Harry Strouzas

I began my working life in the finance sector after studying commerce at university. But my true calling has always been in design. I always did want to become a designer. I love to solve problems, and always have. Drawing comes very naturally to me and I am an extremely visual person. I think that I view the world in a somewhat unique manner – which can be both a blessing and a curse. I am never short of inspiration as the problems out there are in constant supply! I am also a fully qualified bespoke furniture maker. I think that this gives me the unique position of thinking about the construction issues and techniques that the craftsperson will have to grapple with in order to realise the completed piece. There's nothing that a maker hates more than receiving pretty pictures with no real technical details or no real concept of the most efficient or effective way to actually make the piece in question. You also receive instant respect from the craftspeople when you give them the detailed drawings they actually need and also because they can really talk to you in detail regarding certain aspects of the vision and the best way to achieve it. It really is a win/win situation.

Fiona Mckenzie and I started PodMaket™ about 18 months ago. Out focus is to design and facilitate the manufacture of interior products (especially furniture) which are minimalist in theme in terms of material input, manufacturing process and design aesthetic. Our products are always designed with an ecological focus and we always try to marry the aesthetics with supreme functionality. We always design with the manufacturing process in mind and try to ensure that all our products are scaleable and versatile. 


For me design means solving a particular problem (or problems) in the most effective and elegant manner possible. The design problem may be profound or quite narrows, it doesn't matter. What matters is the detailed process that you as the designer must undertake in order to make the necessary improvements and eventually propose an elegant solution to the original problem. Design also relates to this "process" that you go through in order to develop your solution.

Furniture. There is something very primal about furniture to me, which I think stems from the fact that we interact with it so closely and so often. We sit on it, lean on it, eat on it, work on it, put things on it, look at it, touch and feel it and are surrounded by it. It is just so important to our lives and so personal to us, whether we acknowledge it or not.
 I also design entire passive houses, but when you get right down to it, it is the junctions within the building structure that essentially make or break it. Either way, I like to resolve my junctions, regardless of the scale involved, in the simplest, most elegant manner possible, and do away with all the superfluous (often covering up) details.

When I was studying furniture design in England, one of my favourite professors (Hugh Scriven) showed me a small swivelling mirror that he designed back in 1983. He said that it was one of his most treasured designs. It is a thing of genius. He gave me one and my wife always uses it when putting on her makeup. When I set up my company I contacted Hugh and asked him if he would allow me to make these small, swivelling, makeup mirrors and sell them here in Australia. He agreed and I have been making them ever since. The design still blows me away. The piece comprises of only 3 parts. First there's the central mirror section and then there are 2 separate legs. That's it. By simply grabbing the legs and twisting them, the mirror rotates through an arc of 180 degrees. It's truly incredible, and just so clever. When I finished the degree I spent some time with Hugh at his country home. One day he told me that he has had 3 truly original ideas throughout his decorated and extensive career. This small swivelling mirror was his first one. Notable, he also told me that most “designers” never really get to experience this level of originality. The more designs I see and designers and experts I meet, the more these words ring true to me. These are words of wisdom by a highly accomplished designer and maker whose career exceeded 40 years.

I wouldn’t really call it original design, but I initially began making furniture that was very high-end and custom made. The first piece where the client wanted me to control the entire process revolved around a desk and storage cabinet for a medical professional’s home office. 
It had a number of nice details, but nothing that anyone could really claim was original or really special. Sometimes clients don't want you to push boundaries too much. They are often more conservative than you'd ideally like.

I love working with hardwood, but I love designing for wood coming together with other materials, especially various types of metal. Fiona loves working with fabrics, and we both love integrating leather and semi translucent papers.

Really early in the morning. Some days the light is just on and the flow is just continuous. These days often blend together for a few days at a time.

