Bower

New York, bowernyc.com
Product designers Danny Giannella and Tammer Hijazi co-founded Bower in 2013, but launched a much-talked-about furniture collection this spring.

What is American design to you, and what excites you about it?
American design to us is a realm in which designers feel free to experiment and come up with fresh new ideas that may or may not translate into marketable designs. Either way, we see value in that free process and it strengthens the unique language we’re developing. American design values the visual, artistic side of works as much, if not more than, the functionality. It’s traditional materials or processes, but viewed through a contemporary lens, creating seamless hybrids of old and new.

American design is simple. We’re into simple form, color, composition and function. Designers and consumers alike are drawn to simplicity and honesty in design. We’ve also noticed regional trends in design within the U.S., which is exciting to see. We like to think that we’re not so globalized and over-saturated with influences from the internet that we lose the character shaped by our tribes and neighborhoods.

What are your plans and highlights for the upcoming year?
We’re very excited about moving to a bigger shop and studio space this month. It will allow us the space to keep producing our designs as well as experiment and come up with new ones. We’re seeing it as a bigger play space. We’re going to take part in an exhibition during Art Basel in Miami, where we’ll exhibit our Shape Mirrors and some new variations of our Contour Tables which are in the works. We also want to add a psychedelic flavor to our collection for Miami.

What inspires your work in general?
We’re inspired by the unknown. We’re inspired by ingenuity, inventiveness, and happy accidents. That’s what informs our approach to design. We’d be bored to death if we stopped exploring new uncharted territories and only focused on safe designs that we’d fully figured out. It’s not the wisest business model, but we’re not the wisest business men — we’re wise designers and artists that don’t let business fully drive what we do. It keeps us motivated and interested. Thankfully, this adventurous spirit has lead to some marketable products that are good for business, which motivates us to continue on an unknown path led by our passion and cojones.
ADHL_Bower4