Poland

Tomek Rygalik
Age: 31

My Job Title
Product and Furniture Designer, Design Entrepreneur
Part-time Research Associate at the Royal College of Art
www.tomekrygalik.com

Design Field
Product design, Furniture design

My Education
Architecture, Technical University of Lodz, Lodz, Poland (1997)
BA/Hons Industrial Design, Pratt Institute, Brooklyn, NY, USA (1999)
MA, Design Products, Royal College of Art, London (2005)

My Work
"I grew up during the economic transition in Poland. As a child I observed my father making everyday objects that were unavailable through the market… when it was time to cut the grass in the backyard, my father would make a grass mower! This was how I came across design for the first time, and it was my father's example that sparked my enthusiasm and curiosity to create things.

In my studio, we strive to achieve experimental, intellectually stimulating, and long-lasting functional results through minimal means, often by challenging the material properties and experimenting with new processes. The focus is on furniture and products. The studio works on a variety of projects for clients in Poland (such as Iker, Moho, Manufaktura) and abroad (Moroso in Italy, Artek in Finland, TomDixon in the UK). We also construct prototypes and produce limited editions. The aim is to build relationships only with a select group of top companies in the sector, while preserving our integrity, sticking to our values and vision, and keeping the high quality of the work.

My role as lead designer of the studio combines creative direction, business development, relationship building, with day-to-day design work. At the same time, I manage my team of very talented designers, which varies in size (2-5) depending on the needs of the projects. Additionally, we maintain a summer internship program offering two Design graduates (one from Poland and one from abroad) a placement for the summer."

Issues in the design sector in my country
"For many decades in Poland, talent and invention compensated for the great shortage of opportunities. This uneven course of development reveals not only a great deal of romanticism, but speaks of self-confidence and an ability to overcome obstacles. Within a very traditional art education scheme, and in reaction to the lack of opportunities within the centrally-controlled and struggling industry, the work of the designer has shifted from being a fine art activity into the development of one-off handcrafted and highly personal decorative works.

Today, while some industries in Poland are booming (primarily because they supply foreign markets, e.g. furniture industry), the local design market and design awareness is rapidly growing due to its international exposure. As a result, there are some interesting companies in Poland that are experimenting with new things. This handful of active, commercially orientated designers are starting to create a very small but capable and growing professional design scene. Unfortunately, due to Poland's aspirations, Polish contemporary design often lacks a defined identity that could act as a unique, critical voice in the international scene.

My design studio is on the fringe of the distinctly commercial activities described and the engagement in cultural practices from where a more experimental identity can be built. The aim is to develop, both through commercial and non-commercial work, a clear voice reacting to the contemporary material culture."

Innovative design trends from Poland
During my IYDEY visit to the UK, I hope to showcase the outcome of this workshop, that will brings students and educators in design from the whole country together. I also wish to display some examples of Polish everyday-objects that embody our resourcefulness with a contemporary twist (such as Min_2 by Medusa Group - a table design that is composed of a table-top and the legs of the users), together with my own new resourceful work in the area.

With the current influx of Polish people in the UK, I feel there is an emerging need to bring awareness of the Polish unique material culture amongst the UK design scene and beyond, in order to facilitate an intellectually stimulating dialogue and collaboration."

You can find out more about the national competition in Poland on the British Council website in Poland.

The information above is taken from the application form completed by the finalist in early 2007. Things may have changed since this information was provided and we recommend that you should not rely upon this information as a definitive statement of current fact. Click here to contact the finalist.