Benjamin Gallagher
Where and what did you study and what year did you graduate?
Bachelor of Industrial Design, 2003, University of Newcastle.
Where did you head after graduating?
I was travelling, cooking, and roofing. A combination of activities whilst indirectly related to design, they were far enough removed from it for me to be able to plan with objectivity exactly when and how I would return to the industry.
When did you launch your own business?
In 2006.
What motivated you to start your own business?
The itch became unbearable.
How would you describe the products you design to someone who hadn’t seen them?
They are raw, monolithic and austere structures for the home. They plod along, inspired by the rhythm of the music I listen to and the movies I absorb.
What are the most challenging parts of being a designer running a small business?
Developing a reliable network for manufacture. No one is more passionate about what we do than ourselves. I have found it difficult to accept whenever goods are returned and they are not to my standards. The end result is that I take on too much myself out of a lack of trust for anyone else. Also trying to fit a full time design business into three days a week does become quite tiring.
What inspires your design projects?
It changes daily but I can be assured of the constant flow which emanates from the arts.
What are the next steps for you?
My plan is to establish a reliable network of artisans and craft people to assist me through the next five years, to consolidate my portfolio by investing in prototypes. Also to invest in a proper workshop and purchase wood and metalwork machinery capable of supplying small and limited production runs of my designs to the Australian market.
I want to increase my profile through exhibition time in both Sydney and Newcastle galleries. It has always been a dream of mine to run a shop. It may be a purist ideal but I plan to create the perfect environment for displaying my wares.
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