Incollect Magazine - Issue 12

20 www.incollect.com influences really sets him apart from many designers we have encountered. Coupling those influences with the use of Aboriginal craftspeople aiding in the creation of the work makes for a powerful combination. We feel strongly that anyone who encounters Trent’s work will be as drawn to the pieces as we are. It is an honor to be representing him and those who work with him.” “I really liked Lewis and Sherri — they are just wonderful people,” the designer says about the encounter in Miami. “For me, the relationship is paramount and they just ‘got’ the work right away — most people who encounter my objects want to know what the work is made of and the price. Lewis and Sherri were keen to hear what the work is about, what drives me. They took time to ask about my background and interests and what inspires me. We got along well.” Jansen describes himself as a design anthropologist. It is an apt description for this thoughtful, idiosyncratic designer of limited edition and one-of-a-kind conceptual furniture. His work takes inspiration from topical social and cultural issues in his native Australia, where he maintains a home and studio on the New South Wales southern coast, a few hours outside of Sydney. “I was trained as a conceptual designer at a design school teaching the Dutch Conceptual Movement of the 1990s, so my sensibility combines European conceptual design with an ecological focus,” he says. Every object Jansen makes tells a story. His narratives range from environmental change and the possibilities of material recycling to the displacement and marginalization of Australia’s Aboriginal population. His first design object, made in 2004, was the “Sign Stool,” a stool made from reclaimed Australian road signs in homage to well-known Australian artist Rosalie Gascoigne, who is known for her use of found objects in her work. He credits his interest in ecology, recycling, and storytelling to his schooling — he completed a PhD in Design — and also to his time working in Amsterdam with internationally acclaimed Dutch designer Marcel Wanders, who instilled in him the importance of an intellectual foundation for objects. “Trent Jansen has a great deal of respect for cultural heritage and is extraordinarily thorough in incorporating cultural identity and history into his works,” Wanders remarked about the designer. Working together with Wanders in his studio also taught him the power and importance of collaboration in the contemporary design process. Today Jansen works extensively