Romuald Vincent

LEGENDARY INTERVIEW

Design Legends ("DL") had the distinct honour to interview legendary designer Romuald Vincent ("RV") for their original perspective and innovative approach to design as well as their creative lifestyle, we are very pleased to share our interview with our distinguished readers.

DL: Could you please tell us a bit about your design background and education?

RV : I started my professional life as an architect. I am graduated from the School of Architecture in Brittany. I first studied and practiced design there. Since I remember I have always liked drawing and painting but It was a very good complementary experience to learn more on graphic and practical design by using CAO and production machine. I have always wanted to design and build new things, working on many projects, not especially to become a designer. It’s quite a late vocation. When I chose the school of Architecture, the idea behind was more to conciliate science and art in a concrete way. These are too important aspects of my personality I think.

DL: What motivates you to design in general, why did you become a designer?

RV : I wanted to reenchant the wordl ! The aim of Design is to bring art in everyday life and in the most practical way. We are making it useful and living !

DL: Did you choose to become a designer, or you were forced to become one?

RV : I have always wanted to create tangible new objects since I was young. The creation process takes me away. As far as I am concerned, designing is almost as natural as breathing.

DL: What do you design, what type of designs do you wish to design more of?

RV : Almost everything. It can come from a building to indoor spaces and small objects. I really enjoy working on a smaller scale at the moment after making so many big size projects in the past. When I am designing a new bottle for example, time scale for conception is further reduced. The relationship with the object naturally changes. I consider myself much more as a craftman since I really have a complete control over it. It’s almost more fulfilling from an intellectual point of view, unless it was my taste for novelty !…

DL: What should young designers do to become a design legend like you?

RV : Working hard and believe in your star. I would also add that: whatever your talent is, if you want to make a name in your business field, communication is the key. Starts sharing your design with your friends, your community, then see bigger to make you know. Social and business network are more and more connected. The aim is not to sell your soul, you need to stand by your convictions, and even to make some sacrifices for it but in the end you still need to know how the game is playing. In that way you will avoid disillusions.

DL: What distinguishes between a good designer and a great designer?

RV : A great designer is able to anticipate consumer’s need. He makes you see things different and sheds new light on the object or space he designed. He also has the ability to question and renew his own of doing things.

DL: What makes a good design a really good design, how do you evaluate good design?

RV : Following my own selection criteria, a good design makes the use of the object come first, then innovation in terms of added-value, the unicity and finally the graphic coherence and the aesthetic qualities. Add this list a touch of magic (you can call it the designer’s talent, his own style) to recreate emotional and functional ties between consumer and consumable products and you win the laurels.

DL: What is the value of good design? Why should everyone invest in good design?

RV : A good design reenchants the world by reinventing an object, a space or a use. In twenty years it will be considered as a timeless classic. You would better invest right now !

DL: What would you design and who would you design for if you had the time?

RV : My dream is I can afford one day designing my company’s head office building. It would come to a successful conclusion to my business.

DL: What is the dream project you haven’t yet had time to realize?

RV : An animated company presentation movie I would like to direct.

DL: What is your secret recipe of success in design, what is your secret ingredient?

RV : I always keep in mind when I design that nothing can be taken for granted. I Never limit myself and try to challenge the limits of the resent. There is still more to do and to improve.

DL: Who are some other design masters and legends you get inspired from?

RV : Leonard de Vinci, Franck Lloyd Wright, Jean Prouvé, Oscar Niemeyer… Maybe I am old school !

DL: What are your favorite designs by other designers, why do you like them?

RV : Ora Ito’s bottle for Heinken because he manage to reinvent a concept with a simple shape and just few lines.

DL: What is your greatest design, which aspects of that design makes you think it is great?

RV : To Quote Franck Lloyd Wright, I would say the next ! ;-) More seriously, from an architectural point of view, I would say the fashion house we designed for the stylist Anna Ruohonen in collaboration with Littow Architects. This project won the Shop & Design first prize in 2014. It is a very good example of what I should call a “fair” architecture fully compatible with the constraints of the site, the client’s program and budget and deadline. The guideline was to build both a production and exhibition tool and our work has been fairly successful. Now I am very proud of the work I did for my brand. It’s a bit “selfish” for a project since I was my first client but there is also a more emotional dimension: It’s kind of my baby ! ;-) The fact he was very well received by consumers first, then media and now with the design community wih this award means a lot for me. I am really inspired to pursue the entrepreneurial adventure!

DL: How could people improve themselves to be better designers, what did you do?

RV : They should never take anything for granted and should remain open-minded, curious, and always experiment With last ideas, techniques and practices,

DL: If you hadn’t become a designer, what would you have done?

