Simina Filat

Specialized in Design.

Simina Filat

About Simina Filat

Simina Filhas been is a member of UAP, the Design Bucharest branch since 2018 and a member of the board of directors of tdepartmentnch since 2022. She graduated from the Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies with 2 majors: Economic Management – ​​Bachelor 2010; Accounting, Audit and Management Informatics – Master 2012, and in 2017 he graduated from the National University of Arts Bucharest with, a specialization in Fashion Design - Bachelor. From 2018 until now, she won the Design Award of the Union of Visual Artists from Romania; Worth Partnership Projects in Valencia, Spain; A' Design Award in Como, Italy, and was shortlisted in the Lexus Design Award 2018. During her studies, especially after completing these, Simina Filat had many national and international exhibitions, among which are: Expo Dubai 2020, Milano Design Week 2021/2022, Dutch Design Week 2021, Venice Architecture Biennale 2016, Base 2022 Tortona/Italy, Shenzhen Industrial Design Fair 2019, Hebei International Industrial Design Week 2019, Mumbai/India Architecture and Interior Design Festival, New Delhi/India Architecture, and Interior Design Festival, etc. Simina Filat has founded 3 brands so far: The Simina Filat Design brand was created 12 years ago in the field of leather goods, and her collections are sustainable, dynamic, and experimental. Over time, Simina Filat has produced several hundred models, some of which have become viral, constantly remaining in the public's interest, and can be declined in any season. The Ruumy brand was created in 2017, an award-winning and internationally recognized concept, being an intersection of architecture, interior design, and fashion design. The RePaP brand, based only on the concept of sustainability through circular economy, recycling, and reuse of materials, is among the few Romanian brands founded in 2020 during the pandemic. She is currently also an independent Designer, Consultant on sustainability in design, and Designer Curator at the National Museum of Contemporary Art in Bucharest Romania.

  • Winner of the A' Design Award.
  • Specialized in Design.
  • Original Design.
  • Creative, Diligent and Innovative.
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Interview with Simina Filat

