FK talks to Loz from Who Did That about her lovely new range of Grandeliers, which will be on sale at the upcoming Brisbane FK markets.
Tell us about your new products, Grandeliers.
The Grandeliers, pendant lights and lamps, add luminous statements to any room… plus they flat-pack for efficient transporting and tool-free assembly. Also the future-friendly materials are sourced locally as part of my Tasmanian story, designed, made and grown.
What is your background, and what lead you to where you are today?
Pencils underline (no pun, really!) my education; firstly visual arts in Brisbane, followed by fashion design and textiles in Brissy and Sydney. Finally adding tools to my pencil-case in Tasmania and studying Furniture Design, part time, at UTAS. Outside of education I work on defining a vision that blurs the boundaries between decoration, design and function. There’s my educational and geographical arrival.
Where do you head for inspiration?
Online; anywhere Scandi. It’s my heritage… lame, I know to plop for one region but they do economical style very well. There’s so much visual enchantment online that it’s hard to list where I go. Extracting the essence of a culture (like a national uniform) inspires as do the more indy designers. Design stereotyping?! Uhoh. Offline; friends inspire me. The coast calms me. Then design ideas unfold.
What do you love most about your label and what have been some challenges you have learnt from along the way?
I love light. Sunlight, moonlight, firelight, streetlight…and the transformative shadows created. Light draws people…must be our primordial ‘genes’. Growing the Grandeliers brand is fun, frustrating, fun…isn’t that love? Guess not so many challenges, more discoveries. The earth is round and to send my Grandeliers anyway but flat-pack would make them untenable. Sourcing quality Tasmanian eco-accredited materials was initially frustrating. We all know about our forests. Lastly, I just read that growing a brand is a marathon not a sprint. I love that, too.
What do you love about your new surroundings in Tasmania?
There’s a postcard view everywhere you look… the horizon’s incredibly close. Galvanising stuff! I now get the “big sky” that I grew up with in country Queensland. Plus knowledge sharing within the design community is abundant… pinch yourself, it’s real. Oh, and the one minute traffic jams! On your treadlie.
What aspirations do you have for Who Did That for the future?
Squeezing the role of part-time student into my life til 2013 is a personal dream (sometimes nightmare) that capers around my studio work for Who Did That. Studying furniture design at UTAS, a campus chocked with award-winning talent, does impress decisions in my studio. Being at ground level with uni reinforces my focus to further develop quality flat-packed furniture and lighting; examining the use of digital technology in their production; and continuing to use future-friendly materials in creating works of endurance. Next year I’m taking the Grandeliers new range to overseas trade shows. So, yep, I’m dreaming of more time in the day. Oh, and world peace! Pass the tiara.
