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Today's featured designer is Aliki Rovithi. Aliki Rovithi is the creator of iconic designs such as Get the hang of it and The FA.B.. |
| We had the rare opportunity to interview the exalted designer Aliki Rovithi who was recently announced as the Designer of the Day by the A' Design Award and Competition. Aliki Rovithi is the creator of iconic designs such as Get the hang of it and The FA.B.. We got exclusive answers to our questions about Aliki Rovithi designs and design philosophy. |
| Aliki Rovithi, how did you become a designer? Aliki Rovithi : We decided to deal with industrial design as we both realised - each at a different stage in his life - that we feel strongly about the need to communicate our ideas.Through industrial design, we have been given the opportunity to realise these ideas by understanding people and their needs, cultivating our creative thinking and using humour and conceptual approach as powerful designing tools.... |
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| Aliki Rovithi, what are your priorities, technique and style when designing? Aliki Rovithi : With every new concept or idea, as a raw material, as it kneads and evolves, we try to design - in addition to the form or function of an object - an inherent emotional bond between the user and the object, which will last in time. We prefer computer aided design and renderings, but as pleasing and rewarding the above process is, the moment of realisation of the prototypes is equally challenging. The moment you are enthusiastically watching everything you have thought, designed and imagined to become reality, while at the same time problems arise which need to be managed quickly and aptly.... |
| Aliki Rovithi, which emotions do you feel when designing? Aliki Rovithi : We both regard design as a user- centred and experience-oriented process. Dealing with a design project is a complex, cross-disciplinary process, and although our different interpretation of things might initially lead to disagreements, these exact disagreements boost our creativity and motivation! As the design process matures, fluid communication, mutual understanding and constant knowledge exchange deepen and enrich our collective effort. After all, we are delighted that the nature of our profession contributes greatly to the level of moral satisfaction and self-fulfilment and therefore contributes positively to the quality of our lives.... |
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| Aliki Rovithi, what particular aspects of your background shaped you as a designer? Aliki Rovithi : Although we did not know the existence of this profession as children, now that we "grew up," many of the elements necessary in our profession, such as imagination, the unorthodox perception of things, playful mood and humour, nourish and activate the child inside us. Furthermore, our childhood's interest in science and drawing was in accord with our love for construction and experimentation, still to this day.... |
| Aliki Rovithi, what is your growth path? what are your future plans? what is your dream design project? Aliki Rovithi : Our dream design project, which we have already conceived, but do not possess the resources to implement, is the humanitarian aid package with integrated vegetable seeds, "The HAP Project". It is a box made of recycled / recyclable cardboard, with embedded vegetable seeds. After being torn to pieces - each side contains a different type of vegetable - the packaging shall be buried, to create a garden that will supply each family in the refugee settlement with fresh produce. This will improve their poor nutrition and will help restore mental serenity through their work with land. HAP minimises refuse volume and helps save a large quantity of fresh alimentary aid foodstuffs. We do really hope that a large packaging company operating within the framework of Corporate Social Responsibility will be interested in implementing - on a large scale - the production and distribution of these packages that can drastically contribute to improving the physical and mental health of our fellow citizens around the world that have been hit by natural disasters, war, violence or persecution.... |
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| Aliki Rovithi, what are your advises to designers who are at the beginning of their career? Aliki Rovithi : We believe that the creative process is a prominent and complex activity of human existence. Every young person who wants to be involved in this process through industrial design should have his eyes open, be inventive, love and understand people and their needs and systematically cultivate his natural curiosity by looking at things in depth.... |
| Aliki Rovithi, you are truly successful as a designer, what do you suggest to fellow designers, artists and architects? Aliki Rovithi : We strongly believe that there shouldn’t be a segregation between “design” and “environmentally conscious design”. Each design practice and manufacturing process should respond to the social, environmental, and economic challenges that our planet is facing. Consuming as little natural resources and raw materials as possible, according to the "dematerialisation" approach that our times require, has been an ongoing concern of ours since the beginning of our involvement in design. All of our products are made of long- lasting, recyclable or low- impact materials and we prefer types of wood that can be harvested from sustainable managed forests. Furthermore, every piece of our large size furniture is designed to be collapsible, enabling flat packaging and thus the reduction of its carbon footprint.... |
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| Aliki Rovithi, what is your day to day look like? Aliki Rovithi : Our daily routine is that there is no daily routine! Each project requires a different approach, involves varying and dissimilar stages of design and implementation that hold for us many surprises, sometimes pleasant and other times unpleasant!... |
