May 27, 2020

Studio Deshi and the creators Devanshi Doshi & Shivam Vaidya | THE UNIQUE BLEND OF STORY TELLERS, DREAMERS AND SPACE MAKERS THROUGH DESIGNS

They believe people have stories and so space should too. With perfect hands in multidisciplinary design – STUDIO DESHI introduces themselves with such an apt verse,

‘Balance.

A swinging pendulum,

A continuous flux,

The more it evolves,

The greater the polarities,

Because we believe design is always between dualities.’

In between these polarities, Studio Deshi tries to explore the dialogue and balance between the gradient of dualities- between contemporary aesthetic and traditional heritage, between cutting edge technology and handmade, between disruptive design and human cantered approach. Studio Deshi is a versatile design venture co-founded by Devanshi Doshi and Shivam Vaidya focusing on Interiors, Furniture and Graphic design that approaches these derived meanings and narratives in spaces through a research driven process and hands on approach. They define themselves as,

“We are Storytellers, Dreamers and Space Makers.”

Devanshi Doshi, the founder is an impatient story teller, shade card in one hand and kahwa chai in the other (as stated by her). She weaves narratives through spaces. An avid-reader who’s always on pins and needles, she is the backbone of the enthusiastic temperament at the studio. Her approach towards place-making and subtle yet conspicuous use of colours, patterns and textures combine contemporary vision to historical and cultural roots of design. After graduating from CEPT University, Ahmedabad she completed her masters from Polytechnico Di Milano, Milan, Italy in Furniture Design. She has worked with different studios on several residential, commercial and institutional projects in India as well as furniture and product design studio in Milan, Italy. She was awarded the University level Distinguished Student Award at CEPT University and won Donna Del Vino award in International ‘Wine and Design’ furniture design competition at Verona, Italy. Born and raised in Ahmedabad in a business family, she is one of the first in her family to pursue design as a career.

Shivam Vaidya, the founder – the ‘maker’ of the studio with a relentless curiosity to explore new materials is seen to be the happiest at sites and workshops learning and making with craftsmen and artisans. A gamer by passion; strategy planning and detailing to the last nail is his second nature. An aspiring stand-up comedian and the cool cucumber, he is the fun and energy of the studio and his calm and meticulous nature ensures smooth sailing whilst chasing deadlines. His hands-on intuitive making approach balances his love for methodical detailing which provides unexpected innovative ideas. His sensitivity to user needs and ergonomics and a problem-solving approach makes him the go to person of the studio. After graduating from CEPT University, he has worked with different studios on luxury residential, commercial and exhibition design projects as well as worked as a freelance designer. He is currently a Teaching Associate at CEPT University. Shivam was born and brought up in Ahmedabad. Love for design and appreciation for art began at a young age for Shivam, owing to his father who is a graphic designer. This led to him deciding at a young age to pursue a career in art or design. He dabbled with Fine Arts for a year at the prestigious C.N. college for fine arts post his 12th grade for a year before shifting to Interior Design from one of the best design colleges of India- CEPT University. Throughout his college he had been the one experimenting with different materials and details, be it wood, metal, bamboo, cane, concrete, ceramics or textiles. He would find his best learnings outside the classroom, sitting with craftsmen and understanding their techniques and hearing their stories. This attitude has brought great sensitivity in him about different making processes, crafts and materials. Shivam worked for about a year at a reputed design studio in Ahmedabad while being a teaching assistant at his Alma Mater- CEPT University.

Shivam and Devanshi were classmates at CEPT University – the best friends who decided to start a practice together. Their different personalities and skills bring out the best in their design. They are now partners in personal and professional life.

Speaking about their challenges as a young firm, they state,

“As a young firm and having studied design for 5 years, we were rather unfamiliar with running a business. Be it drafting the first contract or to market ourselves enough so as to bag more projects. Since the past one year, we have overcome several such challenges leading to smooth functioning of the firm.

We like to experiment in our design and with that comes the added responsibility of executing it with finesse. As newcomers, it can get quite challenging to convince the client of your idea, who in most of the cases wants to play safe. We have been lucky enough to have had clients who have given us complete creative freedom.”

At Studio Deshi, they execute their projects with a unique story building approach towards design. According to the designers, this unique approach has helped them get several projects of different typologies: Residential, Commercial, Retail and Design/Art Installation. They express,

“We have built a very versatile work profile in a short time owing to our unique design methodology.”

Their claim their Challenging Project to be the PENTAGON GAMING ZONE: Computer Gaming Zone for Young Adults. Pentagon gaming zone is a hub for online multiplayer gaming and also deals in customized gaming setups.

“The client was on a tight budget and that led to us making a material palette and concept that revolved around using scrapped industrial metal and cutting cost wherever possible. The idea was to go for a raw, slightly cold industrial interior that can attract a gaming enthusiast.” They say.

They speak about their exceptional creativity penpicturing the design,

“Gaming zone needed to be dark and dynamic. Since most of the spaces were functional, the lighting element was explored in three-dimensional geometry to bring dynamism to space. The angular dim-able lighting, the pop of orange with gaming posters around the walls and the pac-man wall decal and teteris floor to bring a sense of nostalgia made the space highly functional yet energetic.”

The competitive exclusive designers indeed have great goals and make their success story immortal through designs. Having asked about their future plans, they viewed that they share a keen interest in Product and Furniture design and plan to develop and launch their own line soon. Designer Devanshi, having completed her masters in furniture design from Polytechnico Di Milano, Milan, Italy, developed a luxury residential furniture line derived from the various forms of Surya Namaskar, which they plan to refine, detail and prototype in near future.

They state,

“We have always had an inclination towards teaching and research and intend to pursue the same. We are currently working as teaching associates to senior faculties at our Alma Mater- CEPT University. Being a research driven studio, we try to understand our society through the lens of design and aim at generating a dialogue. One such work ‘Design in the Time of Distress- Past, Present and Future’ was an attempt to showcase the power of design to bring a social change and hope during these unprecedented times of the pandemic of Covid-19. We looked through the products designed during such bleak times through history- and taking inspiration from the past, understanding the present and how we can move towards the future. This is our humble attempt towards generating design literacy and sensitivity.”