Designer of the Day Interview
18 questions
I have been working in industrial and product design for more than fifteen years, with a particular focus on lighting design, physical products, and manufacturable design solutions.
Could you please tell us about your experience as a designer, artist, architect or creator?
I have been working in industrial and product design for more than fifteen years, with a particular focus on lighting design, physical products, and manufacturable design solutions.
My academic background is entirely in industrial design. I received my Bachelor’s degree in Industrial Design from Tabriz Islamic Art University and later completed my Master’s degree in Industrial Design at the University of Art in Tehran. My education gave me a strong foundation in product development, design methodology, materials, ergonomics, model making, and manufacturing.
Alongside professional practice, I have also worked as an industrial design lecturer. Teaching became an important part of my development because it required me to analyze design decisions more critically and communicate the relationship between concept, function, form, materials, and production.
Since 2015, I have been developing my independent practice through Mostafa Arvand Design Studio. My work has included lighting collections, furniture-related products, urban furniture, and other industrial products, often developed in close collaboration with manufacturers, engineers, and production teams. In recent years, lighting has become the strongest focus of my work, particularly modular systems and products that explore the relationship between light, material, structure, and space.
I have collaborated with manufacturers and companies in different countries, particularly in Turkey and internationally, developing projects from initial sketches and concepts through 3D modeling, technical development, material selection, prototyping, rendering, and production preparation.
My work has also been presented through international exhibitions, design competitions, publications, and jury activities. Experiences such as exhibiting during Milan Design Week and presenting work internationally have allowed me to engage with different design cultures and audiences.
What has shaped my experience most is the combination of academic knowledge, teaching, independent practice, international collaboration, and direct involvement with manufacturing. I have always tried to keep design connected to reality, so that an idea is not only visually compelling but also technically resolved and capable of becoming a real product.
How did you become a designer?
My interest in design started from a natural curiosity about objects, form, and the way things are made. From an early age, I enjoyed drawing, observing products, and imagining how existing objects could be changed or improved. At that time, I did not yet know that industrial design existed as a professional field, but I was already attracted to the combination of creativity and making.
When I discovered industrial design, it immediately felt like a field that brought together many of my interests: drawing, problem-solving, materials, technology, form, function, and the possibility of turning ideas into real physical objects. That was the main reason I chose to study industrial design.
I completed my Bachelor’s degree in Industrial Design at Tabriz Islamic Art University, where I developed a strong foundation in design methodology, product development, ergonomics, materials, model making, and form studies. I later continued with a Master’s degree in Industrial Design at the University of Art in Tehran, which helped me develop a more analytical approach to design and better understand the relationship between concept, research, technology, production, and user experience.
After university, professional experience gradually became the most important part of my development. Working on real projects introduced me to the realities of manufacturing, budgets, technical limitations, clients, and production teams. I learned that a strong idea is only the beginning; a designer must also understand how that idea can be constructed, assembled, manufactured, and used.
Teaching industrial design also influenced me greatly. Explaining design principles to students forced me to question my own decisions and made me more conscious of the reasons behind my design choices.
Over time, my work became increasingly focused on lighting and physical product design. Lighting attracted me because it combines product design, engineering, material, architecture, and emotion in a very unique way. You are not only designing an object, but also the atmosphere and experience that the object creates around it.
There was not one single person who made me become a designer. It was mainly an internal drive: curiosity, the desire to create, and the satisfaction of seeing an idea become something real. Over the years, teachers, manufacturers, engineers, colleagues, and other designers have all influenced the way I work, but the original motivation has always been the same: to understand things better and to create objects that have a clear reason to exist.
What are your priorities, technique and style when designing?
My design process is usually guided by three main priorities: clarity of concept and function, material and manufacturability, and the experience the product creates for the user.
The first priority is to understand the essential idea behind the project. Before thinking too much about the final form, I try to understand why the product needs to exist, what problem it should solve, who will use it, and what makes the opportunity interesting. I prefer designs where there is a clear relationship between the initial idea and the final object rather than forms that exist only for visual effect.
The second priority is material and manufacturability. I believe the way something is made should be considered from the beginning of the design process. Material selection, structure, assembly, production methods, tolerances, durability, and cost can all influence the form. I do not see manufacturing constraints simply as limitations; very often they help generate more intelligent and distinctive solutions.