The functionality of the piece is always paramount in my mind. I always ask these types of questions: How will people engage with it; When will they use it and What purpose does it really have? This is because the overall design question is always: What problem does item actually have to solve or improve? I try not to worry about how the physical object will actually get made at this design stage. I try to keep the ideas fluid and constant whilst I evaluate these types of questions. I’ve found that the construction side of things can always be solved – somehow. If you worry too much about the construction methodology 
too early, you will hinder your creativity and limit your experiences and knowledge gathering.

It really depends on the piece itself and what it means to me personally. The full range of emotions are experienced when you look at things as a whole. Some designs just go smoothly from beginning to end, like a beautiful drive on a scenic road. Others can be more frustrating and feel like more hard-work depending on a whole range of factors. I’m a person after all, so all sorts of emotions come into play when I spend so long designing things every day.
 I often get sleepy too when things get going and the ideas keep coming. I've started taking 10-15 minute power naps during the day when things get too crazy.

I really do feel that it’s those around me, who experience a more positive sense of accomplishment when the item first comes to fruition. By the time we get to the realisation stage of one piece I’m well and truly into the next piece or two. When I know it’s going to work though (even though it hasn’t been realised yet), that’s when I experience my personal high. It fills me with a sense of accomplishment and acts as a type of confirmation and reward I suppose. I'm not sure how else to describe it. 


This is a loaded question which could be answered in many different ways. For me, it’s successful if I’m happy with it. I know that sounds a bit funny, but I am being honest. Does it meet my personal criteria and is it an elegant and resolved solution to a particular problem? If the answer to these questions is Yes, then I deem it a success.
 If I like it, I deem it a success. If it sells really well, is popular and even if I get external congratulations for it, that's really nice, but this doesn't mean too much if deep down I don't really like the finished result myself. It's easy to get lost in the external responses sometimes, but it's really important to internalise it and sort out your own feelings and opinions first in my opinion, and not be swayed by the external retoric.

Initially I ask myself two key things. Firstly does the resolved design actually solve the problem effectively and efficiently that it was designed to solve? And secondly, I consider what I call "the scanning test". Does my eye track around the piece well in a continuous and smooth (non-disjointed) manner? Everything else really comes secondary to this personal appraisal of the design. I also naturally consider whether things are included in the finished piece which need not (or should not) really be there. These "no real purpose" elements often degrade a completed design in my opinion.

Designers must always adhere to the one overriding tenet: The design must - Do No Harm. Keep this in the forefront of your mind, and apply it to all aspects of the design, including the materials used, where they are sourced from and the finishes employed and this will always keep you on the right track.

Inspiration can come from anywhere. The problem is finding enough time to design things to cater for all of these ideas that come to you. Funnily enough my two young children provide an infinite source of inspiration, as too does talking with my 93 year old Grandmother. Fiona's parents are also very articulate and love to talk about why certain things are good and why others are not so good and why they should be improved. It really is quite interesting where the concepts and inspiration comes from. Just watching my children play with certain things and how they often use particular items in ways they were not originally designed for is the most interesting and creative thing in the world. Of course you also have the more structured briefs that come directly from the client.

I once heard a prominent interior designer here in Melbourne answer a similar question in an interview and their answer was the biggest load of rubbish I've ever heard. I always promised myself to be much more direct and totally honest when answering this type of question. I have a problem solving and visually interesting focus with a minimalist core. I no longer like superfluous details that serve no purpose. I think that being a furniture maker has helped develop this stye over the years, as too often, there are completely unnecessary elements thrown onto a design in an attempt to try and elevate that piece's status of sense of purpose. I believe that reducing a design to its essential elements in a visually interesting and cohesive way is what true design is all about. Hence when I design I take great pride in removing elements until there are none left that can be removed without compromising the overall structure or purpose of the piece.

