Igor Komov

LEGENDARY INTERVIEW

Design Legends ("DL") had the distinct honour to interview legendary designer Igor Komov ("IK") 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?

IK : I'm a graduate of Moscow Architectural Institute, Architectural Environment Design faculty. Thanks to the exceptional quality of design education in MARCHI, it became a launching pad for my career in jewellery design.

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

IK : For me, design is a kind of bridge between human and the world of perfect aesthetics and elaborate functionality. So when you become a designer you often find yourself looking into that perfect world.

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

IK : It's completely an act of free will :) Design is a language most suitable for me.

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

IK : Contemporary jewellery design has expanded the idea of what jewellery should look like. This applies not only to the appearance of jewellery pieces, but the jewellery types of the product themselves were reconsidered. 20 years ago we had rings, earrings, necklaces, brooches and bracelets. Now we have shoulder brooches, ankle bracelets, full finger and knuckle rings and so on. I think that is the organic result of a positive evolution of jewellery design and that is exactly what I'm focused on: reinvention of jewellery product types.

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

IK : I do not consider myself a design legend at all. My teachers used to say that in order to acquire skill one have to study the legacy of famed masters a lot. Contemporary jewellery design is rather a young discipline but nevertheless it has many renowned names worth studying.

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

IK : Hours of practice.

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

IK : The design process consists of necessary stages like formulation of the thesis, research, selection of references, sketching and so on. Really good design comes when a designer does a good job at every stage.

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

IK : It determines the quality or our life. I mean not only the lifestyle but our being in the broadest sense of the word. Good design makes us more satisfied, more inspired and more peaceful.

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

IK : Well, I have the time :) currently, I'm improving my skills in assemblage techniques for the new jewellery series.

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

IK : The status of my projects changes from "dream" to "sketch" and then to "3D-model" very quickly. At present, I'm developing 3 "dreams" at once :)

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

IK : I study a lot. By "study" I mean investigating historical heritage, modern designers' work and exchanging of experience with my students.

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

IK : First of all I should mention greatest architects that left their trace in jewellery design: Zaha Hadid, Frank Gehry, Oscar Niemeyer, Ettore Sottsass and others. Then I should mention designers that didn't work in jewellery field (as far as I know) but they shaped XXth century: Philippe Starck, Dieter Rams, Le Corbusier and others.

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

IK : In jewellery field, we usually overview the whole collection or ever the whole portfolio of a designer rather than a single design. So here are a few of my favourite jewellery designers: Yutaka Minegishi (for his solid and concise forms), Parts of 4 (for the brutalism), Gigi Mariani (for his sense of material), and Heeang Kim and Susanne Elstner (both for the gentle touch of bionics).

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

IK : Speaking of good design, people often mean something thoughtful, technological and intelligent. From this point of view, I consider the "Industrial" rings to be my best designed work.

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

IK : Train your attention to see details in everything. 'cause there hides the designer's devil :-)

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

IK : Become a meditation master probably.

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

IK : Design is the way to transform wise thinking and marvelous aesthetics into material objects and human experience. This is what enriches our life.

DL: What helped you to become a great designer?

IK : Actually I think that your personal evolution just happens naturally while you continue to learn and practice. It's like a cause and effect.

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

IK : During the first years of my education and practice my skills of design were badly insufficient to create what I intended to create. I had an image in my head of what an object was to look like but every approach I took produced a result that was far from being desired. That was the time of my really low self-esteem :-)

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

IK : As wide as possible, I suppose) In XXI century it's a crime not to use social media and other online media, not to share your outcomes.

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

IK : I dream of implementing electronics into jewellery. This would make possible to create luminous pieces, for example. Also I'm interested of investigating of sound experience.

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

IK : To inspire people which are getting familiar with my work.

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

IK : Some amazing works, I suppose :) The next step should be bigger than the previous one.

DL: How does design help create a better society?

IK : Design is all around! It's our environment, augmentations of our brains and bodies, it's about every human-created object. It's within our information metabolism. So the impact of design on our society cannot be underestimated.

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

IK : Ok, let it be a sneak peek. The mix of precious metals and ceramics make me high :)

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

IK : "Orient" rings sets, "Armour" series and "Industrial" rings, because of the richness of the investigated themes and also because the outcome was exactly as I expected.

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

IK : I would like to see consumerism exchanged for sustainability. Of course, that's not about the design industry inself, it's about our behaviour and habits.

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

IK : Technology and ecology, I suppose.

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

IK : That depends on many things. Some technological issues may extend the timing drastically. Usually, it takes 1-4 months to create a jewellery collection.

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

IK : The first thing is to articulate the thesis. What is this all about. Then goes the research (it's my favourite part!)

DL: What is your life motto as a designer?

IK : "No compromise"

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

IK : The spirit of time sets both

DL: What is the role of technology when you design?

IK : Metaphorically speaking, the technology is blood of design. You need technology to chop down the tree and cut a piece of wood, not to mention modern tools and equipment.

DL: What kind of design software and equipment do you use in your work?

IK : A moleskin, a pencil, 3DSMAX, Zbrush.

DL: What is the role of the color, materials and ambient in design?

IK : Those are designer's expression means alongside with proportions, rhythms, textures and form. A part of designer's language.

DL: What do you wish people to ask about your design?

IK : "Who's that qwesome guy who did this?":-)

DL: When you see a new great design or product what comes into your mind?

IK : A kind of joy. When I see a good designer and his work it's like I'm meeting an old good friend. Somehow we are all connected.

DL: Who is your ideal design partner? Do you believe in co-design?

IK : My wife. Yes, co-design is real.

DL: Which people you interacted had the most influence on your design?

IK : My teachers, I think. They've influenced the methods that I use now.

DL: Which books you read had the most effect on your design?

IK : Mostly the one that I'm reading now: "Design as it is" by Vyacheslav Glazychev.

DL: How did you develop your skills as a master designer?

IK : Design an object. See how it looks. Repeat. Something like that)

DL: How do you feel about all the awards and recognition you had, is it hard to be famous?

IK : It's a mistake to assume that the fame is like a weather phenomenon. Like it will hit you one day because the stars have aligned. You build your reputation day by day and it's not hard either not simple, it's just a part of your job.

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

IK : White, my workplace (wherever it is), eggplant rolls with melted cheese, summer, moleskin, Alchemia jewellery :-)

DL: Please tell us a little memoir, a funny thing you had experienced as a designer?

IK : Among my jewellery pieces there are some complicated claw-like rings. A few years ago a stylist grabbed some of them for a photoshooting. When I saw the outcomes, I smiled a lot because a glamourous photomodel was wearing the rings back-to-front.

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

IK : Every part of the creative process is a huge joy for me, there's no need for additional motivation. Ok, sometimes I drink a small glass of wine.

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

IK : I guess, it's still not obvious :)

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

IK : I'm trying to be as positive as I can, so I think we are about to enter the era of prosperity, wise solutions and elimination of all social problems. If the humankind doesn't destroy itself before that, of course.

DL: Please tell us anything you wish your fans to know about you, your design and anything else?

IK : The fact that I'm consumed with the business of my life helps me to overcome the most devastating obstacles.