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?
Very early I started to create different objects, but I realized that I want to follow the path of design, only in college, when I understand professionally what this field means.
Can you tell us more about your company / design studio?
SiminaFilatDesign is a complex brand design service that started with small leather products and has now created social research and design assimilation programs for children and general consumers.
What is "design" for you?
Design for me is a strategic problem-solving process, leads innovation to a better quality of life.
What kinds of works do you like designing most?
My specialty is fashion design, but I like to experience crossings in other areas of design.
What is your most favorite design, could you please tell more about it?
I like the mix of different types of design the most. Switching from a fashion product to a furniture product, for example.
What is your favorite material / platform / technology?
Recyclable materials are the materials that attract me most to creativity, 3D printing, and biomaterials.
What kind of emotions do you feel when you design?
I am very happy and curious when I get an interesting idea I want to experience.
What kind of emotions do you feel when your designs are realized?
I feel fulfilled and proud that I managed to create something interesting.
What makes a design successful?
A design product is successful when it is required on the market to solve some problems in society, in daily life, when it becomes viral.
When judging a design as good or bad, which aspects do you consider first?
I consider that the design is judged according to the general criteria promoted by the competition.
From your point of view, what are the responsibilities of a designer for society and environment?
The designer's responsibility is to create products that can solve certain societal problems or improve everyday life. At this moment we have the ultimate responsibility to create solutions to stop pollution through excessive production.
How do you think the "design field" is evolving? What is the future of design?
It is a very large subject, but I want to mention that we live in an era of technology, we are invaded by technology and we are not yet aware whether it is good or not. That's why I think creating solutions to protect our body and planet is absolutely necessary.
When was your last exhibition and where was it? And when do you want to hold your next exhibition?
My last exhibition was at the Galateca Gallery in Bucharest, and the next personal exhibition is scheduled in May 2019 at the GalleryGalateca Bucuresti Romania.
Where does the design inspiration for your works come from? How do you feed your creativity? What are your sources of inspirations?
Absolutely everything that surrounds me inspires me in some ways, discussions with my clients about their lifestyle and daily needs inspire me to create products that improve their lives.
How would you describe your design style? What made you explore more this style and what are the main characteristics of your style? What's your approach to design?
I really like to experience and talk a lot with the customer, the consumer or the beneficiary. I like design to be a negotiation, a dialogue between the parties.
Where do you live? Do you feel the cultural heritage of your country affects your designs? What are the pros and cons during designing as a result of living in your country?
I live in Eastern Europe, in Romania. I explored various topics of Romanian history, but I try to explore and learn from different cultural areas. I can not say that it influences the area I live in because we are connected online world wide non stop.
How do you work with companies?
I work in collaboration with different companies on different projects.
What are your suggestions to companies for working with a designer? How can companies select a good designer?
Every company, depending on what it needs, hires a designer who has a portfolio, or is interested in the field or theme required by the company. I do not think there's a good or bad designer, just right for that job or not.
Can you talk a little about your design process?
First of all, I'm thinking about some small issues that have passed me, and from there I start researching, documenting myself from the area that already exists, then thinking about how to bring something new. After the process of sketches of ideas and the developed pattern, I get to produce the product in my own workshop, the sample is then modified until it reaches the final shape.
What are 5 of your favorite design items at home?
I like kitchen objects such as the various mugs, cups, plates, ceramic bowls. I really like pillows and blankets of fluffy and sensory materials.
Can you describe a day in your life?
I wake up around 8am, walk with the puppy in the park, then arrange to go to the studio. After a day of work in the workshop with the production and the clients, in the evening if there are cultural events or exhibitions in Bucharest I choose to relax there. Then I get home and sit at the office to solve some things that I have not managed to solve during the day. I get to work late in the night when I get a creative idea and start to deepen it a little.
Could you please share some pearls of wisdom for young designers? What are your suggestions to young, up and coming designers?
My advice is to understand and document very well what they want to do with their creation after college. There I think it is a confusion of young designers, they can not understand that we are not artists and so, but we are professionals who need to bring quality and added value to everyday or future life.
From your perspective, what would you say are some positives and negatives of being a designer?
For me it is a necessity and a pride that I can bring in a so loaded market, high end products that are worthwhile in front of my consumers. I do not see the negative thing unless you fail to put yourself on the market with your products.
What is your "golden rule" in design?
My golden rule is that my final product is an improvement and a novelty on the market.
What skills are most important for a designer?
I consider the most important skill for a designer is the empathy with people, understanding problems, anticipating future living problems, and finding viable solutions for the future.
Which tools do you use during design? What is inside your toolbox? Such as software, application, hardware, books, sources of inspiration etc.?
First of all I make a mindmap on ideas, infographs, sketches of ideas, documentation on all online trend websites, and news in the field interested, then I try to gather a team of professional friends with whom I can do a brainstorming to improve initial idea.
Designing can sometimes be a really time consuming task, how do you manage your time?
I'm asleep as little as night, because I'm very excited when I get a new idea and I'm going to search online very much.
How long does it take to design an object from beginning to end?
The documenting and sketch part normally takes about a month, then the pattern and sample development takes another two weeks.
What is the most frequently asked question to you, as a designer?
"What do you wear is done by you?" This is the most common question when someone asks me what domain i come from, I answer fashion design, then I'm analyzed from head to toe by the interlocutor, the end culminating in this question.
What was your most important job experience?
The most important and beautiful jobs I have had were those in which I could experiment in related fields, which gave me a design challenge.
Who are some of your clients?
My customers in time became friends of the brand and supporters in all the cultural approaches of this brand, they consider themselves part of a community.
What type of design work do you enjoy the most and why?
The concept part of the idea I like the most to develop it. But great joy is when I see the finished product.
What are your future plans? What is next for you?
My plans for the future are to go out as much outside my country as I can, to promote my work and my products in the international environment.
Do you work as a team, or do you develop your designs yourself?
I generally work alone because I'm a start-up and I can not afford to work with other designers, but I have a lot of professional friends in different areas with whom I always advise. But in the workshop I work with two other people, who produce me different objects.
Do you have any works-in-progress being designed that you would like to talk about?
At the moment I focus on two big projects, one is the winning Ruumy project in this competition, and the other is the SiminaFilatDesign brand, which I am struggling to make as much as possible.
How can people contact you?
You can contact me at www.siminafilat.ro, or by email: siminadesign@gmail.com, Instagram SiminaFilatDesign; RuumybySiminaFilat; Facebook: SiminaFilatDesign; Ruumy. For more information visit siminafilat.ro