| Aliki Rovithi, how do you keep up with latest design trends? to what extent do design trends matter? Aliki Rovithi : Nowadays, current consumer behaviour has moved away from real human needs and focuses on the individual and the prestige he enjoys from the use of specific products. The aesthetics of everyday objects acquire special dimensions as it satisfies the psychological and emotional needs of the consumer and thus promotes the quality of his life. In this context, we stick with our own personal design style, but always keeping in mind the latest design trends.... |
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| Aliki Rovithi, how do you know if a product or project is well designed? how do you define good design? Aliki Rovithi : Really good design aside from its conceptual background, provides a context for interaction and features functional qualities as well, to facilitate our daily lives in ingenious ways. It is also a drastic way to approach people and inspire them to think under a different light. ... |
| Aliki Rovithi, how do you decide if your design is ready? Aliki Rovithi : Although we carry an artistic background as well, as industrial designers we have to operate within the strictly commercial and profit- driven requirements of mass production. These exact requirements, may force us sometimes to deliver products differentiated from the ones originally designed. Thus, we use to keep an open tab in our minds, because we love to explore different materials, either traditional or technologically advanced, implement new and unique manufacturing techniques and express our thoughts in alternative ways across a wide range of creative media.... |
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| Aliki Rovithi, what is your biggest design work? Aliki Rovithi : We love to attract positive consumer behaviour by designing and developing large-scale interactive installations for major brands and organisations. The fact that makes it so special is that along this process, we manage to offer integrated, innovative and unique design services, providing effective solutions coupled with professionalism and timely execution. Overcoming any obstacle and making a brand memorable to an extensive audience is our biggest challenge.... |
| Aliki Rovithi, who is your favourite designer? Aliki Rovithi : Dutch design is our favourite. It has evolved very quickly into a pioneering force in European design, and while it is simple and functional, it never lacks experimentation and humour. We also believe that Afroditi Krassa, a Greek-born, London-based designer created some of the most significant and category-defining hospitality design projects of the past decade, infusing every space with timeless value.... |
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| Aliki Rovithi, would you tell us more about your work culture and business philosophy? Aliki Rovithi : Although my design partner Foant Asour and I share a similar approach to creative problem solving, he is the analyst and I am the synthesist. Foant dwells into any occurring problem, and faces every detail separately by implementing alternative solutions, away from boring and worn out design sachems. I, on the other hand, take a step back, attempting to obtain an overall view of the bigger picture and its context in order to perceive it from novel perspectives. After all, when two minds are engaged in the same task, they accomplish a common goal at a significantly faster pace.... |
| I was born in Athens, Greece. I received a university degree in mathematics from the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece and a BA (Hons) in industrial and product design from the Middlesex University(Athens branch). Foant Asour was born in Athens, Greece. He attended the Arabic high school in Athens and received a higher diploma in industrial and product design from the Middlesex University(Athens branch).... |
Aliki Rovithi, what is "design" for you? Aliki Rovithi : We believe that "design" derives from the fundamental understanding of why something exists....Aliki Rovithi, what kind of emotions do you feel when your designs are realised? Aliki Rovithi : Although as designers, we have an artistic background as well , we work in a commercial environment that bears a great deal of considerations on the design process. When our designs are realised, these considerations meet
our expectations and for that we feel excited and satisfied.... |
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| Aliki Rovithi, what skills are most important for a designer? Aliki Rovithi : A designer should keep his eyes wide open, love and listen to people and cultivate his creative thought on a daily basis by examining things in-depth.... |
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| Aliki Rovithi, thank you for giving us the opportunity to interview you... To learn more about Aliki Rovithi and check more designs by Aliki Rovithi as well as to see more Aliki Rovithi designs such as Get the hang of it and The FA.B. visit designeroftheday.com/?107077 |
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| We hope you enjoyed our interview of Aliki Rovithi. This interview was made possible by the contributions of A' Design Award and Competition - The World's largest and most influential design accolade. A' Design Award is an annual, international design award open to both concept stage and realised works by designers, artists, architects and brands worldwide. A' Design Award and Competition aims to create a public awareness and understanding of good design by promoting the best designers such as Aliki Rovithi and their design works worldwide. Visit designaward.com to learn more. |
 REFERENCES/BIBLIOGRAPHY:
https://competition.adesignaward.com/designer.php?profile=107077 https://competition.adesignaward.com/design.php?ID=22991
https://competition.adesignaward.com/design.php?ID=25345
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This article was added on Tuesday, 20th of March, 2018 at 04.07 am by author 
