Mayté Ossorio Domecq

Even though I always had a very strong inclination towards design and painting, it wasn't until university where I realized that I couldn't live any other way than the life I have today; where transformation and design meet. Before college it was a hobby, I designed my dresses, painted and restored furniture and did all kinds of crafts. Already at the University and more specifically in the field of accessories I discovered my real passion, objects and intermediate themes between clothing design and industrial design.

Maison Domecq emerges in honor of my mother and the values learned at home. With more than 15 years of experience working for different companies and with the role of design through the reuse of existing components, I decided to create Maison Domecq, a place where to combine the values learned at home, sustainability, love for arts and crafts and where to design and redesign with what is available, the remnants of different companies.

I think that design is art with functionality, where you can play with elements in search of satisfying needs or solving problems, taking as part of the problem the identification of people by appealing to the senses. The experience is designed and not the product, a constant search for beauty and functionality in everyday life. Design is color, shape, functionality, suitability and emotion intertwined in a dance that results in an object that manages to capture people's feelings. It is an art, the art of negotiation between the concrete possibilities of making an object, the context, the moment and the user person, it is about the generation of experiences that are recorded in people. It is sinking in the floating chain of meanings of the image to lead people to a simpler life, solving their problems as an extension of their own body. It is to test all the senses in search of answers according to the problems raised in a system undermined by limitations. Being the same (the limitations) finally the great generators of answers from the intensive use of creativity.

More than objects in particular I like the generation of morphological resources, the latent language of materials then applicable to specific objects. Finding languages, developing them and adjusting them to different functionalities and objects.

There are many designs that I like, I think that in each category we all have a favorite. But if I had to choose just one, I could say that the Brno armchair designed by Lilly Reich and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe in 1929-1930 is definitely my favorite. The year it was designed, the synthesis of its shape, the effectiveness in use and its rectangular section steel frame, make this chair an absolutely timeless and beautiful piece.

The first major object I designed for a company was an air extractor hood for a kitchen, in steel and glass.

I am interested above all in the experimentation with materials, which can be varied, although I have been working with leather for many years in order to get to deeply know its aptitudes and limitations.

In general, my workshop is full of unfinished tests of various experiments, being the moments of greatest creativity when I have no time and I have to solve problems to present new pieces to the market.

When I start a new collection, be it for my brand or another one in the market, the first thing I do is to survey the ideology of the brand on which I am going to work: its values, morphological resources, accents, types of conceptual ideas in each collection, best-selling objects and their typologies, type of user. Once this information is available, the pieces that will make up the new collection, its guiding idea and subsequent development are proposed. Once developed, the production costs are reviewed and adjusted to the economic limits established by the company for each of the pieces.

When I start to design, there is a high degree of concentration where I can combine all the aspects to be taken into account for the development of each piece, it gives me great pleasure and a sense of tranquility. Conexion

The most important thing is that it is suitable for the consumer, that it speaks about him/her, that he/she sees him/herself reflected, that he/she wants to have it and buy it.

I think it is a duty of today's designers to contemplate sustainability within product design, there are always alternative ways to improve processes, materials in the search for environmental care. It is our duty to build networks where we can design new things through the revaluation of the remaining raw material of others and in the same way work revaluing the trades, generating work in the region. I believe that today sustainability is a requirement and not a differential or it should not be. Sustainability from the generation of local work, optimization of the use of materials, contemplate the useful life of products, and their discarding, reuse of remnants or establishment of sustainable chains that allow their reuse. Take into account when designing the complete traceability of the value chain.

I think we are moving towards a sustainable design, translated into the different aspects where it can be applied. The pillars of design will go from being 4 to 5 pillars that compose it, morphology, technology, functionality, communication and sustainability. In this way, to a greater or lesser extent, the productive processes will be revised towards friendly ones, equality between men and women, discarding and its subsequent use towards a circular economy, etc.

My last in-person exhibition was before the pandemic, fashion shows accompanying locally recognized designers (Argentina). Bajos del Barolo. The next exhibition will be held in conjunction with the new release of pieces in July this year.

My greatest inspiration is given in nature, in how a plant grows, in its fruits, in a bird, I look and read a lot to find new ideas, although when working from direct experimentation there are lines that are born from previous errors in the process or simply to see overlapping leather cutouts that triggered new ideas for new pieces. there is a phrase that I think defines me in the process that is "Geometry is to nature what grammar is to the art of writing"

We consider experimentation as the heart of design. The discovery of new methods and new textures develops a relationship where we can read the latent messages hidden in our material. Revealing the qualities and strengths of leather, playing with its limits, are the genuine expression that brings authenticity and style to each of our works. We believe that our style is at the crossroads of many contrasts and dualities. We are sensitive and brave and our jewelry is feminine and strong. With one foot in the past and the other in the future, our pieces reflect this modern classic style, and innovative in its materiality. We represent decisive women who believe that sustainability is crucial, and through our work with the aim of changing the world and its image.

I live in Argentina, more specifically in the Federal Capital, a cosmopolitan and globalized city, formed in its beginnings by mainly European immigrants. I think that my life and then my way of designing has been imbued with this heritage where the mix is present and the need to get ahead with the limitations of a developing country.

