We, as the Designer Interviews ("DI") had the distinct pleasure and opportunity to interview award-winning, most creative and innovative Mostafa ArvandBARMCHI ("MA").
Mostafa Arvand has been described as the most influential designer of his generation. He has worked across a wide range of disciplines, creating everything from furniture and household objects to medical devices. Mostafa’s award-winning work is a testament to his quest for innovation and creating design solutions that improve the quality of life. Based in Tehran – Iran, he aims to continue his efforts in developing new talent and inspiring design thinking all around the world. Born in Iran, Arvand spent much of his childhood in the North of Iran. He started experimenting with tableware design as a student and, after graduation, was working at a big company for 5 years. Arvand has lived and worked in Tehran, where he is now based, and he continues to travel widely. His clients include a broad range of the best-known and most prestigious brands in Iran – from manufacturing and technology to home appliances, medical, and the luxury goods sector. Many of his designs have been a runaway success for his clients and have achieved the status of modern design icons. In addition, he was appointed from 2015 to 2016 as The Middle East product designer & achieve design thinking. His work is present in many major stores, hypermarket including the Middle East.
Mostafa ArvandBARMCHI Designs
We are pleased to share with you original and innovative design work by Mostafa ArvandBARMCHI.
Designer Interview of Mostafa ArvandBARMCHI:
DI: Could you please tell us more about your art and design background? What made you become an artist/designer? Have you always wanted to be a designer?
MA : The history of designing in Persia is thousands of years old and designing an old history in Iran. About choosing art and design it’s better to say that it was the design that chose me. All my ancestors have interacted with design. Should be mentioned design for me is more than a worthwhile business. Design is all my life. My major influence has been my family & friends. Although, studying Industrial design allowed me to surround myself with passionate and proud faculty. Graduation in Industrial design and Post Graduate degree in Product Design has helped me gain an analytical and consumercentric approach to a problem. I select my way to help the people in every nation I wish to continue the learning experience and to work with multinational organizations which will enhance my ability and design skills. I am looking for opportunities that involve a variety of design solving process, work, and exposure in the design industry. Now that I've been thinking about years ago putting on the design path was the best choice for me.
DI: Can you tell us more about your company / design studio?
MA : Mostafa Arvand Design Studio It consists of people who are in different areas of design, production and business. Design projects in the field of medicine, agriculture, home appliances, fashion, home furniture, lighting, urban furniture and... Which continues to operate with various projects around the world, especially the Middle East.
DI: What is "design" for you?
MA : The word design means lots of different things to different people. But nearly everyone you meet says that it's obvious what design is. They are often surprised to find that other people mean something different by design than they do. A process of creating an object/anything else where we use our creativeness to make the object beautiful. Like in creating product designs we should be artistic and creative to produce a good output.
DI: What kinds of works do you like designing most?
MA : Generally designed for people who nationals product design not limit may Consumer electronics, furniture, packaging. Basically anything this has physical third dimension attached to it. In short, all objects that make me be a handyman for the people. We designing to make the world a better place.
DI: What is your most favorite design, could you please tell more about it?
MA : All conceptual designs made into the product have been transformed. They are lovely for me because they have become a reality.
DI: What was the first thing you designed for a company?
MA : My first professional experience in product design is related to a household food processor. During my college education, I was hired in the design team of the home appliance manufacturer. It was the first design of my product designs. I spent nearly a year. And sold on the world market. As a domestic product was introduced in the market.
DI: What is your favorite material / platform / technology?
MA : Digital manufacturing methods are my favorite, and experience with new materials like intelligent materials is one of my tendencies in design. I corporate for four years in the field of digital manufacturing with FabLab Iran (FabLab.ir) was formed in 2014 as a digital fabrication laboratory to provide an open access environment for anyone who desires to invent, design, and share knowledge across international borders.. Products and innovative technology of smart materials are my favorite. It also utilizes high technology services to all people is the first step.
DI: When do you feel the most creative?
MA : I find I'm most creative when I organize my everyday thoughts. Based on a TED Talk where the speaker asked about our first 3 thoughts of the day I started thinking the same thoughts each day before I go to sleep and another set of same thoughts when I wake. The things I usually think of but now it's a shorter mental checklist instead of random thoughts floating across my awareness. What I find is that because I DE cluttered my usual mental chatter I'm able to access my creativity more easily during other hours I no longer have a peak creativity time I'm creative anytime I choose because there's no chatter to obscure the creativity.
DI: Which aspects of a design do you focus more during designing?
MA : Mass Production + business Think of the products that you use every day. The majority of them are useful, attractive, and seemingly very simple. However, even the simplest products are much more complicated than they may appear. Not only do these products need to be conceptualized and designed, they must also be manufactured. Industrial design is a complicated multi-disciplinary area of design. It involves creating products and other objects used by consumers, starting from the idea stage and going through the manufacturing process. Industrial design covers several areas of design. Some of these areas may include product design, car design, furniture design, shoe design, and packaging design. Unlike some other areas of design, however, the industrial design focuses more on mass-produced items. It does not only cover the concept stage of a product, but it also focuses on designing the product as well as designing a manufacturing plan for the product.
