Making connections

- by Laura

At Zetteler, we’re incredibly lucky that we’re constantly thrown in path of inspiring, creative people that endlessly wow us with their ingenuity and skill. One such human is Job van den Berg. We came across the Dutch industrial designer while out in Milan this year, where he was exhibiting at group show Transitions III at Ventura Central. We were floored by the craft and detail of his O – Series of cabinets and lamps and were desperate to find out more.

Graduating from Design Academy Eindhoven in 2015, Job’s work hinges on a fascination with making – both industrial processes and artisanal techniques fall under his inquisitive gaze. Many of his pieces are the result of challenging established ways of doing things to come up with smart new approaches. His O – Series, for example, uses wood veneer rolled into tubes to create a light yet strong structure, from which he has made a cabinet and floor lamp. Each of the parts are held together without screws or bolds, and combine a clever new idea with an excellence in joinery.

Whereas his Copy Blur Mirror presses metal into a wave-like looking glass, his Metal Skin Cabinet forges wood veneer and sheet metal at a very high temperature to create a surface texture with the touch of metal and the grain of wood. Job’s Glasslab cabinet uses the unexpected strength of glass – here in two giant upside-down test tubes – to hold up a series of metal shelves.

Given there’s a huge amount of unseen craft and technology that goes into Job’s work, we wanted to catch up with him to find out more. Here he is in his own words…

Detail is integral to your work, why are the little things the most important?

To be honest I don’t think the details are always the most important. I see them as little presents which make a product rich and understandable. Together they define the bigger picture. Because people see different details and interpret them in their own way, everyone experiences a product in their own way. The eyes of a woodworker might see the details according to how something is made and constructed. While someone else might see the details that show that the cabinet is hollow which spares a lot of wood.

Tell us about your favourite joint, how its made, and why you find it so pleasing…

My favourite joint is the X in the framework. By making the tube flat where the braces cross, there becomes enough space for them to pass each other. It’s like when you hold your belly to cross a narrow space. This squeeze effect is only possible when the wood is hollow. It shows the potential and possibilities of the O-Series. 

How do you square making ‘democratic’ work with artisanal, time-consuming processes? 

Artisanal is not always time-consuming. To bring a product to a larger public you need to scale it up. The industry makes it possible to fill this need with less effort and lower costs. For me it’s a challenge to work within the industrial borders without losing artistic qualities. 

How do you feel about the increasing seasonality of the design industry and the pressure on designers to produce new work for shows like Milan?

Besides the fact that seasonality is in many ways bad for the environment, I’m a fan of timeless design. My favourite jeans are five years old, my favourite chair more than 50. Furniture should last for a long time and if something is good it will retain its value. I also see more and more designers getting deeper in there research and exploring a project that’s already been presented before. In my opinion this is a positive development, because the project becomes most of the time more profound.

What’s next for you?

Fun, new research, new products and more fun. I’ll be diving deeper into projects like the O-Series and Metal Skins, which will result in solutions that make my work more accessible to a bigger audience. 

For another great example of detail in design, check out this interview with David McFarline, the creative director of Commission – the design studio behind FranklinTill’s new visual identity.