Interview with Vilius Dringelis

Design is a means for me to express a position and create authentic products. I’m not interested in trendy design or just functional. My philosophy embodies design as art.

Our studio works with various orders. We work with furniture, accessories, packaging, books and more. We are not afraid to experiment.

We work with a variety of materials and technologies to create an innovative product. However, I always prefer natural materials: bronze, aluminum, wood, glass, and so on.

I feel most creative when I start to discover a strong and emotional connection with a project or client. In addition, I am inspired by the people around me, their strange actions. I’m always interested in the relationship between error and rules, different contexts. There are always interesting phenomena in this space.

The most important goal is to create for the person, the world and to discover innovative ideas that make us improve.

The most important thing in creation is the process. When I create, I can feel free and independent.

For us, successful design is one that expands thinking. We are not a classic design studio. We are artists, so the narrative of originality and the philosophy we tell are important to us. There is a lot of unnecessary and repetitive design being created in the world that has no sense, so we value innovative thinking, whether it’s provocative or positive.

The last exhibition took place at the Budapest Design Week, where the Lithuanian design exposition was presented by the Lithuanian Design Forum.

I can’t explain where creativity comes from, probably from a variety of circumstances. I think it is always important for the developer to be at a disadvantage, because in that case the mind starts to think more and look for creative solutions.

At the moment, I am more inclined to be expressive. I am very interested in materials and their possibilities, I pay a lot of attention to the process. Of course, I don’t rule out that functionality is important, but I’m more interested in expression and new possibilities, even in violation of production rules.

Currently living in Lithuania, I see a lot of talented designers who create very interesting things and are valued in the world. There is a lot of nature in Lithuania that is close to cities, so we can spend time both in a modern city and in the forests and be close. I think these circumstances inspire me the most. We feel great respect for our ancestors, but at the same time we are open to the world.

We can interpret that designers contributed to the surplus of mass-produced items. However, this is more a consequence of the industry. In any case, we must think responsibly when creating. The designer both fifty years ago and now works as a sculptor, having forms, content and looking for a wide variety of new stories. The most interesting thing about this profession for me is that we can build the future. There are a wide variety of design genres and they all still create our environment and emotion.

Because we have our own approach to design, we work with clients who are like-minded and believe in our ideas. When starting a project, we always try to talk as widely as possible about whether we can help each other. We will never do anything that could harm society, nature, animals, people, that is our guiding principle.

The designer must be open and always look for new solutions, not be afraid to stray to the margins and discover something there. These are key qualities, and everything else can be learned in practice.

It depends on the project. When working with clients, we set the exact time. When creating personal projects, we can sometimes take up to five years and sometimes a month.

We work with art galleries, art institutions, theaters, cafes, businesses, etc. We are open, but it is important that the client is curious and willing to create something new.

I am interested in innovative, modern digital technologies and a variety of materials that create unique things.

We are currently creating a design shop where we want to present our philosophical works, objects that will be available for purchase.

You can always write, we are available 24 hours a day:
info@dringelis.com