BA(hons) in Design for Industry at Newcastle Polytechnic 1984-88

(now Northumbria University).

 

Experience from different design disciplines

I established my own business in Oslo 1988, and have worked free-lance with different companies for many years. In addition to product design, I have considerable experience with a variety of projects within furniture, architecture and interior, graphic design, branding, illustration work, cruise ship design, sports gear/clothing and carpentry.

 

Years of experience from this wide range of design disciplines has given me insight into what great craftsmanship is and how combining multiple disciplines creates a collaborative whole.

 

Making things better 

Improvements are in focus when I work, simply to make things better. My goal is to design meaningful and expressive products that will have a long lifespan. Construction, function and appearance should work as a whole. I strive to create simple, flexible and distinctive new solutions. 

 

Creating good atmosphere

When used, a product will be exposed to different environments and situations. It will be put in context with other objects. On display or in a presentation it may look great. More interesting to me is how the product, or numbers of them, works and contributes to create the identity of a given space.

 

Compositions of function, shapes, surfaces, colors and materials create the character of our products, homes, offices, streets and cities. Rooms with a good atmosphere improve physical and mental well-being. When my work generates such a result, I feel that I have succeeded.

 

Focus on my own furniture

Some years back, I started focusing more on designing my own furniture. In these projects I define my own objectives. Although my goal is to design for mass production, I see the value in trying to work more freely. This often leads to valuable experience and unexpected expressions and solutions. There have been many concepts. Some have led to production and several patented inventions.