Sy Willmer is a young British Designer, who has completed his Masters degree in design program from Göteborg University in Sweden. His work spans the boundary of furniture & practical sculpture involving humour, identity & bold forms.
He has worked with Atelier van Lieshout, Rotterdam (Holland), Mckervish Design, Brighton (England) and Tag it design and print, Sussex (England).
His works have been presented in various exhibitions like Business Design Centre, London (2000 & 2001), Brighton Festival (2001 & 2002), Zwedse Zeemans Kerk, Rotterdam, Holland (2006), Central Library Göteborg (2006), Röhsska, Göteborg, Sweden (2007) to name a few.
Lately, we contacted him for an email interview; scroll down to take a glimpse of it –
1. Willmer, please introduce yourself to our readers?
Willmer: My name is Sy Willmer, I am a 30 year old British design / craftsman currently residing in Malmö, Sweden. My approach to design is from a bespoke perspective and I endeavor to involve humor and expression where possible. I’m interested in genuine and practical ecological design solutions.
I am involved at present in a range of projects in Scandinavia and northern Europe.
I have an MA in Design from HDK School of Design, Gothenburg University and a BA Hons Degree in Furniture Studies from BCUC, High Wycombe, England.
I have exhibited at both the business design centre in London and at the international furniture fair in Stockholm. Prior to living in Sweden I was employed at the studios of Joep van Lieshout - Atelier van Lieshout (AvL) in Rotterdam, Holland.
2. How far did your design project in Sweden, “What is it you are throwing away?” was successful, I mean how far did you improve the ergonomics of the litterbin and the public’s interaction with it?
Willmer: The project was a success in several distinct ways. We set out to discover how user-focused research considers and can benefit the successful design of the common litterbin.
Not only did the project’s results impress the city of Gothenburg council, who commissioned the project, but inspired the public during development and at the final public exhibition.
Above all, the consideration of this subject satisfied the municipal workers, who are involved with litter collection on a daily basses and they where forth right with their complements when interviewed by the Swedish daily press in relation to this project.
In this collaborative work a great importance was placed on how litterbins are operated in the key areas of depositing and emptying of litter. A substantial period of time was spent in the public space observing how people in the street interact with litterbins.
Another crucial part of research was conducted side by side with the municipal waste collection teams. Working on the collection rounds to see firsthand how a bin needs to function and ask of the operators what they believe a bin should be.
In understanding the demands from both sides of the user group we were able to make clear educated decisions about physical functions to benefit.
Depositing / volume
Convenience / visibility
Access/ availability
Height, size and strength
Emptying / service
Reduction of work related injury
Morale / working conditions
Materials / life span
Security / service
The proof is in the pudding, we established that the success of any such product or item of street furniture long term in the urban environment includes factors of public ownership.
Pride encourages increased usage and discourages vandalism; creating city icons, loved and that stand out. We included imagery and details personal to the city of Gothenburg on the litterbins to inspire.
The idea of encouraging productive expression by means of posters application, using litterbins as points of information as to benefit public inclusion in the urban space and its facilities.
Technically access was maximized, openings at the correct height for foot and wheelchair pedestrians to quickly deposit litter. This continues behind the scenes, litterbins that open up all the way with plenty of space for movement during waste collection around the bin and the bag.
Drainage for rainwater, coverage for snow and security from animals and vandals. Other decisive factors in material application and construction relate to longevity and recycling after the product’s life is over.
The designs of ‘litterbin’ we created employ strong materials in their construction such as steel and concrete that can sustain malicious attack. When a bin is damaged it can be quickly and easily replaced, the broken unit can then be repaired and put back into service or dismantled into individual material components and recycled.
3. Please tell us the concept behind the ecologically designed project ‘garden shed’?
Willmer: Sheds are found worldwide; they are a universally understood form of construction and therefore an ideal platform for change in this increasingly environmentally aware era.
