DI: What is the main principle, idea and inspiration behind your design?
LDPG : My inspiration is based on my observation of what drives me, the places i visit, the art i see, the shape of things.
DI: What has been your main focus in designing this work? Especially what did you want to achieve?
LDPG : The main focus of this project is the possibility of making something good to the world and our environment by reusing materials and showing people how they can relate to it, encouraging them to consume and take home what can be sustainable.
DI: What are your future plans for this award winning design?
LDPG : My plan is to take this urban design concept to other places with the confirmation of being a good design and to give continuity to this urban line project, by showing the multiple possibilities of the good use of the raw material. Also, to be able to make beautiful and simple products for everyone. I think a good design is a simple design, something that is obvious and that makes sense.
DI: How long did it take you to design this particular concept?
LDPG : This concept has already been in my life for a long time. I have always worked with reusable products, such as scrap wood and waste materials, as well as the metal I use in furniture. I can say that I have been researching these materials for 8 years.
DI: Why did you design this particular concept? Was this design commissioned or did you decide to pursuit an inspiration?
LDPG : This project was driven by the vision I had of the raw material, my inspiration was to come across the art I saw when walking through the city, how the merchants enjoyed this way of decorating their stores and that the crisis that plagues our country, many of them closed making the streets are true art galleries.
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?
LDPG : We are producing the furniture in our factory. We are a design studio with own manufacturing.
DI: What made you design this particular type of work?
LDPG : What made me design this particular kind of work was to have to figure out how I would cover a glass window 15 meters long and 3.50 meters high, in an architectural design in a decoration show. Immediately I remembered the rolling doors.
DI: Where there any other designs and/or designers that helped the influence the design of your work?
LDPG : I really admire Gerrit Rietveld for his design, where he defies gravity in a unique way. The zig zag chair and the steltman chair are two examples. Alvar Aalto also, since it was pioneer in the art of curving woods.
DI: Who is the target customer for his design?
LDPG : Those who who care about products that are made from reusable materials and enjoy a simple and unique design. It is also my wish that these furniture could be used on the streets.
DI: What sets this design apart from other similar or resembling concepts?
LDPG : What differentiates this design is the fact that we use a raw material that is not used for the purpose for which it is intended.
DI: How did you come up with the name for this design? What does it mean?
LDPG : The name of this line came from the inspiration I had when circulating in the streets of the suburbs of Rio. The urban name is directly linked to the concept of city and what is related to it.
DI: Which design tools did you use when you were working on this project?
LDPG : The main tool is my notebook and my pen.
DI: What is the most unique aspect of your design?
LDPG : Much of what I see in design is the result of my personal life, my ability to perceive, and my personality to go out in search of different things.
DI: Who did you collaborate with for this design? Did you work with people with technical / specialized skills?
LDPG : My main collaborators are all who work with me, my engineer partner Mauricio Atie who was a fundamental piece in the elaboration of the furniture structure, and my employee Alexandre wich is a product designer.
DI: What is the role of technology in this particular design?
LDPG : In this specific case, the technology cooperates with the visualization of the product, with its automation so that it becomes accessible, in its production and pricing.
DI: Is your design influenced by data or analytical research in any way? What kind of research did you conduct for making this design?
LDPG : In this specific case, the technology cooperates with the visualization of the product, with its automation so that it is accessible, in its production and pricing.
DI: What are some of the challenges you faced during the design/realization of your concept?
LDPG : The challenges I faced are related to the workmanship, the execution of the products. We found some difficulties in the manufacture of curves and decided on their automation in order to make the product viable.
DI: How did you decide to submit your design to an international design competition?
LDPG : Entering an international contest would give us the guarantee that we are making a correct design. But for this we must tell a true and founded story.
DI: What did you learn or how did you improve yourself during the designing of this work?
LDPG : I learned a lot from this project, how to combine a crude raw material in its shape and how to make it light and smooth in its appearance. I specialize in making a simple and obvious design, but one that makes sense.
DI: Any other things you would like to cover that have not been covered in these questions?
LDPG : I found the questions very comprehensive.
