DI: What is the main principle, idea and inspiration behind your design?
: The idea was to create a personal storage space that could be a piece of sculpture that could move. The curves came from the appreciation I have with French Period furniture. The sculpture came from my time spent with artists Sophia Vari Botero and her husband Fernando Botero at their foundry and marble studio in Pietresante, Italy. I thought it would be great to have one of Sophia's sculptures in my home.
DI: What has been your main focus in designing this work? Especially what did you want to achieve?
: I wanted to achieve a practical furniture design that could transform into a sculpture. that could be changed, updated, re-arranged and completely personalised to match the personality of the owner or space.
DI: What are your future plans for this award winning design?
: To develop different styles, sizes, types. And to see how people use it, change it and have fun with it.
DI: How long did it take you to design this particular concept?
: The idea was rolling around in my head for quite some time. Being a recording engineer, film-maker and photographer, I was used to lugging around equipment in professional foam-lined cases. The decisive moment happened at one film shoot when I lay my pelican cases over each other and slid them around to get to the equipment. I realised that if I could slide compartments, I could get to things faster and easier. Totem was born.
DI: Why did you design this particular concept? Was this design commissioned or did you decide to pursuit an inspiration?
: It was really an idea that came out of my own necessity that just happened to be practical and overlooked.
DI: Is your design being produced or used by another company, or do you plan to sell or lease the production rights or do you intent to produce your work yourself?
: As a designer with a design studio, I'm looking for manufacturers who would like to license the design.
DI: What made you design this particular type of work?
: Necessity and the fact that I felt that there wasn't a lot of innovation in cabinetry at a manufacturable level. Of course I've met some spectacular French cabinet makers doing art abjects, but I'm trying to bridge the gap between practicality, art and personality [sort of like interactive New Media].
DI: Where there any other designs and/or designers that helped the influence the design of your work?
: Definitely. The list is a very long one, starting with meeting my luminaries like Frank Gehry [in his early "cardboard chair" days], Hans Hollein, Zaha Hadid and partner Patrik Schumacher...to artists Sophia Vari. I've had the pleasure to meet some of my heroes of design.
DI: Who is the target customer for his design?
: Stylish consumers, interior designers who wants to "personalise" the look of furnishings of a home or office. It really is a chameleon.
DI: What sets this design apart from other similar or resembling concepts?
: That it can move. It's not a uni-dimensional object. It can interact with the room. It can hide in the corner or take centre stage. It's alive.
DI: How did you come up with the name for this design? What does it mean?
: Totem explains what it is. A totem pole is a tribal pole with levels of ancestors. It's an appropriate metaphor for a person's lifestyle of storing objects, clothing and belongings.
DI: Which design tools did you use when you were working on this project?
: It started with my moleskin square notebook and pen, and quickly moved on to Solidworks.
DI: What is the most unique aspect of your design?
: That it is very personal and interactive.
DI: Who did you collaborate with for this design? Did you work with people with technical / specialized skills?
: I come from a very hands-on background. My father was in the building industry, my brother is an architect, my first gig was manufacturing "ferrari-like" Hi Fi equipment, so I understand working with wood, sheet metal and engineering. Luckily I could figure it out myself. The only tricky bit was the nylon bearings which enable it to swivel.
DI: What is the role of technology in this particular design?
: The technology of supporting and handling weight with movement as well as constructing with various unusual materials [for cabinetry].
DI: Is your design influenced by data or analytical research in any way? What kind of research did you conduct for making this design?
: My only real research was to calculate the size/weight/bearing as well as to see if the idea had been done before. The frictionless/oil-less nylon bearings were important for me to achieve the design.
DI: What are some of the challenges you faced during the design/realization of your concept?
: The bearing design - how to keep it simple. Not to allow unrestricted movement. How to make it modular, stackable, lockable...
DI: How did you decide to submit your design to an international design competition?
: I felt that it was novel and interesting enough to submit from the feedback I got from some of my peers.
DI: What did you learn or how did you improve yourself during the designing of this work?
: There is a certain euphoria you get when you have a monastic approach to developing an object. It's like a piece of your personality. Totem is crazy, but reserved and doesn't show all it's drawers...