In my case I have worked for different companies in different ways. As a member of the design team, as head of lines where guidelines established by the commercial area were answered, I have also worked as an external consultant and designer, where I reviewed sales statistics, associated ideas, brand values and the most popular products. sold in order to develop a line that would satisfy their specific customers. Today I work for my brand and the roles are multiple and where I intervene in each link of the chain looking for everything to fit the brand identity achieved, from the type of image to communication and the design of the pieces that make up the collection.

I believe that the role of the designer in companies is essential. the role of the designer is the translation of problems into forms and materials. Depending on the type of company, his role connects various areas. Knowing that the object is defined by morphology, technology, functionality and communication, the designer must be able to combine them in each of the products, thus optimizing the value chain interdisciplinarily with engineers, graphics, marketing, etc. The selection of a good designer is key for companies since it is a role where the detection and resolution of problems is key, for which the designer must be trained and must be able through analysis to understand the specific needs of the company providing feasible solutions of realization. This can be deduced in a conversation, if the designer studied the company before going to the interview, if he was able to detect its values ​​and the company's way of being, know about the materials and processes it has, there must be enthusiasm and desire of learning.

In my particular brand, I work testing, experimenting. What happens if I want to make the leather one mm thick, what can I do with it? How do I optimize remnants that are so small? If the remnant is a very fine leather, what can I do with it? How do I solve a necklace with the use of just 3 modules? how do I get rhythm? What are the shapes that women like the most? how do I get them?

brno chairs tulip saarinen coffee table Rancer record player Juicy Salif orange juicer 1900 Singer Sewing Machine

With the pandemic the days in my life changed, the routines changed and above all things, I moved my atelier to my house. I live in a very large house, the upstairs is our home while the downstairs became my place of work and meeting with friends. I have a 4-year-old daughter and today everything revolves around her schedule. We have breakfast, we take her to the garden and she starts work. My work has endless chores, from design to attending to the girls who accompany me so that everything goes well. I like to have direct communication with my clients so that I do the communication on the networks. that way I can have direct information about what works and why. Depending on the day, I will be attending different situations that have to do with carrying out the enterprise. days where the attention is focused on production and days where we focus on improving the web or taking photos for the networks. On the other hand, I go to the gym three times a week, also very close to my home, optimizing the time to be with my daughter or working.

"A stumble is not a fall." Things may not happen when you want, but perseverance always pays off. clear goal, study, work on that goal and at some point everything comes together.

The positive aspects have to do with a look and way of seeing life and objects, the designer's life is full of images and dreams that come true. For me it is a fun and interesting life, there is no ceiling. I don't think it has negative aspects, but rather things that we like to do less, but like all work, there will always be more beautiful things and things that we necessarily have to do, to do the things we like again.

check the proportion and connection between the component parts of the system

The most used tools in my design are my hands, connected to my head in a dance where I find new resources applicable to my future new designs. My toolbox is a large workshop where I have multiple different tools where I can make cuts, glued, polished, drilled holes, place pins, etc. Then graphic design tools allow me to generate new proposals without having to make prototypes each time, optimizing time and thus visualizing the possible result. Regarding inspiration, I find it above all in nature, nothing is more perfect in proportion, the way it grows, color palettes. Even so, an object found on the street, or an ornament on a shelf, can inspire me.

Although we have established dates to go out with new pieces to the market, the interesting thing about being in the workshop for a long time and in continuous contact with the material, is that new proposals may arise due to errors, or new ideas that remain on a blackboard until they arrive. the moment of the generation of new proposals. when the time comes these new resources are taken and developed into product form and presented for later approval. Time is managed flexibly and by objectives, there are times that require more effort and more time spent in the workshop and times when the tasks allow us to work with less intensity.

this depends on whether it is a completely new line where the design premise has not been put into practice before or if it is part of an existing line in our brand. The development of a completely new line can take us around six months.

How do you achieve so much diversity of pieces using the same modules?

I think the most important job of all was with the sculptor Julio Perez Sanz, a master of arts and crafts. He was the one who taught me and broadened my view, in the reuse of materials, the constant search for the fair proportion and in making the most of the use of materials.

My clients are design stores, small boutiques and museum stores in Argentina and the world. From 2010 to today, Look Sur represented us at the fairs: New York Now, Las Vegas Market, Atlanta Market, with a portfolio of approximately 400 clients, among which is the Fort Lauderdale Museum, USA. 2019 present Malba Store, Museum of Latin American Art, CaBa, Argentina 2016 present MudaM, Luxembourg SFMoMa Store, USA MuMEdI Store, Mexico df. Ayres, Japan Matilda, Chile Because you dress, Chile Candioti, martinez, Buenos Aires Argentina Amairo, olivos, Buenos Aires Argentina La merceria , Ca Ba Argentina Encantos, Misiones, Argentina Wanka Chaco, Argentina.

What I enjoy most about design is finding a new functionality to what already exists, thinking about the value chain and how processes and products can be optimized. Regarding the work in other companies, the analysis and establishment of parameters for the generation of new collections. brand identity and values.

I want to open my own store, a place where I can express the values of the brand in each of its details.

via email to mayte@maisondomecq.com through our instagram @maisondomecq