August 13, 2014
DESIGNER CHRISTOPHER BOOTS
If there’s one person who is at the forefront of lighting design in Australia, it’s hard to go past Christopher Boots. The Melbourne-based designer made a stunning entrance onto the scene with his eponymous collection in early 2011. While his designs are eye-catching, there’s a lot of technical skill that goes into them too. Many components are the work of local specialists who make the copper, bronze and glass elements. Once these are sent to Christopher’s Fitzroy studio, his team assemble the parts by hand. This process allows the product to be customised - mainly for architects and interior designers. It also ensures high quality standards are maintained. While this system is intensive, it hasn't slowed the orders. In fact, Christopher is currently working on a commission for a major NYC client. This recognition State-side dovetails nicely with his plans to expand into the USA. Plus, there are also some new designs on the way. Bright and bold.
Which five words best describe you? Optimistic, dreamy, happy, curious, studious.
How did you get your career start and what path have you taken since? Ha! That's a really long story. Let's see if we can make it concise. Graduated from industrial design, worked with a lighting designer, Geoffrey Mance, for a couple of years, then with no succession plan after he passed away, I carried on that business, sold up my share four years later to create and launch my own collection in late 2011. And here we are today.
What’s the best lesson you’ve learnt along the way? Everything that happens is the universe sending you feedback, so listen to it, take it on and respond with grace and awesomeness.
What’s your proudest career achievement? The happiness of every client with the work they receive from my studio is always something to be proud of. Macro view, I'd have to say the current commission I have for a major NYC client. I can't talk about this until November when we launch, so stay tuned.
What’s been your best decision? Trusting myself.
Who inspires you? Olafur Eliasson, David Lynch, Bjork, James Turrell. The list is long but essentially these people see the world in new ways and open up new fields of experience. These pioneers lead the way that we see and experience space and time: true artists that create new worlds.
What are you passionate about? People and business, watching the two grow and evolve with each other. Jim Morrison said it 40 years ago: “People are strange.”
Which person, living or dead, would you most like to meet? I think I've met everyone I already wanted to meet. Oh hang on, Olafur would be great. Grace Jones would be fun. Dead person? Eew. Stanley Kubrick.
What dream do you still want to fulfil? Open a studio in North America, travel to Antarctica and one day, space.
What are you reading? Great people decisions based on the work of Egon Zhender, the Hermes winter catalogue, Fantastic Man and Monocle are all on my desk in various states of reading. I juggle things and not always read in linear formats, perhaps an issue with having grown up with the internet a little too closely.
images courtesy of christopher boots