Designer of the Day Interview with Simina Filat

Could you please tell us about your experience as a designer, artist, architect or creator?
I have been active in the design field for 10 years, until then I finished the Faculty of Economic Management, with a Master in Accounting and Auditing, and then I graduated from the Faculty of Arts in Bucharest, Clothing Design section. I mainly worked for my own brand, being an entrepreneur, but we have also been offering a design service for more than 10 years.
How did you become a designer?
My mother being a clothing designer for more than 40 years, I have always had an affinity for textiles and materials in general. After college and master's degree in economics, I realized that the dream job is the job where you do what you like, in my case design, we create a product from sketch to finished product. And the feeling you have when you see your product worn or used is wonderful.
What are your priorities, technique and style when designing?
The Simina Filat Design brand has emerged from the beginning as a sustainable brand with nature, having as values ​​no-waste, recycling, reuse. Now more than ever, when I think of a new product, everything starts from sustainability, or even from experiments with new materials produced from waste. Almost all our products talk about functionality, sustainability and something new. maybe something you've never seen in shape or material.
Which emotions do you feel when designing?
I have the greatest pleasure when I receive the design theme, I start to think and flow lines of ideas towards the theme, then I choose from ideas to draw some sketches on paper. With the sketches I enter the workshop and it turns into a geometric sketch with dimensions, and then into a finished product. The whole process is creative and that's what I like the most. We often face challenges, but there are always design solutions to the problem in the working technique of the product.
What particular aspects of your background shaped you as a designer?
I always drew and painted with great ease, I saw my mother's tailoring from an early age, inclined towards economics I became an entrepreneur, and the inclination towards art and design made me become an entrepreneur designer. I think that my whole life, since I was a small child, was shaped in such a way that now I am an entrepreneurial designer.
What is your growth path? What are your future plans? What is your dream design project?
I really want to develop new materials, from waste of all kinds, and to succeed in educating the consumer towards sustainable products with nature and sustainable consumption.
What are your advices to designers who are at the beginning of their career?
To listen to his/her instinct and try not to pollute nature any more with his/her products, but to find sustainable solutions. It is not about who makes more beautiful products, but about who finds the sustainable solution with the social in which we live now.
You are truly successful as a designer, what do you suggest to fellow designers, artists and architects?
To work as much as possible, and to always find innovation for the environment.
What is your day to day look like?
Every day I wake up in the morning, get to the workshop, drink my coffee and make plans for the day. I enter the workshop, in production 2-3 hours a day, I spend 2-3 hours with the clients, and 2-3 hours at the computer, then the day ends with drawing some new ideas and I start all over again the next day;) It's more fun in reality than this little summary.
How do you keep up with latest design trends? To what extent do design trends matter?
I always choose my products to be in accordance with the requirements of my direct clients, but I always try to be innovative, not necessarily in trends, although I follow them very strictly for inspiration.
How do you know if a product or project is well designed? How do you define good design?
I consider a good design, it is the solution to a problem / requirement. That is, a product must be functional and in accordance with the needs required by the customer, including the style and pattern of the product.
How do you decide if your design is ready?
We can always change and improve the model. We can adjust the model according to other needs of another client for example. I don't think a design is nailed or finished, you can always make declines on it, commercial or not.
What is your biggest design work?
My undergraduate project, called Ruumy, is the project I'm most proud of. Ruumy is an architectural wall composed as a puzzle of 49 holders, which disassembled / assembled with the help of external accessories you can form a multitude of products, such as: bags, pillows, beds, tents, toys, clothes, desi, even walls architectural in a space where you can not intervene through construction.
Who is your favourite designer?
Iris van Herpen - because she always came up with fashion innovation. She is the one who is trying in this century to break down the barriers in this field.
Would you tell us a bit about your lifestyle and culture?
I currently live and create in Bucharest, Romania. Here I was born and did school, last years I succeeded and I got 4 international awards and 2 national awards for my design projects. I had many national and international exhibitions about art, culture and design, collective or not. And in my free time, which I honestly don't have, I will always be at an opening in an art gallery somewhere.
Would you tell us more about your work culture and business philosophy?
Being an entrepreneur and having employees, it is certainly not easy to work with me;), because I am a perfectionist and secondly because I am directly interested in this brand to work and grow. I like to work in a team, and especially to brainstorm new ideas.
What are your philanthropic contributions to society as a designer, artist and architect?
Yes, we have always donated through associations for various humanitarian causes, we have done workshops with disadvantaged children, we have donated masks to all those who have visited us now in this difficult period, we always donate materials and accessories to educational institutions that need teaching materials.
What positive experiences you had when you attend the A’ Design Award?
It is an honor and a pleasure always when you receive an award, a recognition of your work. Our clients are proud of us, and we are happy to always be on their high expectations.