The third priority is experience and emotional character. A product should function properly, but I also want it to create a connection with the user. This is particularly important in my lighting work, where I am designing not only an object but also light, shadow, atmosphere, and the relationship between the product and the surrounding space.
In terms of technique, I use both hand and digital processes. I normally begin with research and hand sketching because sketching allows me to explore ideas quickly without becoming attached to details too early. Once a direction becomes promising, I move into 3D development, primarily using SolidWorks, where I can study proportions, construction, components, and assembly in much greater detail.
I then use KeyShot for visualization and for exploring materials, finishes, lighting conditions, and the way the product might appear in its intended environment. However, I do not believe digital tools can replace physical testing. Depending on the project, I use mock-ups, prototypes, material samples, and physical models to understand scale, balance, construction, and especially the behavior of light.
Stylistically, I do not try to impose the same visual language on every project. I prefer the character of a product to emerge from its idea, function, material, and construction. However, there is a recurring theme in my work: I am interested in achieving simplicity without losing character, and in finding a balance between sculptural expression and technical logic.
Ultimately, my approach is to move continuously between thinking and making, and between digital precision and physical reality, until the concept, form, material, function, and manufacturing logic begin to feel like parts of the same solution.
Which emotions do you feel when designing?
Designing creates a combination of curiosity, excitement, concentration, frustration, and satisfaction for me. I think this mixture of emotions is actually an important part of the process.
The beginning of a project is always exciting because everything is still open. There are many possible directions, and I enjoy the process of asking questions, exploring different ideas, sketching, and trying to understand what the project could become. This early stage has a certain freedom that is very energizing.
However, the part I enjoy most is usually the development phase, when an initial idea begins to become more concrete. This is where form, structure, material, function, and manufacturing start to influence each other. It is also where problems appear, and strangely, solving those problems is often one of the most satisfying parts of design.
There are naturally moments of frustration. A concept may look convincing in a sketch but fail technically, a prototype may reveal unexpected problems, or a material may behave differently from what I imagined. But these moments are also valuable because they force me to think more deeply and often lead to a better solution.
The strongest sense of satisfaction comes when the design moves from an idea into a real object. Seeing something that once existed only as a sketch or a 3D model become physically manufactured is still very rewarding to me.
In lighting design, there is another special moment: seeing the product illuminated for the first time. The object changes completely when the light is turned on, and suddenly you can experience the shadows, reflections, atmosphere, and interaction with the surrounding space. That moment can reveal whether the design is truly successful.
Design fulfils me because it combines imagination with problem-solving. I enjoy creating something new, but I also enjoy the discipline required to make that idea work in reality.
For me, the greatest pleasure comes from the moment when a project begins to feel resolved, when all the separate decisions start to work together and the design becomes something that feels natural, coherent, and real.
What particular aspects of your background shaped you as a designer?
Several aspects of my background have shaped me as a designer beyond formal design education.
One of the most important has been teaching. Working as an industrial design lecturer forced me to explain ideas clearly, question my own assumptions, and understand why a design decision works rather than simply relying on intuition. Teaching also improved my ability to give and receive criticism, which is essential in any creative profession.
Communication has also played a major role in my development. Designers rarely work alone, so being able to explain an idea clearly to clients, engineers, manufacturers, craftspeople, and other designers is extremely important. A strong concept can easily fail if it cannot be communicated or translated into a shared understanding.
Another valuable skill has been patience. Product development often takes much longer than expected. Prototypes fail, production methods need to change, clients revise requirements, and technical problems appear late in the process. Learning to remain focused and constructive during these moments has helped me become a better designer.
Problem-solving is another important part of my background. I enjoy analyzing a challenge, breaking it into smaller parts, and finding a solution that balances function, form, manufacturing, cost, and user experience. This practical way of thinking has become especially important in my lighting and product design work.
Working closely with manufacturers has probably had one of the strongest influences on my design approach. It taught me to respect the realities of production and to understand that materials, assembly, tooling, tolerances, and cost are not separate from design. They are part of the design itself.
International collaborations and exhibitions have also broadened my perspective. Working with people from different countries and professional cultures has shown me that design can be interpreted differently depending on context, market, technology, and lifestyle. This has made me more open-minded and more careful about assuming that one solution is universally correct.