DI: What kind of emotions do you feel when you design?
MA : All emotions ranging from frustration to joy but in another view from love to hate lies across a product that is important to you and what perspective you look at it.
DI: What kind of emotions do you feel when your designs are realized?
MA : In my opinion, the biggest emotional event for a designer is to achieve the result. Now this result can be a cheap product or a precious product. The type of emotion is not related to the number of designs. Because creating a product is always exciting. Honor and pleasure of being useful, to see the product being used by others (people) who are entitled to the good life.
DI: What makes a design successful?
MA : A successfully design, it has to satisfy certain criteria, not only functional but also psychological and aesthetic. Good design emphasizes the usefulness of a product while disregarding anything that could possibly detract from it.
DI: When judging a design as good or bad, which aspects do you consider first?
MA : Beauty and the parallel performance is analyzed. In my opinion, the beauty of mass production cannot sacrifice performance and functionality contrast. Must be balanced judgment can be made in the first factor is the same.
DI: From your point of view, what are the responsibilities of a designer for society and environment?
MA : Before anything else, you must be a professional designer and prospective impacts of the project or product manufacturing think. Other hand, the designer will be directly related to man and animal rights community and the most important is his commitment. Feedback control schemes in modern societies, we are improving it useful and harmful effects of detention, we are touching them. I know he's not a designer only designs but also his attitude to society and the environment is better to be creative in the way of interest.
DI: How do you think the "design field" is evolving? What is the future of design?
MA : Check the details around us (nature) that can make future calls. Knowing this ahead of time will advance the idea of the product is always recommended, however, that to achieve the future should see well. In the future, we don’t have any field of design we will have an only design.
DI: When was your last exhibition and where was it? And when do you want to hold your next exhibition?
MA : My last exhibit was in Dubai and the most important exhibition of Mostafa Arvand Studios will be in the Milan Design Week Apr 17, 2018 – Apr 22, 2018.
DI: Where does the design inspiration for your works come from? How do you feed your creativity? What are your sources of inspirations?
MA : Nature is the best option for me. To inspire me in the nature of society and in fact to the community. To grow creativity, I can see the world's most effective and scrutinizing. And, from recent sources, I have found references in the recent years to which Internet-books have played a major role.
DI: How would you describe your design style? What made you explore more this style and what are the main characteristics of your style? What's your approach to design?
MA : I’m Minimalist. I'm trying to design the minimal. But the distance between my world and the world of production has not always allowed me. But I try to do it in minimal design style. And for me, this is a great value. To improve this, I try to study and see more.
DI: Where do you live? Do you feel the cultural heritage of your country affects your designs? What are the pros and cons during designing as a result of living in your country?
MA : I'm living in Iran-Persian land. And thanks to professionals more have traveled most countries in the Middle East. I believe that culture can be effectively designed and opinion leaders in the world of design culture obey With that experience, I've found that traveling has earned national attention to the culture of those products that have been more successful. Iran is an ancient country with a history of over three thousand years of different ethnic groups in Iran has created a rich culture if you notice that any designer can take advantage of it. The type of climate and land has a great influence on the designers' viewpoint. We do all of our business with the regional design culture internationally.
DI: How do you work with companies?
MA : As a designer through the Design Studio, MOSTAFA ARVAND DESIGN STUDIO I always know myself as a designer not more! You can see our designs at WWW.MOSTAFAARVAND.COM, So far 16 contracts have become a professional end product and the market have had.
DI: What are your suggestions to companies for working with a designer? How can companies select a good designer?
MA : My recommendation and suggestion to companies about working with the designer More focused on how to interact with the designer, companies need to trust designers and create the opportunity to experience designers. In contrast, designers should strive to create the opportunity to enhance product design with confidence. As a business is two-way, design is also two-way. Win-win
DI: Can you talk a little about your design process?
MA : In my idea, the design process is the transformation of an idea, needs, or wants by consumers or the marketplace at large, into a product that satisfies these needs. This is usually accomplished by adventurous people that are willing to take it on. Sometimes an engineer will be involved on some levels but not always. The design is basically a problem-solving exercise. The design of a new product consists of the following stages: Design Brief Product Design Specifications Concept Design Testing Detail Design Manufacturing and Further Testing Refinement and Sales The development of a new product may also require the development of a prototype to prove that new technologies work before committing resources to full-scale manufacture. We can assist you with some of the prototype design if you need this help. If you do desire to develop a prototype you should have the product tested by as many people as you can possibly work with. Be sure to have a non-disclosure agreement with people that you are unsure of. You may need to contact an attorney for the best protection. The traditional view of the design to the manufacturing process is that it is a sequential process, the outcome of one stage is passed on to the next stage. This tends to lead to iteration in the design. I.e. having to go back to an earlier stage to correct mistakes. This can make products more expensive and delivered to the marketplace late. A better approach is for the designer to consider the stages following design to try and eliminate any potential problems. This means that the designer requires help from the other experts, for example, a manufacturing expert to help ensure that any designs the designer comes up with can be made. We try to go ahead with the program.
DI: What are 5 of your favorite design items at home?
