Here, we ask designers to take a selfie and give us an inside look at their life.
Age: 36
Occupation: Designer.
Instagram: @valentin_loellman.
Hometown: Near Konstanz, in the countryside of southern Germany.
Studio location: Maastricht.
Describe what you make: Exploring boundaries and seeking to materialize details and feelings. My studio builds furniture pieces and works on architectural projects. In every piece I make, there’s something that goes beyond a function. So my work can’t be categorized as art or design. It’s either both or it’s in between.
The most important thing you’ve designed to date: My atelier! A home away from home, a place of work and friendship, and the inspiration for all the pieces and spaces we’ve built in the past few years.
Describe the problem your work solves: I don’t make work to solve problems. It allows me to express myself.
Describe the project you are working on now: I’m converting an abandoned gas factory in central Maastricht into our future atelier. It’ll also have public botanical gardens that will help inspire my atelier. It’s an important step toward my future work—let’s say I’m heading toward spatial sculptures.
A new or forthcoming project we should know about: Twenty First Gallery and Galerie Gosserez will present my first solo exhibition in New York City, on view May 31–July 19. We’re showing a selection of one-of-a-kind pieces from the past few months.
What you absolutely must have in your studio: Time and space to cook a good lunch for the team, a garden inside and outside, and lots of daylight.
What you do when you’re not working: Being with my family and finding rest in nature.
Sources of creative envy: Japan!
The distraction you want to eliminate: Rules.
Concrete or marble? Marble.
High-rise or townhouse? Townhouse.
Remember or forget? Remember.
Aliens or ghosts? Ghosts.
Dark or light? Light.