My design journey has therefore been shaped by a combination of education, teaching, independent practice, manufacturing experience, collaboration, and continuous learning. I do not think any one of these elements alone would have been enough.
The biggest influence on my work has probably been the accumulation of all these experiences. Each project, collaboration, mistake, and conversation has added something to the way I think. Over time, this has taught me that being a good designer is not only about creativity. It also requires communication, patience, curiosity, responsibility, and the ability to keep learning.
What is your growth path? What are your future plans? What is your dream design project?
My growth path has always been about moving from designing individual objects toward developing a broader and deeper understanding of products, manufacturing, systems, and the relationship between design and space.
In the early stages of my career, much of my attention was naturally focused on form and concept development. Over time, working with manufacturers, engineers, clients, and production teams made my approach more comprehensive. Today, I think much more about the complete life of a product: how it is made, assembled, transported, used, maintained, and how it can remain relevant over time.
Lighting has become the central direction of my work, and in the future I would like to develop this specialization further. I am particularly interested in moving from individual lighting objects toward complete families and modular systems that can operate at different scales, from table and wall lighting to pendants and larger architectural installations.
I also want to expand my international collaborations with manufacturers, architects, interior designers, engineers, and material specialists. My goal is to build a design practice where creative exploration and manufacturing knowledge are closely connected from the beginning of each project.
Another part of my future growth is experimentation with materials and new production technologies. I would like to explore how traditional materials and craftsmanship can interact with advanced manufacturing, digital tools, intelligent lighting technologies, and more sustainable approaches to production.
My dream project would be to develop a complete adaptable lighting system together with a manufacturer and an architectural team. It would share one clear design and construction language while allowing different configurations, scales, materials, and lighting effects. Ideally, components could be repaired, replaced, or reconfigured rather than making the entire product obsolete. I would like the system to be technically rational and manufacturable, while still having enough character and emotional presence to become part of the identity of a space.
In the longer term, I also want to continue contributing to design education and sharing practical knowledge about turning concepts into manufacturable products. I believe there is valuable knowledge at the intersection of creativity and production that should be passed to younger designers.
I do not necessarily want to be remembered for one iconic object. I would prefer to be remembered for a consistent body of work and a particular way of thinking: curious, experimental, technically grounded, and attentive to the relationship between objects, light, materials, and people.
Ultimately, my future goal is to continue designing products that have a strong identity but also a clear reason to exist, and to create work that remains meaningful long after its first visual impression.
What are your advices to designers who are at the beginning of their career?
My first advice to young designers is to be patient. A design career usually develops much more slowly than it appears from the outside. There will be rejected ideas, projects that never reach production, difficult clients, technical problems, and periods when progress feels very limited. These experiences are not separate from the career; they are part of it.
I would also strongly encourage young designers to move beyond creating attractive images. Rendering and presentation are important, but they are only one part of design. Learn how products are actually made. Study materials, manufacturing processes, assembly, tolerances, mechanisms, cost, and durability. Make prototypes whenever possible and spend time with manufacturers, engineers, and craftspeople. Understanding production changed my own approach to design significantly.
Another important lesson is not to become too attached to the first idea. A concept may feel exciting at the beginning, but good design requires questioning, testing, simplifying, and sometimes starting again. Learning to accept criticism without losing confidence is one of the most valuable skills a designer can develop.
I would also warn young designers against following trends too closely. Trends can be useful to understand changes in culture, technology, and behavior, but they should not replace original thinking. Developing a personal design language takes time and comes naturally through repeated work, observation, and experience.
Communication is equally important. Designers need to explain ideas clearly to people who may not think like designers: clients, engineers, manufacturers, investors, and users. A strong idea that cannot be communicated or developed collaboratively may never reach its full potential.
One of the best lessons I received through education and professional experience was to keep asking why. Why does this product need to exist? Why this form? Why this material? Why this manufacturing method? These questions help separate meaningful decisions from decorative ones.
To expand my own knowledge, I continue to study products, architecture, materials, manufacturing processes, technology, and the work of other designers. I also learn constantly through real projects, collaboration, teaching, exhibitions, and conversations with people from different disciplines.
