The Copenhagen-based design studio Ahm & Lund crafts distinctive, custom-made furniture, clocks, and ceramics. The studio began as a result of Isabel Ahm and Signe Lund’s participation in the Danish design program, “Denmark’s Next Classic.” There, in 2019, their lamp design Clam™ placed first prize in lighting. Clam™, a hanging lamp crafted from mouth-blown opal glass and brushed glass, sparked national attention to the duo’s combined talents in design and carpentry. Now Ahm & Lund works beside local artists to create a variety of unique goods. Introducing this week’s Maker Monday, Isabel Ahm and Signe Lund.
Ahm & Lund designed Clam™ in two sizes, with leverage to be opened slightly to reveal a bulb, or closed for an accent effect according to the environment.
Andrew Joseph: Describe your design style as if you were explaining it to someone who cannot see.
Isabel Ahm and Signe Lund: Our style is versatile, and all our projects each have their own story to tell or problem to solve. In that respect, we don’t feel that you can say we have a style; however, we are children of the Danish design heritage. That means that many of our products are made from wood and with great attention to detail. We believe that you should be able to perceive design with your fingers, so you get an experience from the bodily interaction with the object.
Andrew: What is something you hope to see trending in design in the future?
Isabel & Signe: We hope that people will be more mindful of buying only when there is a need and prioritize purchasing objects that last for generations. With the current environmental situation, we strongly believe that we need to change our way of consumption. Buy used, buy high-quality, and buy less.
Clam™’s delicate, egg-shell coloring, a result of its glass material, lends to its reflective luminescence.
Andrew: How would you describe your personal style?
Isabel & Signe: Our studio is very much like a symbiosis; it is tricky to distinguish between who is doing what and who has what style. In some sense, we feel that the object holds its own idea of what it wants style-wise, and so designing can then feel a bit like being a midwife.
Isabel: I think I would describe my style as human-centered. It is founded in the lives and behavior of humankind. I care for people and for designing accommodating objects that invite use throughout everyday life. I believe that beautifying the world makes us happy. Each object is designed to fulfill a need and there is always a reason, a well-considered concept, and a clear design language behind every piece of furniture. The aim is to bring functional comfort into our everyday lives. I want my designs to awaken our senses, nourish our souls and make us more present in the now and in the world we live in. Each piece of furniture is designed with sustainability in mind and crafted with the best materials to preserve the future of our world.
Signe: All the things we surround ourselves with reveal a little part of our personalities. Objects with strong narratives awaken feelings, and we connect to them and are more likely to hold on to them for generations. I strive to create furniture and objects based on an understanding of materiality, which thereby seems inviting to the human body. One could maybe say my style is in the material. I understand materials to have their own language and beauty to be revealed; designing with respect to the material, I often seek simplicity and honesty.
The material is chosen to serve the purpose of the design as best as possible.. Leading back to Isabel’s comment on our style being human-centered I think our method becomes our style. We are aiming to have a holistic approach to design, an equilibrium between human behaviour, function, shape, and materiality – we’re always striving for it to live past its own time.
Andrew: How would you define your work in three words?
Isabel & Signe: Elegant, exquisite detailing, and functional.
Though Clam™ has gained Ahm & Lund national attention, the two collaborate on a host of creative projects, including furniture and ceramic designs.
Andrew: Which room in the house do you find yourself working from the most? Why? How does this inform your thoughts about architecture?
Isabel & Signe: We are free spirits, and we love having the freedom to work from exactly where we feel like. This means that we have a studio, a workshop and home offices. Plus, we also like to spend time in nature, whether that’s being in the woods or by the ocean. When a new project is taking form, we always start off together by going for a walk, taking a trip somewhere, or having long conversations in the studio. The first seeds for a new project are always planted together.
Isabel: After the initial idea has been developed, I prefer working from my living room when I design something new. My home is a lab for me, since it is all prototypes or secondhand furniture with special features that I am interested in. My apartment is a new classic with very high ceilings and great light. It provides a safe space in which I can form my ideas in peace and harmony until they are ready to see the light of the day. In the initial phase, I also spend a lot of time in nature with my dog. Signe and I meet or talk daily. As soon as the concept is formed and we are producing technical drawings and models, or refining the design, I am mostly in the studio.
Signe: Depending on the project and the phase we are in, I have different preferences. In the beginning, it feels like we are standing in front of one another, with ideas and concepts forming like soap bubbles; they float and levitate, some break, some fly high, and some merge. Once we have settled on a concept, a phase of research kicks in, like going on a journey. I like to be out gathering new information regarding human behavior, locations, materials, etc. Once the process is a bit further, and things start taking form, I’m always itching to be in the workshop testing and exploring. Being close to the material, that being wood, steel, porcelain or so, it often offers a solution to a certain problem or leads us down a new path. Our workshop is a great open space, with big windows and lots of machines. To me, it is a place to reflect, where the ideas materialize and take form, and all of the sudden they are no longer just soap bubbles.
Andrew: Has there been a shift in what clients are requesting post-covid?
Isabel & Signe: The only shift we’ve experienced is that there are more requests and less time.
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