Dezeen Magazine

"In the future, design thinking is going to be called emotionalism" – Roger Arquer

Designer Roger Arquer explains why emotion is the guiding force behind his practice, which includes lampshades that work with condensation and experimental fish tanks, in this next movie filmed at our Designed in Hackney Day.

Roger Arquer

Above: Birdland birdhouses

In the movie, Roger Arquer introduces his studio, which he set up after completing his Design Products MA at the Royal College of Art.

Roger Arquer

Above: Non-lethal Mousetraps

The three pillars of his practice are function, beauty and emotion, he explains. "Emotion is probably the most important; something that moves you inside and tickles your soul. I would like to think that in the future, design thinking is going to be called emotionalism."

Roger Arquer

Above: Fishtanks

He introduces his trilogy of work about animals, which included a collection of bird houses based around one simple shape and a series of non-lethal mousetraps, which catch the animal inside everyday objects like pint glasses.

Roger Arquer

Above: the painting that Arquer says "triggered" his work on variations

Arquer also made a collection of fish tanks that ask questions about the relationships between animals. "This one talks about two different fish living in the same space but still separately," he explains with reference to one of the tanks (pictured in this post). "The small one can go into the big place, but the big fish can’t go into the small place."

Roger Arquer

Above: Dramprom condensation lampshade

He also mentions a painting done by a friend of his depicting variations on a circle, which he describes as a "trigger" for his own projects.

Roger Arquer

Above: Sputnik stool

One example of emotion in Arquer's work is the Dramprom glass lamp, where a light bulb rests in an indentation in a glass jar, inside which is a small amount of water. "The heat of the light bulb creates condensation inside, so it makes its own lampshade, and it makes this emotional factor that I always look for in every project," the designer explains.

Roger Arquer

Above: Funnel Friends kitchen equipment

He then introduces a stool that uses just one metal rod to clamp its legs together and a family of funnels for use in the kitchen, which won him a Red Dot Award.

Roger Arquer

Above: Funnel Friends kitchen equipment

Next is a ceramic lamp that doubles as a flower vase and switches on and off when the flowers are touched.

Roger Arquer

Above: Touch ceramic lamp and vase

Finally he introduces a stool and chair made for his daughter's first birthday, which he describes as "half readymade". "I used cooking spoons for the spindles and rolling pins for the legs, and a pastry brush for the little stool. I wanted to bring this emotional bit into the furniture," he says.

Roger Arquer

Above: prototypes of the Touch vase

Last year Roger Arquer contributed a wooden bench to the Dezeen-curated Stepney Green Design Collection – see all our stories about Roger Arquer.

Roger Arquer

Above: the stool and chair Arquer made for his daughter

Dezeen launched its Designed in Hackney initiative to highlight the best architecture and design made in the borough, which was one of the five host boroughs for the London 2012 Olympic Games as well as being home to Dezeen’s offices.

Watch more movies from our Designed in Hackney Day or see more stories about design and architecture from Hackney.