Here, we ask designers to take a selfie and give us an inside look at their life.
Age: 43 (Christopher). 43 (Cristiana).
Occupation: Industrial designer (Christopher). Architect (Cristiana). Entrepreneurs.
Instagram: @giopatocoombes
Hometown: Bristol, UK (Christopher). Treviso, Italy (Cristiana).
Studio location: Treviso, Italy.
Describe what you make: Luminaires that light up the world with magic.
The most important thing you’ve designed to date: The Bolle. It was the project that kickstarted our entrepreneurial adventure. It really made us question who we are and how we wanted to make a difference within the design industry. It pushed us into a new realm of creative freedom and we have never looked back!
Describe the problem your work solves: For us, every project is designed to trigger a hidden sense of wonder. What we love to do is help to create a living space that arouses an emotional impact, personal and magic. A lamp doesn’t just light up space: for us, it is a creation that can evoke an emotion thanks to its intangible component, the light. Light can awaken dreams, crystalizing time if only for a moment and we want to bring this phenomenon into living spaces. This is the Supernatural Daydream, our motto.
Describe the project you are working on now: Maehwa, is our new lamp collection that launched during Milan Design Week 2022. Maehwa is Korean for “plum blossom” and is inspired by a moment we experienced when we were in a park in Seoul. We were surrounded by leafy branches laden with blossoms filling the space, and people gazing at them whispering with wonder. At that time we felt a pure connection with nature. We wanted to bring that moment into a project, so Maehwa develops the relationship between nature and abstraction, searching for a compositional balance between the elements playing with extension and presence across space.
A new or forthcoming project we should know about: The Maehwa collection, with standard pieces and custom creations, will be at the center of the site-specific installation Into the Bloom in our Gallery in the 5VIE district, evoking that moment of wonder.
What you absolutely must have in your studio: Headphones. With so many distractions throughout the day, it’s difficult to be creative. Music blasting on my headphones is both a visual cue in the studio and an easy way to block everything/everyone out and start daydreaming. They help me believe that our products can take people on a similar journey to a special place, a special moment. (Christopher)
I like running with Zoe, our Australian Shepherd, in the garden. I also like laughter in the studio and starting the day with flowers and a coffee on my desk. (Cristiana)
What you do when you’re not working: We love traveling with our son. We leave without plans in our VW campervan aiming for cities, museums, and beaches allowing serendipity to show us the way.
Sources of creative envy: Achille Castiglioni. He designed ingenious objects that you can immediately connect to. A simplicity that needs no explanation, that looks easy and natural as objects. He seems to have designed like an eternal child, with that innocence and playfulness that we both admire and envy.
The distraction you want to eliminate: Reading Italian utility bills and parking tickets that I don’t understand (Christopher). Cold calls about publicity (Cristiana).
Concrete or marble? Marble, direct from the quarry.
High-rise or townhouse? Townhouse with a big garden.
Remember or forget? Remember, crystal clear.
Aliens or ghosts? Aliens because we like considering different points of view.
Dark or light? Light. Obviously!
