Oliver A-J - Founder and designer, Fosfeen.
We are all familiar with the concept of sustainability and the crucial role it plays in securing our planet's future for generations to come. Sustainability comes in various forms, such as recycling, minimising food waste, purchasing second-hand items, and reducing car usage, and as designers, we have a duty to consistently make thoughtful decisions that minimise any negative environmental impacts.
One of the overriding themes of sustainability is buying second hand and re using materials whenever possible and these are fantastic ways to contribute towards our collective "green" goals, but what if you want to achieve a particular look for your home and cant find what you need in salvage yards or antique shops?
This is where creativity and craftsmanship have the power to not only inspire and ignite conversation but also grant us a way to be sustainable without compromising on our design goals.
By investing in design with pieces that are expertly crafted and made from materials that are durable and recyclable, we can make the ultimate in sustainable choices, and these items, more importantly, can become heirlooms, able to be handed down through generations, creating a legacy of memories with every use.
In this article, we delve a little deeper into one such piece of heirloom furniture, The Sunday Daybed, to discover more about the designer, his creation and how he makes considerate design choices within his business.
The Sunday day bed - Fosfeen
The photoshoot takes place at The Box in Plymouth, a stunning grade II listed building that currently serves as a museum, gallery, and archive. Rich in history, it is a hub for creative expression and a place for the Plymouth community to come together and celebrate art and share ideas and experiences. Their mission "to reimagine the future through the past" couldn't be more fitting, creating the perfect synergetic relationship between our designer and the impressive heritage space.
The Sunday Daybed is a beautiful example of investment furniture that is inherently sustainable and uncompromising in its quality and design. Developed by Oliver A-J, the founder and owner of Fosfeen, the Sunday Daybed is a fusion of passion, engineering and style and a future antique that adorns exclusive homes across the globe.
To better understand the designer and his Sunday collection, Oliver kindly answered a few questions on inspiration, creativity, and sustainability.
When asked if there was a particular design era that inspires him, he answered
"My favourite Era of design would have to be that of mid-century modern, particularly around the 1950’s when Finn Juhl was pushing boundaries and disrupting functionalism, tradition and all things that were considered ‘rules’ of that time. Although I may not find direct, transferable inspiration in Finn Juhl’s work specifically, it is the adoration for his designs, the concept of disrupting and the idea that design bears no boundary that inspires me to pursue the creation of the most ridiculous, intangible, dysfunctional objects in the form of fully functioning furniture".
What has been your biggest career achievement to date?
"When I think of my biggest career achievement to date I head straight to Chef's Table I produced for the renowned 3 Michelin Star restaurant Core, by Clare Smyth - this is partially because my second love might well be for all things food and truly great hospitality. In a country that, at this time, has only 9 restaurants awarded 3 Michelin stars out of 32,659, and for fine food being considered an over-looked artform, an establishment like this may just be considered an eighth wonder of the world, and I get to be a part of this experience. If I were to be asked this same question on a different day, I might say that a client ordering a collection piece of my design from a foreign country, and for me to then ship that across the world to a stranger who believed in said design enough to order really does top it beyond topping - the two answers run concurrently".
What are your career goals for 2025?
"Career Goals for 2025 are aimed towards turning greater attention to releasing new collection pieces. With books full of designs, and the Sunday Collection beginning existence in one of these books, I owe it to myself, at least, to letting these ideas see the light of day.. sooner rather than later".
What was the inspiration behind your Sunday collection?
"My inspiration behind the Sunday Collection starts with a desire to achieve effortless flow through form, and is much likened to the previously mentioned want for creating something never before seen, something you can only imagine when you close your eyes, something that defies rules or uniformity. This is shortly followed by headaches surrounding all things engineering and the reality of what it takes to turn such a drawing into something real - the harder this part of the process is, the greater results often yielded".
What is your favourite aspect of the design process?
"Simply, it’s the moment I begin to make a breakthrough with something on paper, and realise that I love the design so much that the months of prototyping and engineering to come don’t matter. I’ve always lived by the attitude of ‘solutions over problems’, and this is a perfectly transferable scenario when you have a day of ‘how could it be possible to turn this into reality’".
Do you feel sustainability can be a barrier to creative expression?
"Yes. Some materials, particularly fabrics, glues and fine finishes can’t ever be truly sustainable. What matters is the choices you make where you can, and your attitude toward how open you are to exploration in this area, especially in a world that offers so many alternatives".
How does Fosfeen incorporate sustainability into its business processes?
"So, since I Founded Fosfeen, at the time under a different name, I adhered to a conscious decision to only working with FSC Certified wood suppliers - likeminded individuals that deal with responsibly managed forests to protect the environment and local communities. We also donate to planting trees for some of the orders we receive. Another way we incorporated sustainability was in the way that I would actively seek downed and storm-felled trees and would personally mill and process them myself. The only reason we had to change this was because the energy to process, store and dry could often outweigh those already managing to do this on such a scale that it becomes economically viable for all parties. We still to this day adhere to only using responsible suppliers and salvaging where possible. Our byproduct waste is recycled into energy - offcuts for heating the home and dust is compressed into briquettes to achieve the same outcome".
Are there any artists or creatives who inspire you or that you admire and why?
"Sophie Ashby and Amy Astley really do keep me interested when it comes to Interiors. The late Finn Juhl is always at the top of my list for furniture design, accompanied by George Nakashima. I’m Claude Monet’s biggest fan when talking about painting - something I’ve recently taken up. Linley’s level of perfection in the ultra luxury field really inspires me to continue the pursuit of attempting to create fine masterpieces for the home that can be admired as art, and enjoyed through function or comfort".
And finally, what is your top reason to invest in bespoke furniture?
"I like to refer to the collection (and in fact all of the furniture we produce) as heirloom furniture. It’s against fast, irresponsible furniture you’ll likely replace multiple times in your life. It’s more considered, it’s a commitment, and something you’ll admire for the rest of your time here. If you enjoy it in the way I intend for you to, you’ll pass this on and it will outlive both you and I, and it’ll hold memories than transcend time or generations you or your children will ever see".
The Sunday Daybed - Photographed in the beautifull Grade II listed building of The Box, Plymouth.
In a world where we are becoming increasingly reliant on technology and drifting further away from the skills and principles of our past, now more than ever, we need creativity and craftsmanship to reignite our lost connections and show us how effective design and considerate choices can be in tackling sustainability challenges. By investing in items that are expertly made with care and passion, we get the opportunity to experience these pieces of art and be custodians of future antiques and become a little piece of history ourselves in the process. By investing in bespoke furniture, we are not only making considerate consumer choices that will help the planet, but we are also ensuring the preservation of traditional crafts that have always been sustainable at their core, and I will forever, as a designer, be an advocate for unifying this history with design and home.
To view the beautiful Sunday collection and more, head over to the Fosfeen website here - Fosfeen
and to get to know more about the amazing collections currently on display at the box, head to the website here - The Box, Plymouth.
Kimber Gray
Interior designer
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