09 April 2009

The Designer's Lens

Interior Designer Ben Voorderhake explores structure in photography.

Ben Voorderhake is quite modest about his talents. By day the interior designer runs the Sydney office of Cunsolo Architects, but his creativity extends beyond the world of design and takes him behind the lens.

After skilfully avoiding an engineering degree (thanks to beer and surfing), Ben went on to study interior design at Enmore TAFE and has since worked for a number of Sydney-based firms.

He also has an obvious gift for photography – having been short-listed in two competitions last year: the Moran Contemporary Photographic Prize and the National Trust (NSW) Photography Competition.

Ben’s passion for photography began when he borrowed a camera from a friend. “I wasn’t getting satisfaction from my design at the time, so I borrowed a camera, got hooked and bought one, then upgraded it again within a couple of months and really got into it,” he says.

“I like pattern in design, and I think it comes down to a [two-dimensional] image almost,” Ben says. “I quite like shapes and form and balance in a photograph, not so much depth – it’s a 2D thing for me and I guess that relates to what I do with work.”

Ben has a strong connection with water, which shows through in his photographic work. “I think it’s one place I can properly not think about things. Be it sitting on a surfboard or out on a boat – you really focus on what you’re doing.

”At the same time, his architectural photography shows an appreciation for clean modernist lines and, conversely, raw urban landscapes.

“I’m a pretty structured person in terms of my design and in my art; and photography is a very structured thing.

“When I’m busy at work I don’t even pick up a camera... It’s an escape, but I think they also work hand in hand.”

See some of Ben's work below, or visit his Flickr site flickr.com/abingdon

cunsolo.com.au