Behind the Design: Charles Trevelyan

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again but I am very lucky to work with some great brands and designers, spending time speaking with them about their work and future ideas. What really interests me is how similar all designers appear to be on the subject of how interesting their studios are to others.

Every time I ask to come and take some photographs or film them the same response is given that they haven’t tidied so it’s a bit of a mess. That is exactly as I want to see it, the working environment in which they work and generate ideas and I know the audiences want to see this… it is the voyeur in us, wanting to see what nobody usually gets to see.

A couple of weeks ago I was fortunate enough to get some time with Charles Trevelyan who has designed products and bespoke pieces for a few different companies including Decode. This gave me an opportunity to speak to Charles, on camera, about his work.

His first collaboration with Carpenters Workshop Gallery gave birth to the “Titanic Lamp” that went on show in the London gallery in 2008. He then went on to make the light “On a limb” (2009-2010) which was the start of a new direction in his work. Charles interprets the object with a poetic and technical shape, a reflection on the notion of balance that results from the object’s inner tension.

Charles Trevelyan confirms this orientation with his new collection “Between the Lines” on show in Paris from September 7th 2013. He created pieces based on the scientific calculation of structure, but made them as a sculptor. The aesthetic of these pieces comes from the dynamic interaction between the design, the model, the three-dimensional mock-up and the prototype. The bronze moulding technique of the pieces is the faithful expression of his creative input and also enables him to envisage the finish, the patina and the variations in colour.

The pieces presented are lights: “Outside Within”, “Tripartite”, “Up From Below” and tables “Stance”, “Circumstance” and “On Edge”. The pieces in this collection fill the space with their graceful presence. As references to the complexity of organic reality, they form a whole and present a shifting stage, a snapshot in the young designer’s work in progress.