Most importantly, I would advise young designers to keep making things. Skills grow through repetition. Every project, including the unsuccessful ones, teaches something that eventually becomes part of your design judgment.
Success in design is rarely the result of one breakthrough moment. It is usually the result of curiosity, consistency, technical understanding, good communication, and the willingness to keep improving over many years.
You are truly successful as a designer, what do you suggest to fellow designers, artists and architects?
I believe one of the most important principles for any experienced designer is to protect the clarity of the idea. As projects become more complex, there is always a temptation to add more features, more visual gestures, and more explanations. In many cases, the stronger decision is to remove what is unnecessary and allow the essential idea to become clearer.
Another important practice is to stay close to reality. Designers should understand how their work will be manufactured, built, installed, maintained, and used. A concept becomes much stronger when technical knowledge is integrated into the creative process rather than treated as something that belongs only to engineers or production teams.
I also think professional designers should choose projects carefully. Not every opportunity is necessarily a good opportunity. The right project should offer space for meaningful contribution, good collaboration, and enough alignment between the designer, client, and manufacturer. Sometimes saying no to the wrong project protects both the quality of the work and the direction of your career.
Communication is another professional skill that becomes increasingly important with experience. Good designers need to explain not only what they propose, but why. Clear communication builds trust with clients, engineers, manufacturers, and collaborators, and it also makes difficult decisions easier to manage.
One common mistake is becoming too dependent on personal style. A recognizable design language is valuable, but it should not become a formula. If every project begins with the same answer, the designer may stop responding honestly to the problem. I prefer to maintain consistency in thinking rather than simply repeating the same visual language.
Another mistake is confusing visibility with success. Awards, publications, exhibitions, and social media can create valuable opportunities, but they should support the work rather than replace it. A strong professional reputation is built through consistency, reliability, quality, and the ability to deliver real results over time.
I also believe experienced designers should continue learning from people outside their own discipline. Engineers, craftspeople, manufacturers, architects, material specialists, and even clients can reveal things that designers may overlook. The more experienced you become, the more important it is to remain open enough to recognize what you still do not know.
Perhaps the most useful professional habit is to regularly question your own decisions. Ask whether each element is necessary, whether the solution could be simpler, whether the material is appropriate, whether the product can actually be made, and whether the design still makes sense without the presentation around it.
For me, long-term success in design comes from combining curiosity with discipline. Creativity is important, but consistency, judgment, collaboration, and the ability to turn ideas into real and meaningful outcomes are what sustain a design career.
What is your day to day look like?
My day-to-day routine is not completely fixed because it depends on the stage of the projects I am working on, but I usually begin by reviewing priorities, messages, ongoing projects, and any technical or production issues that need attention.
I prefer to use the earlier part of the day for work that requires concentration. This may involve sketching a new idea, developing a 3D model, reviewing proportions and construction, or solving a particular technical problem. When I am in the early stages of a project, I often spend time researching materials, manufacturing methods, lighting technologies, architecture, and products from different fields.
I also try to stay aware of what is happening in design internationally. I follow design publications, exhibitions, new products, materials, and technologies, not simply to follow trends, but to understand how the industry and the way people live are changing.
A significant part of the day can also involve communication. I may be discussing a project with a client, reviewing technical details with a manufacturer, exchanging information with an engineer or collaborator, or preparing drawings and visualizations for the next stage of development.
Depending on the project, I move frequently between hand sketches, SolidWorks, KeyShot, technical drawings, material references, and prototypes. I actually enjoy this variety because it prevents the design process from becoming purely digital or repetitive.
Even on an ordinary working day, small moments can make the work exciting. Finding a cleaner solution to a joint, improving a proportion, discovering an interesting material, receiving a useful prototype from a manufacturer, or seeing a lighting effect work as intended can completely change the energy of the day.
I also enjoy the unexpected moments when a problem that has been unresolved for several days suddenly becomes simple. These small breakthroughs are often more satisfying than completing a large presentation.
So my working day is usually a combination of creative exploration, technical development, communication, research, and problem-solving. What keeps it interesting is that every project creates a different set of questions, and there is almost always something new to discover or improve.
How do you keep up with latest design trends? To what extent do design trends matter?
