I had the pleasure of meeting Daniel guest for a coffee to discuss his designs and his influences. He is certainly well trained having completed a Diploma of Arts – Fine Furniture Design and Construction in Western Australia at the school of wood and then was accepted for an associate training position at the Jam factory. You can find him working away in studio 6. His works carry influences from Scandinavian to Japanese woodcrafters. When you look at his furniture as a whole you can see the dialogue between form and function as all true designers have with a key focus on functionality.
LIST Wine Table
The LIST Wine Table: The clean lines and angles of Daniel Guest’s jarrah credenza balance the design and promote feelings of support and elegance. This article has been stripped back to bare essentials. Designed for placement in a dining area, the subtle design accentuates the wine and food placed upon it. It is an angled wooden platform that is solidly suspended upon two upright triangular supports. The wine is cradled in the angle so as to show the label at the same time as supporting the bottle. The flat section supports food, open bottles and glasses. The clean edge of the supporting base structure and the use of triangular shapes seems to suspend the top of the serving bench, as an outstretched hand would cradle an important bottle of wine.
Credenza- means faith or belief. It is a table, where one might place food and wine and let guests sample it. The word is derived from the 16th century when the act of credenza was when a servant would taste an important person’s food before serving for poison. The name was then applied to the room where this took place and then to the serving furniture. The name aptly describes the serving of wine at a function where the belief is that the wine will be of good quality and pleasing to the palate.
Each piece is custom made to suit the specific décor of the clients home or business.
Flat Pack Wine Rack
Flat pack wine rack, wine server is a centrepiece designed for placement as a in the middle of a table. It is designed to fold out with grooved slots in the middle that let it maintain its shape. It too is designed to accentuate the wine. Gently cradling each bottle so that the dinner guests can select their preference. I love the balance of form and function in the design.
AR BALLAST Hall Table
Design often carries with it a mired of influences such as with the AR BALLAST Hall Table. It is lightweight is based on the hull of a boat. The form itself due to the dark wooden support seems to float above the ground. Again as with many of Guest’s designs it is non intrusive it sits elegantly in the background, a strong form. One of the most beautiful aspects of this design is the simplicity of it all. Many hall tables appear clumsy in comparison
Of particular note is the way the design tapers in as elements of the ships hull influence come into play. The design is light enough to pick up with one hand and durable and stable enough to support the most delicate vase.
This particular piece won the Clarence prize for emerging furniture design.
NEHI Table
The Nehi table is one of Daniel Guests most notable designs. Developed during his 1st year associate program. The table is constructed from six pieces cut from a single board. The table section seems to balance upon the twirling legs. The centre of the table contains a hole, which reveals a spiral twist when viewed from above. This elegant and simplistic design is derived from shaker style furniture. Shaker furniture is notable for obeying three principles; simplicity, utility and honesty.
In fact all of Daniel Guests furniture designs obey these three principles. They are not trying to be anything grandiose or hide their purpose with showy elements they are merely good design.