I live in Melbourne, Australia. I learnt furniture making here, however I studied design for a number of years in England and travelled around Europe extensively during that time. That was my choice, and I’m so glad I followed this route. In my opinion, Europeans value furniture design much more than Australians. I think it is a cultural thing and related to the one immoveable force - time. Australia is in comparative terms, still an very young country. We are still developing our design ethos, style and culture in my opinion. Europeans place much more relevance and importance on furniture design. I believe this to be the case because they have a significantly longer tradition and heritage in this field. It's a generational thing in part. I can see that things are changing here in Australia, and that Melbourne and Sydney are really driving this development. However, we still have a long way to go. It’s hard to explain this to Australians who haven’t lived overseas for a number of years and haven't been immersed in the design focussed culture. We are also fighting our location and trying to deal with the bombardment of cheap, replica style furniture or unknown (and often unethical) origins. But the big positive about being a furniture designer in Australia is that you have the freedom to truly do whatever it is you want. No one tries to tie you down to how things were done in the past. This is an enormous bonus and one that I think will pay dividends in the long term.

I equate it to a funnel. First the problem must be identified. Then the investigation towards the solution begins. Anything and everything is open to investigation at the beginning. The funnel opening is very wide. I try not to even think about what the final outcome will look like, what it will be made of, or how it would be made at these early stages. I like to use ink and paper whilst I’m throwing concepts and ideas around at the beginning, as it’s the quickest and most intimate way for my mind to get really into the design. Then naturally certain concepts and ideas begin to come to the fore and outrank others. I start to develop these more promising ones more as they begin jumping off the page. Hence to continue with the analogy, we are now beginning to move down the funnel. I then talk to Fiona in depth and get her input and suggestions. She always adds her input at the beginning but she really gets involved once I have a few concepts developing. This fresh perspective and her special analysis always helps a lot. Hence, further down the funnel we move. Then I sketch a little more before jumping on the computer where I start getting a bit more technical and focussed on proportions and scale. Mock ups and prototyping then follow.In order to get to the pointy end of the funnel and further resolve the design, it then becomes a constant back and forth between the drawings and physical prototypes.Then hopefully this back and forth between the drawing side and the physical side doesn't have to go on too long before a final, resolved design occurs.


These are listed in no particular order. I love all of these pieces.1. My wife’s small swivel mirror from Hugh Scriven (see answer 5)2. We have a dark brown, original Eames recliner in our lounge room that I sit on when reading or watching a movie.3. We have a hall table that I designed and made in England which received great feedback and commendation. I steam bent the legs and laminated the top. It shows real hand skill and technique and has special memories for me.4. My two children love playing with Lego, and I’m more and more amazed by it (the concept, the company, the product, the options, the scalability) nearly every day. I'm proud to say that I love Lego too.5. I have an original Anglepoise Lamp on my bedside table. I love that thing. and it serves me perfectly nearly every evening.

Each day differs which is really nice. The only constant is that the day will always be very busy, and also (hopefully) mostly enjoyable. I’m essentially either working, being a family man or trying to de-clutter and clear my head by exercising (typically swimming or cycling). I work really hard and for long periods of time. I'm very lucky that my wife is super understanding and efficient and keeps the household running smoothly. We are also both very lucky that we have two great kids. Throw in a little bit of exercise and mix the ratios spent on each aspect from day to day, and there you have it - any day in my life. Given I love what I do and also given the fact that I'm always surrounded by amazing people all day long, I realise that I am a very lucky person. Weekday or weekend, it's irrelevant to me. The main aspects of my life remain constant.

You don’t know it all, despite what you might believe or are being told.Drop the ego. You have lots to learn. So surround yourself with great people.You will certainly need them from time to time. Show some humility.

Designers must always adhere to the one overriding tenet: The design must - Do No Harm. Keep this in the forefront of your mind, and apply it to all aspects of the design, including the materials used, where they are sourced from and the finishes employed and this will always keep you on the right track.

The ability to continue adding to your skill set and to continue evolving with regards to your design ethos and philosophies.You have to be able to draw and get pen to paper quickly and efficiently.Learn the technical things. Being able to talk with your makers, engineers and craftspeople using their language will be paramount in further resolving your ideas.Never stop learning and observing things in detail.

