Visiting architect Moshe Safdie’s groundbreaking Habitat 67 building in Montreal had a big impact on David Hartikainen whose design career is richly layered. A member of the Space team since 2008, David's curiosity about design and its ability to shape us is central to everything he does. Ask him about a favourite design piece within the collection and his selection process is always an exercise in critical thinking, describing his pick of the Tufty-Time sofa by Patricia Urquiola as “having something that was incredibly appealing and different to any other design I knew”.
Here, More Space meets up wth David Hartikainen for Design Insiders, a series that introduces the creative thinkers behind the Space brand.
More Space: David, you joined the Space team over a decade ago, can you tell us about your design path?
David Hartikainen: After leaving school I pursued a trade and then worked in hospitality, The trade taught me about materials, how they work and how to use them, while hospitality taught me about perfecting the client experience. I had always been interested in design and fascinated with the imagination behind creating something, so when I decided to give up the tools I enrolled myself in a bachelor of design focused primarily on interiors and how to apply critical thinking.
Your biggest design influences?
Travelling has been a very big influence for me. When I was living in Canada in 2006 I visited Montreal. It was absolutely freezing and it was snowing, the coldest day I’ve ever experienced, but I was determined to make my way over to a building I could see from the old city that looked like square blocks stacked on top of one another. Curiosity finally got me there and suddenly I was standing in front of what I thought was the best, most inspired building I had ever seen. I walked around the complex, ignored the private property signs, climbed up the areas I could access and was just in awe. That was the day I went to Habitat 67 by Moshe Safdie and I still remember it so clearly. I find it fascinating how the built environment can leave such an impression. After returning to Australia I worked with Terri Winter at Top3 by design whose passion for design was inspiring to be around, and then joined Space where I have now worked for more than a decade. I am so happy being surrounded by like-minded creative colleagues and clients where the influences keep developing and growing.
Tufty-Time designed by Patricia Urquiola and manufactured by B&B Italia is a design standout for David, who describes it as "incredibly appealing" and different to any other design in the collection. Portraits © Tim Ashton.
What do you enjoy most about sharing your knowledge?
The most enjoyable thing for me is when I meet someone curious about the 'how’ and the 'why’, who wants to know more. In the last 13 years I’ve had the chance to lecture and teach interior design students, work closely with Australia’s leading designers and architects, speak with the world’s best creatives, and visit some of the best design houses internationally. It’s an opportunity that I am very grateful for.
Do you have a favourite piece in the Space collection?
I fell in love with the creativity of all design yet from the first moment I was introduced to Tufty-Time, it had something that was incredibly appealing and different to any other design I knew. It’s now a design piece I own after years of trying to pick a sofa. Funnily enough, it is the sofa I had pictured in my bachelor pad but it wasn’t until I was married that I purchased it!
"I had always been interested in design and fascinated with the imagination behind creating something, so when I decided to give up the tools I enrolled myself in a bachelor of design focused primarily on interiors and how to apply critical thinking."
David Hartikainen
The modular design of Tufty-Time by Patricia Urquiola allows multiple seating scenaros in a simlar vein to repetitive modules of Moshe Safdie's Habitat 67 buiding. Photos c/o B&B Italia.
The groundbreaking Habitat 67 community housing buildng in Montréal was designed in 1967 by architect Moshe Safdie for the Expo 67 World Fair. Photography by Mario Hains c/o Creative Commons.
Montréal's Habitat 67 remains one of the world's most recognisable brutalist buildings and is an early example of complex concrete prefabrication. Photography c/o Creative Commons.
David Hartikainen photographed on the Tufty-Time sofa by Tim Ashton. Portrait © Tim Ashton.
The B&B Italia advertising campaign for the launch of Mario Bellini's newly tweeked Tufty-Time in 2015. Photo c/o B&B Italia.
"I fell in love with the creativity of all design yet from the first moment I was introduced to Tufty-Time, it had something that was incredibly appealing and different to any other design I knew."
David Hartikainen
What is it about the design of Tufty-Time that caught your eye?
I love the informal nature of it and it’s also quite versatile. It has multiple directions where you can seat people, on a section, a chaise or an ottoman. Mine is a soft neutral which suits my light-filled home. There’s something about this design that’s contemporary yet also traditional. I am obviously a fan of design as a whole, but I do have a soft spot for the manufacturer B&B Italia and I was lucky enough to visit their headquarters in Novedrate, Italy. All of the people I met, from those who work within the business, to the designers and the company approach itself, everything is holistic, pioneering and leading-edge.
Design is an extension of who we are, it’s very personal. What advice do you give your clients when choosing a piece?
Enjoy the process, it’s the fun part, and be upfront about how you feel about a piece. At the end of the day the professionals you are working with just want to deliver something you will love.
Finally, is there a project that has really stood out in terms of flexing your design know-how?
There have been some great projects over the years but more recently I’ve been working closely with new residents at One Barangaroo. It has also been a unique and wonderful opportunity to work alongside some of the best talent within the local landscape. Our clients have been wonderful to work with: brave, excited about the collection and at times also wanting to work with our design partners to develop one-off pieces. For example, we worked with the furniture house Edra to customise a dining table for a client which was a very interesting experience. The Crown project has definitely been a high point to date, but as always I am curious to see what’s on the horizon.
Thanks David, great to chat.
