hook this table to the wall when not in use to clear some floor space?” was my thought. Just like I did with my jackets and bags that ended up on a wall-hook at the end of the day. Taking inspiration from the hook-loop, I wanted the table legs to emulate a similar sinuous curve while also contributing to the structure of the table. My goal was to design something beautiful that also served a functional and structural purpose i.e. bringing art and design together in one object.
Q: You’ve been awarded the ePDA Emerging Product Design of the Year 2023. How do you interpret this recognition, and how will it influence your future path in product design?
Receiving the ePDA Emerging Product Design of the Year 2023 award is truly an honor. It feels incredibly validating and humbling to receive this honor as a recent graduate. It’s definitely a crucial stepping stone in carving a small space for myself in the world of product design and an encouraging boost for a young professional.
Q: Could you describe any challenges you encountered while working on Hooked design? How did you overcome them?
From the get-go, designing and crafting Hooked was a series of challenges to overcome. The biggest challenge was ‘wrestling’ the 8ft long lamination and molding into form. Figuring the design of the jig to facilitate the bend along with extra hands and muscle was the way to overcome it!
Q: What do you find to be the most challenging aspect of product design?
I think the most challenging aspect for me is taking design from a sketch to the physical. I also find that within that transition is where the real design and problem-solving takes place which is also my favorite stage of design – the product development. My way through those challenges is by breaking down the problem into smaller bite-sized problems and testing solutions through scale models and prototyping. Multiple iterations, a back and forth on the scale of ‘potentials’ for the product till there’s equilibrium between all elements – that’s the process.
Q: What motivates and drives your work?
Memory plays a huge role in my work. I play on nostalgia, behaviors and habits to design functional objects that support and create our daily experience.
Q: What’s next for you in your career as a product designer?
I am currently designing and developing products for an outdoor furniture company based in the United States. As my first professional opportunity after graduation with an MFA in Furniture Design (SCAD), I am excited to grow in my current role as a designer, apply the skills I learned in graduate school, learn from design challenges that come with production and finally, see my products launched in the US market.
