“Designer's work is magic”
Passing the galleryMaterials prepared: Olga Bozhko
Magazine: Press (163) 2011
SALON: How do you start working on a new project?
- Before starting cooperation with a company, the designer needs to understand, if such a comparison is possible, the DNA of this company. That is, its capabilities, technical equipment, taste preferences of the head of the company ... Figuratively speaking, whether you are a three-genius designer, you cannot come to the factory with a project and approve it if it does not match the style of the company. It is a great success for a designer if at the very beginning of a career it turns out to find like-minded people and cooperate with them for a long time. I was lucky. In my life, this is a kitchen company.
S: You have been working in the field of industrial design for a long time. Has the attitude to the profession of a designer changed?
- Being a designer is now almost magic. The designer is listened to, consulted at the stage of thinking about the project. But I remember very well the times when such a situation was basically impossible. 35 years ago, people in my profession only determined the color of the facades and the shape of the handles, but, for example, the place of the oven always remained the same (under a gas burner). However, progress does not stand still, new electric ovens are invented, and at the same time many possibilities of organizing space appear. If the thought of moving the oven from bottom to top occurred to me, it will be considered and approved. “Kitchen Island” in the American manner thirty years ago was generally difficult to imagine in modern European premises. However, the space in the apartment becomes more, and you can already afford such options. Previously, the kitchen was a separate room with a door, now it has become part of the living room. Accordingly, solutions need to be sought so that the kitchen in the open form looks beautiful and the extra household details are not noticeable to guests sitting on the sofa in the living area.
S: Changes apply only to kitchens or furniture too?
- Over the years, sofas have also significantly changed their shape. The backs are lower, the armrests sometimes disappear altogether. And in the living room there is a feeling of spaciousness, lightness. The space is not oversaturated with objects.
S: Your personal design addictions?
- It is easy to guess that of all the styles I prefer minimalism. Although, if you saw my house in Tuscany, it would be hard to believe. My favorite material in privacy is wood. I prefer sunny colors - orange, yellow, red. energy emanating from them. But, paradoxically, I prefer to work with steel, chrome, glass, and glossy surfaces. Therefore, my ability is best manifested in the design of kitchens, bathrooms and even medical SPA-centers, which suddenly turned out to be almost one of the most fashionable places.
S: Share your impressions of Russian public and private interiors, which you managed to see during your visit.
- It is pleasant to note how much has changed in the style of work on the interiors. Now most of the new spaces in Moscow can be called flawless in terms of taste. A lot of work has been done, I can only congratulate you on this!