I do follow design trends, but I try to understand them rather than simply follow them.
For me, trends are useful because they can reveal broader changes in technology, materials, manufacturing, lifestyle, culture, and user expectations. When a certain direction becomes visible across different industries, I am more interested in asking why it is happening than in copying its visual language.
I regularly follow international design publications, exhibitions, new product launches, material developments, architecture, lighting, and emerging technologies. I also pay attention to how manufacturers are changing their production methods and how users are changing the way they live and interact with products.
At the same time, I do not want my work to be defined by what is fashionable in a particular season. Trends move quickly, while well-designed products are often expected to remain relevant for many years. I prefer to develop a clear design language and product families that have their own identity rather than changing direction simply because a particular color, material, or form has become popular.
Inspiration for me comes from many sources: architecture, nature, materials, manufacturing processes, art, technology, everyday objects, and the behavior of light itself. Sometimes inspiration comes from something very visual, but often it begins with a technical detail, a production method, or a simple observation about how people use an object.
If a trend reflects a meaningful change, such as greater attention to repairability, modularity, new lighting technologies, responsible materials, or more flexible production, then I believe it is worth studying seriously. But if it is mainly a temporary visual fashion, I prefer to observe it without allowing it to control the design.
Ultimately, I think a designer should understand the present without becoming trapped by it. The goal is to create work that feels contemporary and relevant, but still has enough clarity and integrity to remain meaningful after the trend has passed.
How do you know if a product or project is well designed? How do you define good design?
For me, a well-designed product is one in which the main decisions feel coherent and necessary. Function, form, material, manufacturing, user experience, and context should support one another rather than compete.
The first thing I look for is purpose. I ask whether the product has a clear reason to exist and whether the design actually responds to that reason. A product can be visually impressive, but if the idea behind it is weak or unclear, I do not consider it fully resolved.
Usability is another important criterion. Good design should make interaction intuitive, comfortable, and appropriate for the user. The designer should understand how the product is held, operated, maintained, installed, or experienced over time.
I also evaluate manufacturability very closely. Material choice, structure, assembly, durability, tolerances, production methods, and cost are all part of design. A concept that looks beautiful but cannot be produced intelligently is still incomplete.
Another important factor is coherence. I like designs where every element feels connected to the same idea. The form should not contradict the function, the material should make sense for the construction, and the details should support the overall character of the product.
The “aha” moment for me is when the design begins to feel inevitable. You look at it and feel that the proportions, structure, material, function, and details belong together so naturally that removing or changing one element would weaken the whole.
Longevity also matters. I prefer designs that do not depend entirely on temporary visual trends and can remain useful, understandable, and relevant for a long time.
Some common mistakes are overdesigning, adding features without a clear need, selecting materials only for appearance, ignoring production realities, and becoming too attached to the first idea. Another mistake is designing mainly for presentation rather than for real use.
Ultimately, I define good design as thoughtful decision-making made visible. A successful product should solve its problem clearly, work well, be appropriate to its context, make sense technically, and create a meaningful experience without unnecessary complexity.
How do you decide if your design is ready?
I do not think a design is ever absolutely complete. There is almost always something that could be changed, refined, or reconsidered. The important question is whether those changes would genuinely improve the design or simply make it different.
For me, a design is ready when the main decisions have been resolved and support one another clearly. The concept, function, proportions, materials, construction, user experience, and manufacturing logic should all feel coherent.
I usually ask myself several questions before considering a project complete. Does the product solve the original problem? Is every important element necessary? Can it be manufactured realistically? Are the materials appropriate? Does the product work as intended? And most importantly, would another round of changes create a meaningful improvement?
Prototyping and testing are very important at this stage because they often reveal issues that cannot be seen in sketches or digital models. In lighting design, I also need to evaluate the actual behavior of light, including distribution, glare, reflections, shadows, and the atmosphere created in the surrounding space.
There is usually a point where the design begins to feel stable. Changes become smaller, the main problems have been resolved, and the product no longer feels like a collection of separate decisions. Instead, it begins to feel like one coherent solution. That is normally the moment when I know it is ready to move forward.
At the same time, I try to avoid endless refinement. Designers can always find another detail to adjust, but continuing indefinitely does not necessarily create a better result. Professional judgment also means knowing when to stop.