This is always evolving and I'm getting better at it. However the reality is that I spend a really long time each week working/designing. This is primarily due to the fact that I genuinely love it. The rest of my time is dedicated to my family. I also try and spend some time each day doing a bit of exercise, in an attempt to de-clutter and clear my head. But there's no way around the hard work required to be really good at what you do. I'm just very lucky that my wife is super understanding and efficient and keeps the household running smoothly. We are also both very lucky that we have two great kids. Given I love what I do and also given the fact that I'm always surrounded by amazing people all day long, I realise that I am a very lucky person, and the hours just seem to fly by.

It depends on the item, it depends on the client, it depends on the time frame allowed, it depends on my personal interest in the piece, it depends on the quality of the original ideas generated at the very beginning of the process. It literally depends on many factors that make this question almost impossible to answer.

It's always something along these lines: Where did you get the idea for that? How did you come up with that?

Being a high end maker. There’s the rough sawn timber, here’s the design. Make it in x hours and make it to this high quality. Begin now. Good luck.
Talk about being thrown in the deep end. But what it teaches you about good design and not so good design is invaluable.

Speculative furniture pieces. There is something very primal about furniture to me, which I think stems from the fact that we interact with it so closely and so often. We sit on it, lean on it, eat on it, work on it, put things on it, look at it, touch and feel it and are surrounded by it. It is just so important to our lives and so personal to us, whether we acknowledge it or not.
 And if it's a speculative piece, it means that I'm driving it from beginning to end. I set the problems that need addressing, I set the time frame and I make the final decision on what the end result looks like. These are the most personal and intimate pieces that really get me excited and involved.

From a furniture point of view, Fiona get's involved early during the idea generation stage, and them more heavily once I have produced a few "short-list" items. Her involvement is the key to our success, but I do more of the development work on the furniture side of things. Regarding the passive house designing, we tend to work closer together throughout the entire "funnelling" process. To explain this funnelling process in more detail....... First the problem must be identified. Then the investigation towards the solution begins. Anything and everything is open to investigation at the beginning. The funnel opening is very wide. I try not to even think about what the final outcome will look like, what it will be made of, or how it would be made at these early stages. I like to use ink and paper whilst I’m throwing concepts and ideas around at the beginning, as it’s the quickest and most intimate way for my mind to get really into the design. Then naturally certain concepts and ideas begin to come to the fore and outrank others. I start to develop these more promising ones more as they begin jumping off the page. Hence to continue with the analogy, we are now beginning to move down the funnel. I then talk to Fiona in depth and get her input and suggestions. She always adds her input at the beginning but she really gets involved once I have a few concepts developing. This fresh perspective and her special analysis always helps a lot. Hence, further down the funnel we move. Then I sketch a little more before jumping on the computer where I start getting a bit more technical and focussed on proportions and scale. Mock ups and prototyping then follow.In order to get to the pointy end of the funnel and further resolve the design, it then becomes a constant back and forth between the drawings and physical prototypes.Then hopefully this back and forth between the drawing side and the physical side doesn't have to go on too long before a final, resolved design occurs.


