MICHAEL YOUNG INTERVIEW
Q: As far as you’re concerned, as a brand of lifestyle products, what are the most unique features of ZENS?
A: Products of ZENS cohere the founders and staff’s love for beauty, and their original ideas on lifestyle design, which are also the two conditions necessary for a reliable brand, or it will descend to a common brand of the industry. A product, made of any material, shall be with vision and soul, which is also the secret of the enduring charm of many Italian established brands. As family brands, each generation of them devote their ultimate enthusiasm to the soul of products and brand culture, which have turned into a part of the nation and history in the end. As time passes by, if there is a new generation with vitality, there will be a new competition in the industry. But ZENS has such kind of competitive potential.
Q: We’re going to launch the lamp series designed by you. Could you say something about the design idea of the series?
A: With some keywords determined after discussion, we have decided the basic elements of this series. We want it to adhere to the eco-friendly idea of “sustainable development”, and to be embedded with the Eastern culture. We naturally pick up bamboo as material, as it comes from China. The glass and paper lampshade we use are also made in China. Besides, a more important reason to use bamboo is that it complements the structure of the lamp, as well as is good-looking for decoration. Thus, it’s a rather comprehensive design.
Q: What do you think people may feel about such design?
A: They directly reflect the crafts we have employed, with a sense of quietness and peace. But they are also very solid.
Q: You have used a lot of aluminum as material in your previous design series. But for this series, you have chosen bamboo, why? How is the eco-friendliness specifically for the bamboo in this series?
A: As a designer, I would like to try different materials. I will put them under the “microscope” to study their different features. For instance, I used aluminum to realize my design. Aluminum, as material, has its own advantages and disadvantages. It may feel good in forging a series of products with warmth. However, bamboo as material is flexible and has been used by people for a long time, which is the most attractive point to me. I can draw inspiration for my creation from its long history of development.
Q: Besides bamboo as supporting stand for the lamp, are there other aspects that present the idea of eco-friendliness?
A: Sure. We use recyclable paper for the lampshade to realize eco-friendliness and to fulfill our social responsibilities.
Q: If design is an approach to solve problems to you, what is the “problem” that you want to solve in the design of the lamp series?
A: Despite our full understanding of the limits of our materials, I want to further explore their flexibility. For example, how will bamboo bend under natural conditions? The process of aging is some kind of beauty.