Here, we ask designers to take a selfie and give us an inside look at their life.
Bio: Leonard Bessemer, 42, founder and principal of Objects for Objects and oforo (@objectsforobjects @oforo.co)
Hometown: Merced, CA
Studio Location: Los Angeles, CA
Describe what you make: I make furniture that’s tongue-in-cheek, irreverent, and has its own personality. Furniture you may not want to introduce to your parents.
The most important thing you’ve designed to date: The Wave Bench is the most important thing to my success so far. It made Objects for Objects a known quantity and several great opportunities came from it, like my collaboration with Clever and Urban Outfitters, and inclusion on Sight Unseen’s American Design Hot List.
Describe the problem your work solves: Sad furniture.
Share the project you are working on now: I’m getting my craftsman house in Pasadena ready for its debut. I’m pretty much doing everything myself and in a way that your average construction worker wouldn’t do. I’ve got a polished stainless steel bathtub coming from India right now for it.
A new or forthcoming project we should know about: I just launched my new brand oforo. It’s a similar aesthetic as Objects for Objects, but more accessible price wise.
What you absolutely have to have in your studio: A mess, an impact driver, material scraps, human scale freedom office chair, and a full woodshop.
What you do when you’re not working: If you love what you do, you’ll never work a day in your life….which is complete BS. No matter what you do, about 70 percent of it is going to suck. When I’m not working, I’m hanging out with my 2 1/2 year old son Salvo, while he bombs hills and shred skateparks on his MicroScooter. I like making, fixing things, and learning how to do those things. When I want to turn my brain off at the end of the day. I just look at Facebook marketplace and watch TV.
Sources of creative envy (dead or alive): Faye Toogood
The distraction you want to eliminate: Marketing and political text messages or Facebook Marketplace
Concrete or marble? Marble
High-Rise Or Townhouse? Townhouse
Remember Or Forget? Forget
Aliens Or Ghosts? Ghosts
Dark Or Light? Light