MA : 1-carpet 2-pot 3-keyboard 4-task light 5-frame
DI: Can you describe a day in your life?
MA : My day usually starts at 6 am ,usually in the first hours I try to respond to all emails and letters received before 8am. After that, it will be up to date to develop current projects if I need to have a meeting with the employer or colleagues at the studio. I go there and go to work daily. In parallel, I'm teaching at the University of Art as a professor to teach students.
DI: Could you please share some pearls of wisdom for young designers? What are your suggestions to young, up and coming designers?
MA : My suggestion for young designers is to be useful. This usefulness can be both effective for design and designer. To be useful, you need to be persevered and experience. So they can get the experience. Because design is not something, it's a process. In my opinion, no one is a perfect designer, but it may be better than the other designer. That's why I do not have the end of design, so you have to try and learn.
DI: From your perspective, what would you say are some positives and negatives of being a designer?
MA : Positive points: Variance - Being creative - Being up to date Negative points: unknown among some people
DI: What is your "golden rule" in design?
MA : Good Coordinator Design needs to be coordinated. Between reason and feeling between engineering and art.
DI: What skills are most important for a designer?
MA : Bring ideas and designs to the table that are relevant by considering current economic, social and business trends. Talent: Talent is intentionally last on this list. Having a real talent for design is as critical as it has ever been. However, talented designers are far more common than those designers who have real talent complemented with the attributes that are outlined above. Business: Create value in your markets. Effective designers need to understand how their businesses (or their clients) what role design can play to bring an advantage to their customers.Global Awareness: There are really two aspects of to global awareness: understanding how changes around the world are affecting the customers and markets; and understanding that the talent pool for designers today is global. Effective Storytelling: Fold and translate your ideas into the priorities of your client or organization. Flawless Execution: Get things done. Long gone are the days in which a designer handed work off to a project team to figure out. (It was never a good modus operandi, anyway.) Today, a designer has to work with cross-functional teams to advance designs and shepherd them through to production every step of the way. Passionate Curiosity: Continually explore and understand. More often this is a key differentiator between those who will make an impact and all the others. Imagination: Bring ideas and opportunities together in ways that were not initially obvious. It can be a powerful and defining capability for a designer. Objectivity & Self Awareness: Assess yourself and your work, and view yourself through the eyes of others with a realistic understanding of your capabilities. Crisp Communication: Build credibility. Often the language of design is very different from the language of business. The ability to effectively communicate across the disciplines is critical for a designer to influence an organization.
DI: Which tools do you use during design? What is inside your toolbox? Such as software, application, hardware, books, sources of inspiration etc.?
MA : See (healthy eyes) Hearing (normal ear) Thinking (full brain) Pencils (drawing an original idea) Ingredients (made replica or prototype) Computing (Software Development) Study sources (books, internet) God (who always looks at me)
DI: Designing can sometimes be a really time consuming task, how do you manage your time?
MA : Yes, it's true, designing can be time consuming and can be difficult if not properly managed. For this purpose, I am also practicing a timely delivery of design. Although this is not easier than design.
DI: How long does it take to design an object from beginning to end?
MA : This is a completely different subject, and at no time can we determine a time period for any type of project. It’s better to say that it may take 10 minutes and may be several years.
DI: What is the most frequently asked question to you, as a designer?
MA : Who is the product user? . . . . . Actually the same 5WH system
DI: What was your most important job experience?
MA : Be the designer This is my most important job. As you know, how much of a designer can affect the process of society?
DI: Who are some of your clients?
MA : The owners of small and large industries ,the head of the factory, the company, the public and private organizations and, ultimately, the people.
DI: What type of design work do you enjoy the most and why?
MA : The design of products that people focus on are human-centered is more enjoyable. Because you can then enter the world of other humans with any gender, race, skin color, dialect, national language, healthy or unhealthy, large or small.
DI: What are your future plans? What is next for you?
MA : Applications must be connected to the future of my career I plan to design a professional designer With specialized workshops throughout the developing world to help designers in gaining knowledge Promoting knowledge sharing designed to help them with me. Travel and accommodation in areas with developed knowledge of design and manufacturing studio designed to help myself to a better future to join the world of design. My aim points designed to achieve a better life for all people with any color and cultures and in this age of globalization, I think. I'm hoping to progress career attempts.
DI: Do you work as a team, or do you develop your designs yourself?
MA : Yes, I've always tried to play in a big band or team and working with others to achieve desired results teamwork answer I would be more ideal. Other hand, different perspectives on the challenges of an ever more innovative design will advance. I do not remember that I have acted in designing individual.
DI: Do you have any works-in-progress being designed that you would like to talk about?
MA : Yes, now that I am interviewing you, I have three ongoing projects, one of which is related to regional urban furniture, which is very important in Iran. And with all the energy of the design team I manage, I'm designing it. This project is appealing to me for interacting with humans, and I have a special attention to it. The location of the project is one of the tourist cities in Iran, and this can be the reason for these urban elements to be seen by tourists, which in the future can create better relations.
DI: How can people contact you?
MA : www.mostafaarvand.com
DI: Any other things you would like to cover that have not been covered in these questions?
MA : I would like to pay more attention to design in order to have a better world.