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Authentic design stretches beyond the products and details within a space, it starts with the very concept of a given interior, asserts Primo Orpilla, cofounder and principal of Studio O+A. “We try to have an open mind when we start out with any project—we don’t want to fall on past projects or concepts in developing a story,” he shares. Rather, the team at Studio O+A aims to rewrite the script, developing fresh ideas for each space they take on. “I think being original is exactly that—it’s original. It’s the job of the designer to tell the story in a meaningful way.”
And that story usually originates in unexpected ways, from a striking leaf to a memorable film. “People have to get used to not jumping into a [web] search of things and instead use their own algorithm, own brains, and take their own pictures,” asserts Orpilla, recommending that designers look for processes that enable them to work in a “manual, more analogue way.” One approach involves looking to other industries, examining, for example, the process of a symphony conductor or a cinematographer. “They’re always fighting for something new—something they want to test. I feel design is like that,” he continues. “Those experiences that are rich, you remember; those that are not, you don’t.”