I do sometimes revisit earlier designs mentally and imagine how I might approach them differently today. I think this is natural because designers continue to learn. But I also respect the fact that each project belongs to a particular moment in my development.
For me, a design becomes successful when it performs well in reality, can be produced as intended, communicates its idea clearly, and creates a positive experience for the people who use or encounter it. A design is ready when it has reached that balance and further changes would no longer make it meaningfully stronger.
What is your biggest design work?
My biggest body of design work is my series of lighting collections developed over several years. Rather than one single object, I see these collections as a continuous exploration of how light, material, structure, and emotion can come together in different ways.
Each collection started from a different idea or observation. Some were inspired by natural forms and movement, while others were driven more by modularity, construction, material behavior, or the relationship between the product and the surrounding space. Collections such as River, Stone, Feather, Ring, Pelk, Duk, and others each represent a different stage of this exploration.
What makes these projects especially important to me is that I have never treated lighting simply as an object that contains a light source. I try to design both the physical product and the effect it creates: the way light passes through or reflects from materials, the shadows it produces, the atmosphere it creates, and the way the product changes when it is switched on or off.
Another key aspect of these collections is manufacturability. Many of the projects required close attention to materials, construction, assembly, scale, production methods, and collaboration with manufacturers. This process often changed the original concept and helped transform a visually interesting idea into a more resolved and realistic product.
The challenge has always been to maintain the character of the concept while responding to technical and production requirements. Lighting products can appear simple from the outside, but they involve many hidden decisions related to light source, heat, diffusion, structure, electrical components, joints, finishes, and installation. Solving these details without losing the original design intention is one of the parts I find most rewarding.
These collections have also given me particular satisfaction because they allowed me to develop a more recognizable design language over time. Although the individual products are different, there is a recurring interest in simplicity with character, sculptural form, modular thinking, and the relationship between material and light.
Some of these projects have also been presented through international exhibitions, awards, and publications, which helped the work reach audiences beyond the original design context. That external response has been encouraging, but the most satisfying part remains seeing an idea progress from sketch to 3D development, prototype, and eventually a real lighting product.
At the moment, I am continuing this direction by developing new lighting concepts that explore modularity, adaptable structures, material experimentation, and closer relationships with architecture. I am increasingly interested in creating complete lighting families and systems rather than isolated products.
For this reason, I consider my lighting collections my most important work so far. Together, they represent not only a series of products, but the evolution of my thinking as a designer and the direction in which I want my future work to continue.
Who is your favourite designer?
My favourite designer is Achille Castiglioni. What I admire most about him is the intelligence and simplicity behind his work. He had an extraordinary ability to observe everyday life, identify an opportunity, and transform very simple ideas into products with strong character and lasting relevance.
I especially appreciate the way his designs often appear effortless, while behind them there is a great deal of experimentation, technical understanding, humor, and discipline. He did not add complexity simply to make a product look more designed. Instead, he often found the most direct and surprising way to solve a problem.
If I had the opportunity to speak with one designer from the past, Castiglioni would probably be my first choice. I would be very interested in discussing how he evaluated ideas, how he decided when a design was complete, and how he balanced intuition, functionality, manufacturing, and playfulness.
In lighting design, I also greatly admire Poul Henningsen. His work changed the way designers think about light itself, particularly glare, reflection, distribution, and atmosphere. He demonstrated that the form of a lighting product could be generated by the behavior of light rather than by decoration.
Wilhelm Wagenfeld is another important influence for me because of the clarity, proportion, and industrial logic of his work. His designs show how simplicity can still have a very strong identity.
I also admire Dieter Rams for his disciplined approach to function, longevity, and reduction, and Ingo Maurer for almost the opposite reason: his ability to make lighting poetic, emotional, experimental, and sometimes playful.
I do not think there is one single designer who can be described objectively as the most iconic of all time. Different designers changed different parts of our understanding of design. What I admire most in all of these figures is not a particular visual style, but the clarity of their thinking.
The greatest designers, in my view, do more than create recognizable objects. They change the way other designers understand a problem. That kind of influence is much more important to me than simply creating a fashionable or visually iconic form.
Would you tell us a bit about your lifestyle and culture?