I began my working life in the finance sector after studying commerce at the University of Melbourne, Australia. But my true calling has always been in design. I always did want to become a designer. I love to solve problems, and always have. Drawing comes very naturally to me and I am an extremely visual person. I think that I view the world in a somewhat unique manner – which can be both a blessing and a curse. I am never short of inspiration as the problems out there are in constant supply! I am also a fully qualified bespoke furniture maker. I left the world of finance and undertook a full, furniture making apprenticeship. People must have thought I was mad. I think that this gives me the unique position of thinking about the construction issues and techniques that the craftsperson will have to grapple with in order to realise the completed piece. There's nothing that a maker hates more than receiving pretty pictures with no real technical details or no real concept of the most efficient or effective way to actually make the piece in question. You also receive instant respect from the craftspeople when you give them the detailed drawings they actually need and also because they can really talk to you in detail regarding certain aspects of the vision and the best way to achieve it. It really is a win/win situation. 
 After working as a bespoke maker for a number of years, I then used my dual citizenship (both my parents are Greek) and moved to England to study furniture design at Buckinghamshire New University. Surely, everyone around me thought I was mad. I completed the full Bachelor degree in the UK and really immersed myself in the rich design culture and heritage that Europe as a whole has to offer. Graduating the top of my class with first class honours, I was offered numerous posts to further my academic career via further Masters or PhD course, but in truth my pull to come back home to Melbourne was too strong. I also had no real desire to become an educator at that stage (maybe this will change later on, but not as yet anyway). Since arriving back in Melbourne, I have worked as head maker and lead draftsman at a bespoke furniture making operation as well as spending a couple of years being the in house designer for a boutique furniture retailer in the Melbourne CBD. I then started my own business and here I am today, working for myself and driving my own direction.

I think that the best designers are born observing the world in a very unique and detailed way. It's not something that I can turn off. You find yourself constantly analysing why things work, why they don't, how they can be improved, how people engage with them, why they engage with them etc etc etc. It never stops. For me, I just had to follow my true path. It's as simple as that. Designing is what I love to do. It has been that way for as long as I can remember. I tried to stifle this for a while in my late teens and early twenties where I tried to become a "grown-up" and focus on academic things, but I discovered that designers can be grown-ups too, with their heads firmly facing ahead, towards the future.

I certainly chose to become a designer! No one could ever force a finance person with a very comfortable and well respected job, to throw it all away and chase their dream of becoming the highest quality (and fully qualified) designer and furniture maker. It is simply not possible.

I design all types of interior pieces as well as passive house buildings. From an internal perspective my favourite thing in the world is to design self-driven, speculative furniture pieces. There is something very primal about furniture to me, which I think stems from the fact that we interact with it so closely and so often. We sit on it, lean on it, eat on it, work on it, put things on it, look at it, touch and feel it and are surrounded by it. It is just so important to our lives and so personal to us, whether we acknowledge it or not.
 And if it's a speculative piece, it means that I'm driving it from beginning to end. I set the problems that need addressing, I set the time frame and I make the final decision on what the end result is. These are the most personal and intimate pieces that really get me excited.

I don't think I could ever think of myself as a design legend. Ever! However, if you're asking for a couple of suggestions as to how a young designer might be able to become even better, I'd offer the following........ You don’t know it all, despite what you might believe or are being told. Drop the ego, it only gets in the way of real innovation. You have lots to learn. So surround yourself with great people. You will certainly need them from time to time. And show some humility. 


The ability to produce truly innovative designs. Pure and simple! Great designers can.

A number of factors come into play in such an evaluation, however in an attempt to keep this answer somewhat concise it boils down to a few pertinent points. Firstly this question must be answered in the affirmative: does the resolved design actually solve the problem effectively and efficiently that it was actually designed to solve? This is a must for any design to be considered "good". Secondly I always undertake "the Scanning Test". This relates to how my eye tracks around the piece. Does it track around the piece in a smooth, continuous and elegant way. I hate it when my eye tracking is stopped along its path in a forced and disjointed manner. Thirdly I also take into account whether things are included in the finished piece which need not (or should not) really be there. These "no real purpose" elements often degrade a completed design in my opinion.
 It naturally relates to the two points above, and I guess highlights my leanings towards minimalism and efficiency.

In its simplest form good design makes life better. This applies to absolutely everything, whether it be on a micro or macro level. Clearly our world is hurting in so many compounding ways. Only better processes and "things" which are more efficient, more effective, more tailored, more accessible, more enjoyable, less harmful, less wasteful, less toxic and less stupid, need to be on the agenda. Everything is at stake.

