Here, we ask designers to take a selfie and give us an inside look at their life.
Age: 31
Occupation: Designer
Instagram: @louisjobst
Hometown: Bristol
Studio location: Hackney, London
Describe what you make: I am a decorative lighting designer and architect. I make sculptural and functional forms inspired by architectural components and spatial qualities. The dialogue between mass, geometry, and proportion is what provides the basis to my work. I find the process of making just as important as the end product.
The most important thing you’ve designed to date: My debut collection of lights, the Monument Collection, which features geometric, architectural shapes designed as monuments for the home. Solid steel, oak, and glass take form into striking silhouettes playing on symmetry, gravitas, and contrast.
Describe the problem your work solves: Turning a sculptural form into a refined functional piece of design. Finding the balance between material, weight, form, and light is a recurring issue I aim to solve with every design. I always find this a rewarding and satisfying part of the process.
Describe the project you are working on now: I have been designing a luxury treehouse in the wilds of the England/Wales border, the Golden Valley, which also overlooks the Black Mountains. It is raised upon oak stilts above a drover’s path, is surrounded by trees, and clad in thin larch slats. I’m looking forward to its completion and filling the interiors with pieces from the Monument Collection. We’re aiming for completion in 2020 when it will be available to rent.
A new or forthcoming project we should know about: The Monument Lamp V2 that launched at Heal’s in March. This is a handmade limited-edition table lamp designed exclusively for Heal’s. Research into historical monuments and their relationship to geometry sparked inspiration for this design. The geometric stone is cast from Jesmonite and fits precisely into the steel base creating the perfect unison and contrast between each element.
What you absolutely must have in your studio: I love using engineered parts so callipers are pretty vital.
What you do when you’re not working: ‘Green laning’ on my motorbike and making ramen.
Sources of creative envy: Eduardo Chillida, Constantin Brancusi, Louis Kahn, Harry Bertoia.
The distraction you want to eliminate: Buying lighting components online that I never use. I have accumulated a rather large stash that sits in the corner of my studio.
Concrete or marble? I like concrete because I can manipulate and mould it from a liquid. I like marble because I can only remove material—once it’s removed there’s no going back. I enjoy the versatility of concrete but prefer the limitations of marble.
High-rise or townhouse? As much as I love modernism I would still choose townhouse. They create streets which provide a more successful urban layout to a city.
Remember or forget? Remember. I am interested in how a fragmented or abstract memory can spark an idea or ignite the imagination.
Aliens or ghosts? Ghost. I like the idea that we could be surrounded by spirits.
Dark or light? Light gives life. I love life.
