For Beck Smith, Founder of Gold Coast-based interior design studio, Studio Beck, the element of nostalgia was one of the recurring themes of the day.
Beck began her Saturday InDesign journey at the CDK Stone showroom in Alexandria. With her coffee in hand, she immersed herself in the charismatic array of stone at the showroom. As she explained in the short Part 1 Designer Lens documentary, her deep appreciation for the material has become part of her interior design signature.
In Part 2, she meets up with InDesign Editor, Timothy Alouani-Raby at CDK Stone, ahead of the panel discussion he moderated. The film follows Beck through many of the studios and showrooms she visits, giving a taste of the sights, sounds and sensations of Saturday InDesign.
Meeting up with Timothy again at the After Party, Beck puts the spotlight on the spectrum of sensory moments that occurred throughout the day.
It began with being surrounded by the colour and texture of one of her favourite materials, stone, as CDK Stone’s showroom. She explains that the panel discussion, which was reflecting on the experience of Milan Design Week, inspired her approach to the day.
While she has not yet attended Milan herself, the common thread in the conversation of experiencing design through encounters with people, atmosphere, food, touch, sound and energy resonated strongly.
As the film follows Beck to exhibitors including Ellison Stduios, Jardan, Euroluce, Light Co, Nook Lighting and Hali Rugs, it is clear the interaction between people, objects and aesthetics are making an impression.
At Ellison, the overlay of 1970s nostalgia shines through.
“The DJ was pumping, and has the records playing, there was texture everywhere,” she explains.
The shaggy wool rug was complemented by a lustrous velvet couch that she “immediately went and sank into” while she took in the ambience.
“It was still early in the morning so the coffee was going, and you could smell the coffee beans, it was amazing,” Beck says.
Ellison also featured a display of retro, 1970s books and magazines, which reminded Beck of how bringing objects from the past into the present can lead to increased emotional connection and layering within a space.
“It’s always important to be blending old with new,” she reflects.
As an interior designer, the connection between the person and the places they inhabit is a fundamental element in Beck’s design process. This is also about engaging in a sensory experience, something that was front and centre when exploring the lighting studios.
Beck observes that there are some things that must be experienced first-hand, for example the Euroluce lighting products. The scale, materiality and presence of objects is only fully obvious when sharing space with them.
At Jardan, the presence of a gelato cart near the entry brought another element of nostalgia to the fore, that of taste, and the role of food in supporting an immersive design experience.
Beck tells Tim that one of her favourite stops during her day touring studios and showrooms was the furniture showrooms, where she could sit and “people-watch” and take it all in. The curation of spaces people want to inhabit is a major priority for her as a designer, and having the opportunity to experience this in new ways amidst the work of other designers sparks fresh ideas.
Beck distils the impact of Saturday InDesign on herself as a designer into three key concepts: energy, layering and colour.
Whether it is through combining materials such as stone, wool, timber and velvets or considering the interplay between architectural lighting, objects from the past and the sensory aspects of activities including scent, flavour and sound, the inspiration from Saturday I
