We, as the Designer Interviews ("DI") had the distinct pleasure and opportunity to interview award-winning, most creative and innovative Sini Majuri ("SM").
Glass artist Sini Majuri works in Helsinki, Finland. Her works have been exhibited in the USA, Japan, China, Europe and Canada. She has also been awarded for her work at Beijing Fashion Week in China. She combines 3D-design with old glass blowing techniques. Many of her works are surrealistic stories captured inside blown glass.
Sini Majuri Designs
We are pleased to share with you original and innovative design work by Sini Majuri.
Sini Majuri Design - Infinity Vessel Crown
Sini Majuri Design - Icy Cocktail Glass
Sini Majuri Design - Flow Vase
Sini Majuri Design - Bumpy Vase
Sini Majuri Design - Pikku Vase
Sini Majuri Design - Purnu Jar
Sini Majuri Design - Orinnoro Jar
Sini Majuri Design - Iceberg Sculpture
Sini Majuri Design - Rainforest Vase
Sini Majuri Design - River Vase
Sini Majuri Design - Cassiopeia Sculpture
Sini Majuri Design - Spike Lamp
Designer Interview of Sini Majuri:
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?
SM : In this twisted era of War and insecurity, artists have a responsibility in capturing the nature of the time. As a glass artist I see craftsmanship; creating by hands, as a vital part of my design. I believe that it is programmed deep into human heredity. The profound importance of craftsmanship sparks in our primitive instincts. It’s clicking in the Stone Age tools, step by step towards civilization. We have originally shaped our security, construction, innovation and creation with our hands. Therefore art has always been connected deeply in humanity. Art opens when it interacts. It is a form of communication that has retained the character of mystery throughout time. It’s a universal language. The language of beauty and spirituality. Even dangerous language. And it must be dangerous, because it always reveals our true essence.
DI: Can you tell us more about your company / design studio?
SM : Icy Design Oy creates interior design objects, custom made light sculptures and limited edition series of household glass. Being a small design studio is a strength, because it makes it possible to offer exclusiveness. Every item is shaped by hand, signer and numbered. I’m also working with glass in the setting of contemporary art. Many of my sculptural works are surreal narratives captured inside thick glass and have hidden details in them that can only be seen from exact angle.
DI: What is "design" for you?
SM : I see design as form of visual poetry - a language of beauty, functionality and style.
DI: What kinds of works do you like designing most?
SM : The glass designer has a great responsibility in defining what modern glass is today. The designer not only shapes the material, but the whole field and its future. My design philosophy is to reflect the calm Northern aesthetics with studio made glass. I'm especially interested in the recycled material that questions the relationship of quality and pureness of the glass medium in modern design. The rough texture of the waste glass with impurities is usually highlighted as a statement. In the international Year of Glass 2022 the preserving the endangered craftsmanship of glass as well as environment by respecting the material are starting points of my design.
DI: What is your most favorite design, could you please tell more about it?
SM : The Orinnoro jar is designed to create harmonious moments into everyday life. When the tall jar is opened, it takes time and calmness to place items, such as flowers or food inside it to be preserved. These moments of serenity are rare and valuable in a hectic World. When the light interacts with the glass, the shadow looks vivid and alive because of the recycled materials texture. The shadow of the glass object is also an important part of the piece, because glass material is never static. It reacts to the surrounding light and environment.
DI: What was the first thing you designed for a company?
SM : I was invited to design a vase collection for DutZ Collection in Netherlands. The Jungle Vase collection won a Golden Award from A'Design Awards in 2018.
DI: What is your favorite material / platform / technology?
SM : Glass is an expressive material that reaches the invisible layers of existence. As a contrast to its sensuality, glass is one of the key technologies that have shaped the modern World. It allowed us to discover the microscopic World as well as the distance of Space. It has magic and primordiality. History. Unknown.
DI: When judging a design as good or bad, which aspects do you consider first?
