I was trying to describe faces of leather and paper, the smell, the touch, the texture and the crafts that uses those two material and introducing it to a very simple design object. Creating mini dialogue between craftsmanship and mass production.
——Jovana Zhang
the Chief Designer of SILKESTRÄD
Q (PINWU)
In IKEA's fragrance products, Chinese elements are rarely seen. In this collaboration, how did you balance the design style of traditional Chinese craftsmanship, the concept of "PINWU" (product logistics form), and IKEA's brand tone?
A(JOVANA)
As designer and traditional craft researcher I come close to many materials. Its normal to observe their texture, patterns, colours..etc but somehow inevitable to notice their smell as well. There are so many interesting smells that stayed in my memory as a part of the discovery of one craft. Ikea came with the quest of fragrance candles and projects was very interesting for me. I never designed fragrance before. Being unseparated with Chinese traditional crafts, this collaboration naturally joined fragrance design to Chinese crafts. I brought two fragrances, both very crafty inspired. Leather and paper.
Q (PINWU)
Why were "shadow puppetry" and "paper cutting" chosen as the final sources of inspiration for this design? We can see that these two traditional crafts have been beautifully integrated in the final product.
A(JOVANA)
Hunt for the fragrances started from materials search and them selfs were main inspiration. Leather and Paper scented candles are soul of the idea, not only the smell. When i thought of candles my mind immediately had a story of shadow puppet play. In ancient time shadow puppet used one candle light as a light source for the shadow puppet play. Then the smell of the leather was naturally there. Another scent is paper. As a paper smell it is fresh and grassy, moist, lighter... And probably because paper cut is one of my favourite crafts i wanted to connect them. Both shadow puppets and paper cut crafts play very well with the shadows which helped the design along the way.
Q (PINWU)
As fragrance is the main design element in this project, how did you choose and finalize the two fragrances, and what kind of experience do you hope to offer to the users?
A(JOVANA)
Hunt for the fragrances started from materials search and them selfs were main inspiration. Leather and Paper scented candles are soul of the idea, not only the smell. When i thought of candles my mind immediately had a story of shadow puppet play. In ancient time shadow puppet used one candle light as a light source for the shadow puppet play. Then the smell of the leather was naturally there. Another scent is paper. As a paper smell it is fresh and grassy, moist, lighter... And probably because paper cut is one of my favourite crafts i wanted to connect them. Both shadow puppets and paper cut crafts play very well with the shadows which helped the design along the way.
Q (PINWU)
Why were leather and paper chosen as the textures for the ceramic containers of the scented candles?
A(JOVANA)
Both leather and paper have recognisable textures, we were searching for the right glaze that can imitate both. We liked the idea of having containers for the candles that were pure and enhancing the narration of two materials, leather and paper, nothing more.
Q (PINWU)
What were the considerations behind choosing ceramic and metal as the materials for the final product?
A(JOVANA)
This was more of the practical questions. Mass production, safety standards, material possibility and economy behind it. Metal as a pepper cut and porcelain as a container were the most logic answers and we didn’t want to debate around it too much. At the end of the day, what makes me satisfied as a designer is logic and economical decision that exploited all the creative possibilities and picked the most logic one.
Q (PINWU)
Previously, PINWU's design collaborations were more concept-oriented. This time, with the opportunity to collaborate with IKEA on mass-produced products, how does this experience differ from past collaborations?
A(JOVANA)
Truth is I rarely have opportunity to work on mass production projects. Ikea is known for its good but affordable design. in fact it was my student dream came true. At the end i was surprised how smooth it actually went.
Q (PINWU)
How did you collaborate remotely with the IKEA team from Sweden during the project?
A(JOVANA)
We started a project while covid-19 was in full bloom. There was no chance to meet with IKEA and as most of the people during that time it was all done remotely on zoom calls. Fragrances we re made in France and they were sending scented samples to us for check. Mood boards were essential when designing the fragrance, I as a non professional perfumist had little to not much knowledge about sources of smells. I had to use images, words and descriptions to describe this two fragranced candles.
Q (PINWU)
What challenges did you encounter throughout the collaboration process?
A(JOVANA)
Real challenge was to give something new to Ikea which already have made such a massive number of similar products. To propose something that it could be sellable and attractive to many people and in the same time staying between my own design grids. it was a good challenge try to merge part of traditional design with production method that requires simple and affordable processes.
work name｜SILKESTRÄD
Project Category｜Product Design
Materials and Craf｜ Ceramic, Metal
Lead Designer｜Jovana Zhang
Design Team｜Zhang Xiaojie, Zeng Qing
Time｜2022
Brand｜ IKEA
Store Availability｜Available both online and offline globally
Image Source｜PINWU, IKEA
Copyright Statement｜This article is published by PINWU. Reproduction or publication of edited versions is strictly prohibited without authorization. For reprints, please contact us for permission.
