That West Coast Inspo
At a glance, the creative / creation process seems relatively straight forward. We have a thought or inspiration, and we choose to act on that thought with some level of passion or energy. To create what we desire, all we need to do is explore the possibilities. But what sparks that first thought, and how does inspiration strike? Although we don’t have all the answers, one common source of inspiration is the natural world.
The beauty of Vancouver is that you don’t have to journey far to be fully immersed in nature. It’s no wonder that it is consistently named as one of the most beautiful cities in the world, and why so many incredibly talented people flock to this part of the country in search of nature’s brilliance. And it shows—after opening our studio in Vancouver 3 years ago, we have been amazed at the world-class designers, makers, and artists we meet every day.
In celebration of the talent that makes up the West Coast, our newest exhibit at Meat Hook Gallery is an installation of the products created by our community. The show is called West Coast Best Coast and will include the works by ANDlight, Brent Comber, Hinterland, Lyle XOX, Janaki Larsen, Jeff Martin, Pommet Kendall, and New Format Studio.
In anticipation for the exhibit we set out to a few of the studio spaces that house the creative processes of these individuals and compiled them into a series we call Studio Sessions. Hope you enjoy.
Walking into the Hinterland Design studio, you can feel the influence that the West Coast has on Riley McFerrin and his design team. Drawing inspiration and sourcing materials from the surrounding forests and beaches of British Columbia, they band together to create handcrafted contemporary furniture and lighting pieces that bring an element of the natural world into the home.
The story of the Pacific Northwest landscape in tandem with his deep respect for the humanistic properties of wood is what drives Brent Comber to create his original sculpted objects, functional pieces and design environments. Visiting his workshop was like visiting an interactive art experience within itself. The shelves were filled with many-coloured pieces of sustainably sourced trees, while the earthy smell of freshly cut sawdust filled the air and our senses. Brent’s products are about the experience of living on the West Coast and we definitely felt that.
Decorative luminaire designer and manufacturer ANDlight turn directly to natural elements of their native West Coast as tools for their unique fixtures. River stones found on a hike in Squamish were used as molds for the production of their Pebble pendants, the peaks and valleys of the forest was what inspired their Vale pendants, and sea glass found on beaches inspired the design of the lights hung in our Vancouver studio.
Lyle XOX recognizes the artistic possibilities in the superfluous objects of our consumerist culture. After growing up in rural Saskatchewan, he relocated to Vancouver to pursue his artistic practice. The walls of his studio are lined with photos from his impressive campaigns—Gucci, Moshino’s Jeremy Scott, and Gentle Monster to name a few—and he surrounds himself with found objects that he glues carefully to his face, turning himself into a living sculpture.⠀