Extended Interview with Simina Filat

Could you please tell us about your experience as a designer, artist, architect or creator?
From a small age I created a lot of things, but I enrolled in economics, management specialization, then I got my Master in Accounting and Auditing. Meanwhile, i already have created small items that wi was selling to my friends and with that products i were present at local handmade fairs. Then I decided to enroll in Bucharest's arts and design faculty, where I better understand what it means to be a professional in this field.
How did you become a designer?
It motivates me to bring novelties in areas that require solutions for different issues. It is a challenge for me, coming from a fear of the future over-polluted, to create solutions to change the mindset of the consumer, and to reduce the excessive production of unnecessary products.
What are your priorities, technique and style when designing?
I chose to become a designer, I like and motivate me this profession, this vocation.
Which emotions do you feel when designing?
I would like to create at least one product only to help with the problem of plastic pollution. That's why I'm trying to create a lot of recycled materials, or materials that get to waste. My next collections will have this message very visible.
What particular aspects of your background shaped you as a designer?
Do not stop to experience in this area, and not stop listening to the needs of the society in which he lives and to imagine the needs of future societies.
What is your growth path? What are your future plans? What is your dream design project?
I do not know, I think any professional has a theme he has to respect, and he will do as well as he can to address the theme in his personal creative style. I think the client is the one who chooses the designer with whom he has the most chances of common language and understanding.
What are your advices to designers who are at the beginning of their career?
A good design is when it responds punctually (or improves) a certain type of problem in society.
You are truly successful as a designer, what do you suggest to fellow designers, artists and architects?
The value of a design product is due to the need and demand on the market, the materials and techniques used and the form of marketing of that product.
What is your day to day look like?
I really like SF movies, so I'm very fond of the future. I would love to create for NASA or other future space companies, and I would like to work and focus on future intelligent materials and human life in space embedded in terrestrial textiles.
How do you keep up with latest design trends? To what extent do design trends matter?
The project I want to start and I do not have time is in the field of biomaterials, textiles created from living matter, or living materials from which you can create clothing or home objects.
How do you know if a product or project is well designed? How do you define good design?
My secret thinks it's very close to my consumer, and the very long and extensive discussions about his needs.
How do you decide if your design is ready?
I inspire myself from history, present and I imagine the future, but some examples of legends that have stamped my creative courage are: Zaha Hadid, Constantin Brancusi, Steve Jobs, Issey Miyake, Iris Van Herpen, Coco Chanel, and many others.
What is your biggest design work?
I love the architecture of Zaha Hadid's alien world, I like and I grew up learning about Constantin Brancusi's sculptures, Steve Jobs inspires me a great deal in his success to change the social mindsets worldwide, issey miyake is a fashion designer who watch and admire for the straight and simple lines of his collections, the successes and novelties brought by iris van herpen in 3D print in fashion is remarkable.
Who is your favourite designer?
The concept that I really care about is Ruumy, the award winning project, because I think it is part of those new forms of consumer and producer thinking in the future, it is another form of marketing and circulation of the product all over the world. relies heavily on shapes that are most commonly encountered by nomadism.
Would you tell us a bit about your lifestyle and culture?
I think that all the time needs to stay very well informed about what is and what will happen in the future.
What are your philanthropic contributions to society as a designer, artist and architect?
The design product for me is the product that answers a possible current or future issue, is a product that improves quality of life.
What positive experiences you had when you attend the A’ Design Award?
My main supporter was my mother Valentina Gheorghiu, but in college I met a professor, Ioana Sanda Avram designer, who helped me to understand this area and who continues to support me.

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