SM : The World is so full of items that there must be something good in the design, if it’s spotted from the cascade of design. I believe that only the great design becomes iconic and sets new standards in its field. Good design also endures time, as it’s still awesome despite the passing of the years.
DI: From your point of view, what are the responsibilities of a designer for society and environment?
SM : I believe that designers have responsibility to find new ways to create more sustainable products. There are so many levels in design that can be focused. For example by creating everyday objects that endure time. Studio made glass has always a touch of uniqueness in it. For example every drinking glass has in a way their own charisma and soul. This makes the moment when the glass is used special. These kind of items are passed on in the family, not just used once and tossed away.
DI: How do you think the "design field" is evolving? What is the future of design?
SM : In 2022 I see that the Pandemics, War and the state of the environment are affecting the design field in multiple ways. Design is one way to take part into shaping the reality.
DI: When was your last exhibition and where was it? And when do you want to hold your next exhibition?
SM : My last exhibitions in 2022 were It's Liquid in Venice and Home exhibition in The Art Museum Eemil, Finland. In both exhibitions I exhibited Family Portrait sculpture series that reflects the delicate and multidimensional whole of the human mind. The portraits are balancing on the border of beauty and monstrousness – aiming to mirror how the moments of encountering and seeing a person have changed radically during the pandemic. Faces are distorted, death is hidden behind the herringbone parquets, and the ciphers are tied to the shadows of the objects. Woman is a recurring theme in the sculptures: How she has been portrayed in culture throughout the millennia. Especially in the myths such as Eve and Pandora, an active and curious woman is the root of all evil. Lilith, the World’s first woman that sees herself as equal to man is demonized as well as strong matriarch Louhi from Kalevala myths. I often reflect these distant echoes of mythological women in the sculptures. At the same time, the sculptures are images of saints, movie stars and selfies tangled together with real life women. In the sculptures faces are waving, when viewed from the side, the eyes multiply. At the same time, a person is under water or in an old-fashioned picture frame, inside a futuristic cell like mass. Series reflect how our own perspective affects how we see each other. It’s always blurred by the time and culture. There are always hidden layers in us all. My next exhibition project is a cooperation with glass artist Marja Hepo-aho in Venice. The project combines multiple art fields in a fresh way, brings modern tech such as AR and holographic projection together with contemporary glass sculptures. Particularly what interests us in the project is how a human identity is distorted. Society can crack an individual’s shell, turning shards into something desired. It’s startling how deep rooted these structures are and how blind we are in the end to see ourselves. The moments we set out to look at each other from a new perspective are rare. Identity is a living thing. It needs to be mixed, that’s a way to evolve.
DI: Where does the design inspiration for your works come from? How do you feed your creativity? What are your sources of inspirations?
SM : The use of glass, precisely studio made glass, as a medium of artistic expression is a relevant choice for me. Glass is a universal language of beauty and invisibility. The inspiration in my latest works comes from the radical change in the human encounter in the pandemics.
DI: Could you please share some pearls of wisdom for young designers? What are your suggestions to young, up and coming designers?
SM : I believe that one key to success is to find the unique feature from your work and focus on it. It might be the way you use the medium or a special new technique. Something that is fresh and unseen in the field. Then learn to put your thoughts into words and really talk about your design and what’s the cool factor in it.
DI: Do you work as a team, or do you develop your designs yourself?
SM : My dynamic team has real chemistry. Marja Hepo-aho and Kari Alakoski are master glassblowers that ensure that the quality of the glass pieces is always excellent. My brother Simo is a professional smith and in charge of the glass blowing mold making. Heidi-Hanna Karhu takes my product photos. I'm happy to have people working with me that are masters on their field!
DI: How can people contact you?
SM : People can contact me via my homepage www.sinimajuri.com and also by email info@sinimajuri.com. You can also find me via Facebook @SiniMajuriDesign and Instagram @sini_majuri