My lifestyle and cultural background have definitely influenced the way I see design. I grew up in Iran, studied and began my professional career there, and I currently live and work in Ankara, Türkiye. At the same time, exhibitions, collaborations, and professional experiences in different countries have gradually given me a more international perspective.
Growing up within Iranian culture exposed me to a strong tradition of craftsmanship, architecture, pattern, material, and attention to detail. I do not try to translate these influences literally into my products, but I believe they remain somewhere in the way I think about proportion, material, atmosphere, and the emotional quality of objects.
Living in Türkiye has added another layer to this experience. It has brought me closer to a different manufacturing culture and has allowed me to collaborate directly with producers and professionals from different backgrounds. Moving between cultures has made me more aware that products are not experienced in exactly the same way everywhere.
I am particularly inspired by cities where contemporary design, architecture, manufacturing, and cultural history coexist. Milan is a good example for me. Its relationship with furniture, lighting, architecture, craftsmanship, and industry creates an environment where design feels connected to everyday life rather than existing only inside galleries or studios.
My inspiration does not come from one specific source. Architecture, materials, light, technology, manufacturing processes, travel, everyday objects, and observing how people use spaces all influence my thinking. Music can contribute to the atmosphere of working, but my creative process is driven more strongly by observation and by the problem I am trying to solve.
At the moment, I am based in Ankara and continuing to develop lighting and physical product projects, with particular interest in modular systems, material experimentation, manufacturability, and international collaboration. I am increasingly interested in projects where lighting becomes part of a larger architectural experience rather than remaining an isolated object.
I believe good design is necessary for the advancement of society because design influences almost every part of everyday life. The quality of the objects, environments, transportation, lighting, tools, and systems around us affects how comfortably, safely, and efficiently we live.
Design has also influenced my own daily life by making me more conscious of the objects I choose and the environments I create around myself. I tend to value fewer objects with better function, material quality, durability, and meaning rather than simply accumulating more things. I also pay closer attention to lighting, ergonomics, organization, and the way small details can improve everyday experience.
For me, culture and design are constantly influencing each other. Culture gives designers context, memory, behavior, and identity, while design gradually changes the way people live. Even small improvements, when repeated across millions of everyday interactions, can create meaningful changes in the quality of life.
Would you tell us more about your work culture and business philosophy?
My work culture is based on clarity, responsibility, collaboration, and respect for the people involved in the project.
Although I often lead projects independently through my own design practice, I do not see design as an isolated activity. Depending on the project, I work closely with manufacturers, engineers, craftspeople, clients, architects, and other designers. I believe the best results usually come when each person brings their own expertise to the process and everyone is focused on improving the project rather than protecting individual ideas.
I try to make collaboration straightforward and transparent. At the beginning of a project, I believe it is important to define the brief, responsibilities, technical requirements, deliverables, and expectations as clearly as possible. Many problems in professional projects are not really design problems; they are communication problems that could have been avoided earlier.
When choosing business partners or collaborators, I value reliability, curiosity, professionalism, and openness. I prefer working with people who can communicate honestly, respect deadlines and responsibilities, and are willing to challenge an idea constructively when they believe there is a better solution.
I also value people who understand that criticism is part of the design process. I do not expect collaborators to agree with every decision I make. In fact, I appreciate working with people who can explain a different perspective and support it with technical or practical reasoning.
When working with manufacturers, I especially look for a willingness to experiment. A manufacturer with strong technical knowledge and an open attitude can become an important creative partner. Some of the best solutions emerge through discussions about materials, tooling, assembly, production limitations, and cost.
My own responsibilities normally extend beyond creating the initial concept. I am involved in sketching, design development, 3D modeling, material selection, construction logic, lighting considerations, visualization, technical refinement, communication with manufacturers, and preparation for prototyping and production. I like to remain involved long enough to ensure that the essential character of the design survives the transition from concept to real product.
One of the main challenges of industrial design is balancing different priorities. A product needs to satisfy creative ambitions, user requirements, engineering realities, manufacturing limitations, budget, timing, and commercial expectations. These priorities do not always agree, and part of the designer’s responsibility is to find the best balance without losing the original purpose of the project.
I believe a good designer should therefore have more than creativity. Curiosity, patience, empathy, discipline, communication skills, technical awareness, adaptability, and the ability to accept criticism are equally important.
