With the Great Heal's Bodging Race about to kick off, we caught up with competitors Gitta Gschwendtner and William Warren to talk us through how they got involved with the project.
Gitta Gschwendtner Taking a "tailor made" approach to design, each of Gitta's pieces is carefully researched with every solution an individual response to a projects particular needs. A newcomer to the Great Heal's Bodging Race, her designs have narrative at their heart with style derived primarily through functionality.
What made you want to become a designer and maker?
My mother trained as a fashion designer and my father initially wanted to study art, but then decided on medicine. When I grew up I always new that I would either want to work in the arts or become a doctor. After an art foundation course in London I happily turned down my place to study medicine in Hamburg and never returned. I then went on to study design at Kingston University and the Royal College of Art.
Why is it important to maintain the craft of bodging?
In a world where we understand less and less how things work and are being made, it’s nice to maintain some very basic making traditions.
What role does the craft of a piece play in your design process?
I am not usually a maker, so craft is not normally an element in my work.
How do you think your designs differ to those of the other bodger’s?
My original bodge bench is quite square for something that has been whittled from green timber. We jokingly used to call it the Travis Perkins bench since I spent all that time turning the natural material into something that looks like standard components from a building supplier.
What impact do you think the time limitations will have on your design and make?
It is sometimes nice to have to think on the spot and just go on and do it. My work often involves a lot of planning and revisions so I will enjoy the spontaneity of the bodge job.
Do you have any ideas of what you plan to make for the Great Heal's Bodging Race?
No idea! William Warren A self-described 'Jack of all trades master of none', William Warren is no stranger to the Great Heal's Bodging Race have competed at last year's event. Born into a 'craft family' he began his career as a silversmith before moving on to design furniture and now holds a post as Senior lecturer at London Metropolitan University.
What made you want to become a designer and maker?
Yes, I've got a very craft family. My dad's a potter, my mum studied textiles and does a lot of illustration and all my brothers studied making courses at university. I did a variety of different disciplines at college and the broad range of materials covered has been really useful over the years.
Why is it important to maintain the craft of bodging?
This definition of bodging that we're using is about experimental making and using prototyping to develop ideas and designs for bigger production pieces. I think it's really important to do this and to understand its value.
There's far too much designing happening on screen these days and this only gives us cosmetically fashionable pieces. Virtual designs have no weight, smell, sound or comfort. They cannot express any quality of craftsmanship. If we're not careful, new objects will all be judged on their appearance and not on any of the qualities we love and need.
How do you think your designs differ to those of the other bodger’s?
I think each of the bodgers working in the window at Heal's have a different mix of the same skills and influences. I'll be trying to make functional, attractive, production appropriate pieces that have a blend of craft and charm. I'm sure the others will be working with similar drivers but maybe slightly different priorities.
What impact do you think the time limitations will have on your design and make?
It's not easy making sensible considered decisions when you're on display and working to a tight schedule. It plays havoc with making quality and it limits some possibilities but also means you've got to solve problems with what's available and that can produce some surprising and fresh results.
Do you have any ideas of what you plan to make for the Great Heal's Bodging Race?
I'm really excited about working with the bodger’s friends, particularly Anne Marie the weaver. It's a process that suggests curvaceous and beautiful natural forms. I'm happy to let the processes and materials available lead the designs.
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Studio William
Studio William is a British cutlery maker producing fully forged stainless steel flatware in classical and contemporary patterns, with production split between Sheffield and Solingen, the two historic centres of European cutlery making. Every piece is balanced by hand at the final stage, a detail that carries through to how the cutlery feels in the hand at the table.
