On making Innovative style, With Eone’s Nick Gu

Though our founder Hyungsoo Kim came up with the thought for our inclusive  timekeeper, The Bradley, it had been Nick Gu, our lead designer, WHO turned Hyun-soo's vision into reality.

Trained in design and smitten by style, Nick oversees each style and production for Eone. He’s based mostly in metropolis.

We chatted with Nick regarding his background, inspiration, and style method — and additionally got the news on our newest product, that remains within the style section. this can be the primary time we’ve talked regarding it publicly!

One Team: Hi Nick! Tell U.S.A. a touch bit regarding yourself.

I am from metropolis and studied design there for school. After that, I continuing design school at Harvard.

I have been into creating stunning things, crafting objects, and engineering mechanisms since a young age — that the execution of a object has been my interest for a short while. My education has equipped Pine Tree State with concrete ability sets of fabrication yet as abstract thinking, permitting Pine Tree State to actualize a physical type from a thought.

One Team: Did you ever imagine your design degree would lead you here?

Not really; I couldn't have imaginary wherever i'm currently. however I did notice design education will mean quite design. In terms of skills set, we have a tendency to ar well equipped — from structural technology to liberal arts, we've got adequate information. counting on your specific interest, AN design degree will lead you to several things.
One Team: Were you artistic as a child? however will that creative thinking play into your work?

I was into Legos, creating paper/cardboard models and toys for myself, and taking things apart and reassembling them in different ways in which. it had been fascinating however I cared-for build or produce things for myself — rather than acceptive things that already existed within the market.

What’s necessary is that the proven fact that i prefer to begin from zero. Thinking out of the box is nearly intuitive on behalf of me, that is vital for U.S.A. to try and do at Eone — all the approach from making the merchandise all the way down to promoting and different methods.

One Team: however and once did you meet our founder, Hyungsoo?

We met at a social mixer between style college students and graduate school students [when we have a tendency to were each learning in Boston]. it had been an excellent night. we have a tendency to talked simply a touch bit — perhaps around ten minutes — however we have a tendency to unbroken in-tuned, and later, Hyungsoo invited Pine Tree State to affix the Zone team.

One Team: What created you choose to affix Eone?

I was very inquisitive about the thought of making a product that may probably serve additional individuals. within the case of The Bradley, it’s been regarding however inclusive  style will serve each {people WHO|people that|folks that|those that|those who} ar vision impaired and other people who ar sharp-sighted. we've got a passion for making merchandise that mean quite what others will understand.

One Team: What’s your role within the company? Has it modified over time?

My role has been associated with style, and the way that style are often dead. Over time, I’ve gotten concerned in production management and following abreast of totally different progressive enhancements on the merchandise.

One Team: In terms of style, what conjures up you? ar there any specific corporations you admire?

Simple nevertheless elegant styles inspire Pine Tree State the foremost. to precise a posh functioning object in an exceedingly easy type is incredibly troublesome. Apple is certainly inspiring; there ar continuous reduction and abstraction in their style.

Ludwig Mies Van der Rohe (Mies), a American designer, conjures up Pine Tree State loads together with his buildings and article of furniture items. There was an even spirit in his work: detail and lowest expression. His works hit a non secular level that may be terribly powerful visually and spatially. even supposing his works ar from 70-80 years agone, they still match our time currently and may therefore be thought-about dateless.

One Team: however regarding cities, movies, books — any that inspire your design?

I once worked as AN intern in Tokio, and it’s an excellent city! Its urban infrastructure and design ar well-planned and designed — to not mention they need several involved merchandise and fine cuisines. It’s an amazing place to spice up your imagination.

“Invisible Cities” by author could be a classic book for abstraction imaginations. Italo Calvino approaches cities or places not in terms of what you see, however what you sense: sort of a smell, sense of bit (different materials), temperature, sound, and plenty of others. It permits for a additional various abstraction perception, that very interests Pine Tree State as a designer.

One Team: are you able to describe your style process?

At Eone, we have a tendency to prefer to brainstorm along throughout multiple rounds of style conferences, that ar followed by many alternative sketches. just about through the method of elimination, we have a tendency to verify our direction and hit a fascinating style. Then that's any developed with our contractors and suppliers, ensuring that what we have a tendency to style are often realised in terms of budget and schedule.

Most important in our style method is that the proven fact that we have a tendency to ar able to begin with the abstract. A product that serves the vision impaired must begin with one thing non-visual — whereas still ending up with a physical type. the method of abstract thinking to physical realization has been valuable within the style development at Eone.

One Team: You’re engaged on a replacement product! are you able to share any details with us?

Yes! we've got been operating for a short while on The Christine, that is AN inclusive  timepiece. (Eone Team: need to be the primary to receive updates on The Christine? sign on for our newsletter!)

An timepiece is nothing new, however to style AN timepiece that we are able to set the alarm time while not seeing it are often terribly peculiar. we have a tendency to undoubtedly cannot vie with, as an example, the alarm perform of smartphones. thus we wanted to style it in an exceedingly approach that's additional appealing and clean in terms of however time is represented; the aesthetic type is vital to the success of the merchandise.

It has been a protracted method, and that we have modified the look repeatedly. It’s been laborious for U.S.A. attributable to its distinctive perform and type. on the approach, we have a tendency to created several prototypes, performed immeasurable tests, and received some smart suggestions from a contract manufacturer.

Then once we had the correct mechanism and type, it clothed  that the assembly and tooling value would be too high. the value was quite on the far side our budget as a startup — thus we wanted to revamp once more.

Now we have a tendency to finally have an honest and cheap style however ar still engaged on some final details. Hopefully, we'll be able to launch among the year.

One Team: Exciting! are you able to describe the look of The Christine a touch more?

The pure mathematics of The Christine is currently spherical in shape; I needed it to require a awfully basic pure mathematics. Of course, there ar several different operations and issues thus we have a tendency to can’t build it an ideal sphere. The approach it represents time is comparable to The Bradley. the foremost difficult half to style was the alarm indicator and alarm markers since we have a tendency to needed the user to be able to set time while not seeing.

One Team: What will inclusive  style mean to you? Why ar you smitten by it?

Inclusive style are often terribly broad, however at Eone i believe of it as how to style practical merchandise that contemplate usability to the next level. we wish the merchandise to incorporate underrepresented teams in society.

It is valuable to vary the approach of style. we wish individuals to be proud to use our products; we wish our product to be empowering. within the case of The Bradley, each the vision impaired and sharp-sighted ar lined — and either cluster are often equally tuned in to the actual fact they're sharing and enjoying a universal style for the higher.

One Team: Is there the rest you’d prefer to add — perhaps one thing we must always understand Eone from a style standpoint?

I was educated as AN designer, and in design, we have a tendency to speak loads regarding house. a standard study work tends to precise house in terms of visual quality.

Interestingly, Eone’s merchandise originate from involving the sense of bit — and that i was terribly intrigued by the thought of experiencing house this fashion. Reading time by touching The Bradley (or even a future product just like the Christine) could be a terribly distinctive method of abstraction expertise. From touching, the reading is initiated by mind mapping and abstraction recognition, permitting one to inform time through this transformative method.

I hope that through the distinction between touching and seeing, {we can|we will|we ar able to} outline another level of expertise — and produce additional fascinating styles each for {people WHO|people that|folks that|those that|those who} ar sharp-sighted and other people who are vision impaired.