The most important principle in my work culture is that the project should always be more important than ego. I prefer an environment where ideas can be questioned openly, decisions have clear reasons behind them, and everyone involved is working toward the strongest possible final result.
What are your philanthropic contributions to society as a designer, artist and architect?
I believe a designer’s contribution to society does not have to be limited to commercial projects. Sharing knowledge, supporting younger designers, participating in education, and contributing to the design community can also create meaningful long-term value.
One of the main ways I have tried to give back is through design education. I have worked as an industrial design lecturer, and teaching has always been important to me because it allows practical experience to be passed to the next generation. I particularly try to help students understand the connection between creativity and reality: how an idea can move from a sketch into a technically resolved and manufacturable product.
I have also participated in design juries, reviews, and educational activities. These experiences give me the opportunity not only to evaluate projects, but also to provide constructive feedback and help young designers recognize both the strengths and weaknesses of their work. I believe good feedback can sometimes have a much longer impact than simply selecting a winner.
Another area I care about is helping younger designers understand aspects of professional practice that are not always fully covered in academic education, such as working with manufacturers, communicating with clients and engineers, developing prototypes, presenting a portfolio, and understanding production constraints. I would like to continue developing workshops and educational activities around manufacturable design and real-world product development.
I strongly support designers, artists, and architects becoming involved in humanitarian and socially responsible projects. Design has the ability to improve accessibility, safety, public environments, resource efficiency, and quality of life. When design skills can contribute to a genuine social need, I believe professionals should be willing to participate, including through pro bono work when the project is meaningful and the circumstances allow it.
I also believe that creating opportunities for younger designers is important. This can happen through mentoring, collaboration, introducing them to manufacturers or professional networks, inviting them into projects, or simply sharing honest knowledge about how the industry works.
What I value most about good design is that it can improve everyday life without necessarily demanding attention. A thoughtful object, public product, lighting solution, or environment can make something safer, easier, more comfortable, more inclusive, or simply more humane.
For me, contributing to society as a designer means using experience not only to create better products, but also to help build a stronger design culture. If knowledge, opportunities, and experience are shared, their value extends much further than any single project.
What positive experiences you had when you attend the A' Design Award?
Participating in the A’ Design Award has been a very positive experience for me because it gave my work the opportunity to be evaluated and presented within an international design context.
One of the most valuable aspects has been seeing projects that began as ideas in my studio reach a much wider audience. When a design is recognized internationally, it creates a different kind of dialogue around the work and allows people from different countries, cultures, and professional backgrounds to discover it.
I believe there are three particularly important benefits to participating in design awards and competitions.
The first is independent evaluation. Designers spend a great deal of time very close to their own work, so having a project reviewed from outside can provide useful perspective. Recognition can confirm that certain design decisions communicate successfully beyond the original context of the project.
The second benefit is visibility. Awards can help designers present their work to media, manufacturers, potential clients, other designers, and a wider international audience. For an independent designer especially, this kind of exposure can create opportunities that would otherwise be difficult to reach.
The third benefit is professional development and connection. Competitions introduce you to the work of designers from many different disciplines and countries. Seeing how other designers respond to similar technological, cultural, environmental, or functional challenges can be educational and inspiring. Awards can also lead to new conversations, collaborations, exhibitions, publications, and professional relationships.
Design competitions can also encourage designers to look at their own work more critically. Preparing a project for evaluation requires you to explain the concept clearly, select the right images, communicate technical and functional qualities, and understand what genuinely distinguishes the design. That process itself can improve the way a designer thinks about and presents their work.
At the same time, I believe awards should be seen as part of a design career rather than its purpose. The most important objective is still to create meaningful, well-resolved work. Recognition is valuable when it helps that work reach the right audience and creates opportunities for further development.
Being featured as Designer of the Day is therefore especially meaningful to me. I see it not simply as personal recognition, but as an opportunity to share my design philosophy, experience, and work with a broader audience. I am grateful for the recognition, and I hope it also encourages new conversations and collaborations around design.
Most importantly, recognition motivates me to continue developing. Rather than seeing an award as the conclusion of a project or career stage, I prefer to see it as encouragement to ask what I can create better next.