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Designer, Adam Cornish talks origins, influences, process, collaboration and the current struggles faced by Australian creatives.
Australian designer, Adam Cornish.
Stoneware Lighting range designed by Adam Cornish. Conceived on a visit to a local artist, at the time Adam was working on another project that involved the hand throwing of clay. He was intrigued by the beauty of all the hand lines and ridges created during the throwing process. Adam was also disappointed to see these beautiful nuances erased in order to conform to a preconceived notion of perfection. The Stoneware is air dried and fired without the use of glazes and other colorants. The different colours are created by using stoneware sourced from different regions and are determined by the natural elements found at each location.
'Trinity' by Adam Cornish for Aless. “Trinity” is a steel centrepiece inspired by the harmonious spiral structure of the shell of the Nautilus mollusk, a simple geometric shape that develops out like a vortex into an elegant concentric structure. Produced entirely in the factory in Crusinallo, It's created through a laser-perforating process on sheet steel that is subsequently shaped with a mechanical process. Made of stainless steel with a gloss finish or white-coloured steel.
Foliar Ecoustic® designed by Adam Cornish for Woven Image. Foliar is informed by the tessellating cellular structures found in nature. The faceted tiles form a three dimensional wall surface that can be grown and added to similarly to the cellular structures it was inspired by. The individual tiles are designed to be installed in endless organic formations, creating installations of wall art that also absorb sound and improve the acoustics of the surrounding environment.
Foliar Ecoustic® designed by Adam Cornish for Woven Image. Foliar is informed by the tessellating cellular structures found in nature. The faceted tiles form a three dimensional wall surface that can be grown and added to similarly to the cellular structures it was inspired by. The individual tiles are designed to be installed in endless organic formations, creating installations of wall art that also absorb sound and improve the acoustics of the surrounding environment.
Foliar Ecoustic® designed by Adam Cornish for Woven Image. Foliar is informed by the tessellating cellular structures found in nature. The faceted tiles form a three dimensional wall surface that can be grown and added to similarly to the cellular structures it was inspired by. The individual tiles are designed to be installed in endless organic formations, creating installations of wall art that also absorb sound and improve the acoustics of the surrounding environment.
Tell me how you got started as a designer – what sparked your interest, what did you study, and how has the course of your career changed over time?
I think becoming a designer was just a continuation of my natural curiosity. As a child I can remember always being interested in how things were made and how they went together. I think it is a very common trait of a designer to question things and ask why, why like this and not like that etc.
My early interest at school were definitely art and sciences especially biology. I think design is a combination of these two ways of thinking and have definitely impacted my design process. I studied industrial design and furniture making and believe designers should take a more hands on approach, in my experience you learn so much by making as opposed to just designing on a computer screen.
Who, or what are some of your influences? Other designers, artists, nature?
I am influenced by all of my experiences, I try to stay open to all that is going on around me and filter and keep the bits that inspire me. I think this process happens subconsciously and is important to developing one’s own authentic language.
As far as designers and artists go. I love the work of Poul Kjaerholm! His work is simple beautiful and always intelligent in its logic. Tragically Poul died relatively young so we all have a small sample of the great potential this person had to offer. Please check out the PK 25 to see what I mean!
Can you describe your design process?
This is always a tough question to answer simply. My design process is something, which I think, is always evolving, however I think the end goal has always been relatively the same. I want to create simple, smart products that consider how people interact with them. I am not interested in gimmicky, statement driven objects. Our world has a limited amount of resources and wasting these on meaningless products is just criminal.
Can you tell me about Alessi, and what you’ve been working on since? What are you working on right now?
We were so lucky as a studio to have Alessi as our first client. We started with the “Trinity Centrepiece” and eventually developed the product into a family of baskets and fruit holders. Our relationship with Alessi continues to be one of great trust and is experimental and research driven. It is a beautiful thing when designer and company trust each other and allow for experimentation. As this environment is where I believe great design comes from.
What do you think are some of the challenges facing Australian designers right now?
One of the most challenging areas facing Australian designers at the moment would definitely be the inadequate law and legislation in regards to intellectual property and design theft in this country. Australia needs to lift its standards to be in line with Europe and other nations.
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