Ocrum Studios’ Sean Zhang On Designing With Empathy And Intuition

Sean Zhang, founder of Ocrum Studios, is an up and coming talent in New York’s design scene. With his minimalistic furniture, serene lighting design and round mirrors, his works have been all the rage at design fairs like Salone del Mobile Milano and Art Basel in Miami Beach.

The Brooklyn-based designer, who hails from Beijing, makes the kind of design objects that are both sleek and classic. Influenced by everything from Germany’s Bauhaus to Italy’s Memphis Group, his work is noted for its simple, delicate aesthetic, which is both modern and classic.

It has a signature, too, one noted for its narrative play that uses visual cues in a different context—a mirror looks like a view onto a sunset, or seascape, while blown glass light fixtures call to mind bath bubbles. Each object Zhang seems to design is somewhat of a whisper—it isn’t overtly overbearing, demanding, or out to steal all the attention in a room. Rather, it seems to fit quite seamlessly in almost any environment like a musical instrument seamlessly playing in an orchestra.

Zhang speaks from his studio about designing under lockdown, the influence of Chinese Taoist culture and why minimalism prevails, in the end.

Where do you begin when designing furniture, lighting and mirrors?

Sean Zhang: Much of my inspiration is derived from a strong sense and appreciation for nostalgia and fragments of memories and moments in my life. My creative process generally begins focusing on one or two of these sensorial memories that I want to share and express and start designing from there. I sometimes imagine that I am in an empty space and begin to ask myself what items could fill this space, and what story I could share through the objects in that space.

What kind of things are you drawn to?

I have a strong affinity to materials with luxurious and elegant textures, such as marble and a deep curiosity with glass. Once I focus on a memory and an idea, I begin exploring the material possibilities to bring that idea to life. In the end, the two recurring themes linking all collections in my breadth of work are empathy and emotion. Whenever I start a new piece or collection, these two characteristics will always be the driving force behind my decision making and inspiration.

How will home design change, considering the quarantine?

The more time we spend at home during the global lockdown, the more we all start to realize how important it is to have a comfortable home and workplace. People pay closer attention to the functionality and materiality of the furniture or design items they choose for their homes. I believe that all objects in one’s home should have and reflect their owner’s personality in some way, to bring value to their personal space.

What do you mean?

I’m curious about the topic of how people interact with the objects, furniture, and art pieces in their spaces. It is fascinating, especially during these long periods, now spent indoors during quarantine. I believe that interior design will move even further towards an emphasis on comfort as well as create more space for inspiring and unique pieces that blend function and artistic value, “functional art.”

How does intuition play a role in your design work?

Intuition is one of the essential factors in my design practice, and as a designer, I believe this sensitivity is integral to my work and any designer’s creative process. I feel as though intuition is a crucial player at the beginning of my design process when I am going through ideas and concepts—I can have an immediate feeling if an idea could become an interesting piece or not. With that being said, I believe that as a designer, intuitive and analytical thinking go hand in hand, and later in the creative process, when more rooted in the details of the design, analytical thinking becomes more critical.

Orizon Mirror is an exciting piece you co-created with Luca Zeffiro, how does it combine Chinese and Italian sensibilities?

The piece balances concepts from Chinese culture with expertise Italian craftsmanship. The Orizon mirror embodies both dynamic and static realms from Chinese Taoist culture, which is called “Dong Jing Jie He,” in Chinese. The piece expresses the fluctuation of the water surface (Dong-movement) and the sunlight exposure (Jing- stillness) within a functional object. This concept is brought to life through Italian craftsmanship. I lived in Italy for about five years and was enamored with the artisan history and local craftsmanship. Later, while studying at RISD, I had the chance to experiment with ceramic. Now one of my favorite materials, ceramic, is fragile yet can be crafted and transformed in many different shapes, textures, and processed through various finishes and glazes.

What is the importance of color in today’s lighting? It provides such mood and atmosphere.

Color is the soul of lighting design. I think the lamp has both values in its artistic appreciation and the actual lighting function. Evening light, night light, winter light, summer light, office light, general indoor lighting—every color represents a mood, and they are all different. Now with people having more time at home, soft and soothing warm light can help you relax.

What projects do you have upcoming, how do you plan on expanding your studio?

I will be launching a new collection this autumn, and I’m planning to grow the studio steadily. As an entrepreneur and a designer, I’m interested in combining my passion for design with creating an international design firm here in New York, an inspiring, energetic place that is full of diversity. I am searching for like-minded creatives with a similar perspective to join the team and bring the studio to a more international audience in the future. Believing that ‘empathy’ is a collective experience that transcends all cultures and languages, I’d love to build a team around that and equally be able to share our work derived from that experience, globally.