RV : A politician I guess, but it is not too late !

DL: How do you define design, what is design for you?

RV : useful, unless it is to make use beautiful, it depends on the point of view…

DL: Who helped you to reach these heights, who was your biggest supporter?

RV : The fear of dying without doing anything great. It makes me go ahead and push my own limits.

DL: What helped you to become a great designer?

RV : Hard work and a good mentor.

DL: What were the obstacles you faced before becoming a design master?

RV : Specific software I learnt on the job.

DL: How do you think designers should present their work?

RV : An online portfolio seems perfect in my opinion.

DL: What’s your next design project, what should we expect from you in future?

RV : I am going to expand Dame de Pique collection by designing new brand products. The idea behind is to turn a beverage brand into a generic one and take advantage of such a disruption. Let’s see what is going to happen !

DL: What’s your ultimate goal as a designer?

RV : I want to mark history forever not especially as a designer but as polymath.

DL: What people expect from an esteemed designer such as yourself?

RV : They would like me to surprise them again and again.

DL: How does design help create a better society?

RV : A designer must try, as much as he can, to reenchant the world by reinventing everyday objects. We are living in a consumer society and each day news products appears on the market. The most important part of the design is to recreate emotional and functional ties between consumer and consumable products. By questioning our current life, designers must explore new avenues of reflection for the future.

DL: What are you currently working on that you are especially excited about?

RV : I am currently working on a new project: the design of a lamp shaped liked a woman head (Queen of Spades) and made with cardboard sheets based on laser-cut technology. I have already manufactured a first prototype. It will help me to make few adjustments and probably realize another version with high-class materials such as Plexiglas and solid wood.

DL: Which design projects gave you the most satisfaction, why?

RV : Almost all design works are exciting ! It all depends on what you have in mind. I really enjoy working on a smaller scale at the moment after making so many big size projects in the past. When I am designing a new bottle for example, time scale for conception is further reduced. The relationship with the object naturally changes. I consider myself much more as a craftman since I really have a complete control over it. It’s almost more fulfilling from an intellectual point of view, unless it was my taste for novelty !…

DL: What would you like to see changed in design industry in the coming years?

RV : The compulsory use of healthy and ecologically friendly materials.

DL: Where do you think the design field is headed next?

RV : Modelling and simulation technologies have revolutionized design process for the next decades. They have been considerably diversified and democratized. It ‘s now time for 3D printing technologies. It ‘s an incredibly rapid revolution which still widen the field of possibilities. With the boom of such tools combined with open data softwares, Design is going to reach the largest number of people. The community of designers is going to keep growing, which is a really good thing for emulation and competition !

DL: How long does it take you to finalize a design project?

RV : Compared to a building, it is very short, but everything depends on the order and client’s product expectations, if it’s a full time work or not… It usually does not take me more than 2 or 3 months between the first drawing and the final object but it’s an average.

DL: When you have a new design project, where do you start?

RV : First is the order. Everything starts with it. A first meeting is often necessary to better target the specific needs of the client. I take this opportunity to identify the ins and out of the matter. After that I usually compile some reference pictures that help me to define the guideline I will follow. Then I draw one or more concept sketches in order to synthesize it. From that point, I am going to quickly experiment models until I am satisfy with it and I can make a detailed presentation.

DL: What is your life motto as a designer?

RV : Symbols are stronger than reality.

DL: Do you think design sets the trends or trends set the designs?

RV : They are both closely connected. I find difficult to make a choice…

DL: What is your favorite color, place, food, season, thing and brand?

RV : My favorite color: blue Place: Home Food: slice of white pudding Season: spring Thing: nature Brand: Dame de Pique of course !

DL: What makes your day great as a designer, how do you motivate yourself?

RV : I always feel very lucky when I realize I can shape the world with my ideas. This simple thought makes each of my day the greater one. It is incredibly rewarding to transform a concept into reality. It’s very powerful in terms of emotions. There is no routine in such a job; you are always learning new processes, programs and other technical skills. It’s a true passion !

DL: When you were a little child, was it obvious that you would become a great designer?

RV : It was obious I would be an artist no matter what happens in my life. Drawing and creation has always been an integral part of it since I was young.

DL: What do you think about future; what do you see will happen in thousand years from now?

RV : It is never easy or obvious to play the role of a seer. I am not very optimistic for the future of our planet. Global pollution continues to worsen and the economic race between nations prevent us from a direct and global action. Let this apart, I guess it would be an advanced tehnological age carried by transhumanism and “improved” human being for better or for worse.