I love sheds and have spent a great deal of time in them throughout my life. There is a factor of “shedness” present in all societies - one can behave differently in a shed than in a domestic house or the work place.
How can we continue to do what we do in our sheds with less impact on the planet’s resources?
This led me to establish through my research a set of key user values and I these together with contemporary and traditional green options of materials and building techniques available in today’s construction market.
4. What materials do you usually end up in materializing your creative genius? Is material choice considered from a sustainable angle?
Willmer: I love working with all materials, I have no prejudice and find no end of pleasure in discovering new combinations in their application.
For me wood is the material I most appreciate from a sustainable perspective as its production can be achieved sensibly and it’s of range recyclability is far greater than others.
5. What do you feel are the emerging trends in interiors with respect to furniture designs?
Willmer: Trend is something that is becoming increasing important in the world of furniture. Its speed of change, seasonal collections are being actively encouraged at the commercial end and example being given as the way the clothing fashion industry operates.
I enjoyed how the renovated Lloyd hotel in Amsterdam (by the Architects MVRD I believe) has had hundreds of second hand mismatched tables and chairs placed though out its corridors, rooms and grand restaurant, mingling with expensive contemporary pieces by Wanders, Piet Hien etc.
The general public is a lot more aware of the contemporary furniture and interior than at any time in the post war period. The consumer is now a lot better educated and tastes have improved.
I believe personalization, uniqueness, self-build and not “flat pack” - taking charge of one’s own space will be in emergence.
6. Do you think there’s something you’re most proud of so far, one particular project that came off really well?
Willmer: Yes that’s a collaboration project I was involved with - Houseboat gallery the “Verda”. The British artist Hamish McKenzie and I took a 1920’s passenger ferry that had been laying sunken on a river bed for 10 years and transformed it into a domestic and exhibition space with 90% reclaimed building materials.
The craft features a coach, as its top cabin, fighter jet wings as a roof, windows made from cars and domestic white goods. Timber is ever present; the interior is almost entirely in wood. Second hand floorboards, maple spiral feature in living room floor.
Up turned fishing boats used as partition walls for the sauna and bedrooms as well as staircases and built in bookcases.
This boat, located on the southern coast of England in Shoreham by Sea, just outside of the city of Brighton, never ceases to attract attention from the general public and the media.
It gives a lot of pleasure to all who come across it, inspiring in showing just what can be achieved with the right vision.
The houseboat Verda is one of the central exhibits in the local arts festival and the backdrop to the annual music festival.
7. In the design process, who is most influential in pushing for ‘better’ solutions: designers, clients, government, or consumers?
Willmer: To my mind it’s a circle, a self perpetuating loop; demand for better solutions can come from any one of the above and in turn cause effect in another.
It’s a question of attitude, of course from artist to civil servant there are perceived plus and minus points, but on the whole I find one fuels the other.
8. Do you feel that product design and architecture are related? If so, why?
Willmer: Some of the most successful product designers I know are architects and industrials designers have created some of the nicest buildings I have been in.
Why you ask, well architecture and traditional product design are in essence two colors that make up part of the whole rainbow of creativity encompassing hairdressing, car customization, cartoons, clothing fashion, canvas painting and on and on. The human expression can be measured in many different ways.
9. As you tread ahead in your life, what do you expect from yourself and what excites you the most?
Willmer: I expect nothing but I wish for respect of my work and my continued participation in the creative industry.
What excites me is change, human ingenuity and how we will ultimately responded to the challenge of climate change. What will this world be like in ten years time? I have faith - its goanna’ be great!
10. Any piece of advice, you’d like to leave for our readers?
Willmer: “Do all your work as though you had a thousand years to live and as you knew you must die tomorrow”.
Ann Lee founder of the Shaker movement, famed for their furniture design and manufacture. (Quoted in Andrews, The people called the Shakers, p.24)
Thank you Willmer for this wonderful interview, I’m sure our readers would have enjoyed reading it too; also I’d like to wish you success for all your future endeavors.