As stated above I design both internal items, particularly furniture, and passive houses. These are the things that I do in fact want to design, so I'm very fortunate in that regard. In terms of "who" would I like to design for if I had the time, the answer is - those people who can't afford to do the research and actually pay for the higher quality things with regards to their design and manufacture. This applies to both the buildings they need to live in as well as the interior pieces that they will engage with when inside these buildings. Those people without opportunities to engage with such things, and who are then cast aside are the ones who most need and would definitely most appreciate great design.

A complete passive house building project PLUS the full internal fit out. The entire thing, both inside and out, where people can experience what I and PodMarket™ are really all about.

My co-designer: Fiona Mckenzie. Her input and analysis is truly amazing. She's the real brain behind the operation.

I don't get inspired by them. I admire them and love their work. However inspiration comes from many different sources as far as I'm concerned.

Way too many to mention here. I don't wish to leave anyone out and I don't have time to write a thesis. So I shall only offer one by someone I personally know and have the highest respect for. When I was studying furniture design in the UK, one of my favourite professors (Hugh Scriven) showed me a small swivelling mirror that he designed back in 1983. He said that it was one of his most treasured designs. It is a thing of genius. He gave me one and my wife always uses it when putting on her makeup. When I set up my company I contacted Hugh and asked him if he would allow me to make these small, swivelling, makeup mirrors and sell them here in Australia. He agreed and I have been making them ever since. The design still blows me away. The piece comprises of only 3 parts. First there's the central mirror section and then there are 2 separate legs. That's it. By simply grabbing the legs and twisting them, the mirror rotates through an arc of 180 degrees. It's truly incredible, and just so clever. When I finished the degree I spent some time with Hugh at his country home. One day he told me that he has had 3 truly original ideas throughout his decorated and extensive career. This small swivelling mirror was his first one. Notable, he also told me that most “designers” never really get to experience this level of originality. The more designs I see and designers and experts I meet, the more these words ring true to me. These are words of wisdom by a highly accomplished designer and maker whose career exceeded 40 years.


The Pende Series. The one that received the Silver A' Design Award this year. The reasons that I think it's great are pretty simple: 1. It solves the problem as to why criss-cross style underframes in the past have had to be made from materials that were either too bulky and wasteful, in order to have any real structural strength and why they could only really be utilised in items that never had to take any real loads (eg: lights....). 2. It can be varied regarding the number of legs utilised to anything above three. 3. It is totally scaleable. You can make large scale dining tables, through to coat stands and stools using the same principles. 4. It is super easy to assemble and disassemble. 5. It can be flat packed which makes it very transportable. 6. It's suited to batch runs and mechanised production techniques as well as to one off bespoke pieces. 7. When you review the resolved design it appears very intuitive. People will be able to understand the interconnected principles that make the concept work. I find that when people can engage with any piece a bit more, they tend to really appreciate and like the piece more as a consequence.

I left my home country (Australia) and travelled to the other side of the world (United Kingdom) and totally immersed myself in both formal tertiary study as well as informal absorption of all things design related by travelling as much as I could afford during my years spent in Europe. The end result is that to become better, you must eat, sleep and live design. It's something that becomes a part of you somehow.

Irrelevant question for me. From a successful finance background, I gave it all away and moved heaven and earth to become a designer. The only thing that would have stopped me, is if I was a little bit better at tennis. I'd love to have become a professional tennis player! I genuinely thought about it for a while, but didn't have the nerve to give it a real go in the end. Wise choice I think! My serve was never really big enough to make it to the top.

For me design means solving a particular problem (or problems) in the most effective and elegant manner possible. The design problem may be profound or quite narrows, it doesn't matter. What matters is the detailed process that you as the designer must undertake in order to make the necessary improvements and eventually propose an elegant solution to the original problem. Design also relates to this "process" that you go through in order to develop your solution.


My wife. My parents. A few, special friends. And of course, Fiona.