BENEATH THE LAYER

Innovative and inspirational, Benjamin Hubert proposes going beyond superficial beauty to find the deeper purpose of design

Benjamin Hubert isn’t out there to create the next nice thing. The founder of London-based Layer Design, whose clients include multinational companies such as Bauer, Samsung and BMW, explains that the firm’s collective focus is “problem-solving and adding value, not just in terms of shape or colour”. Thus, it actively seeks out projects that require analytical thinking over aesthetically driven exercises. It has ventured into the world of furniture with the same vigour. From exploring digital knit as a form of upholstery with Moroso to playing around with modularity with Fritz Hansen, Hubert talks about adding depth, as well as increasing functionality and systematic smartness in a world dominated by the veneer of style.

How did you stumble into the world of furniture-making?

I’m not a furniture designer—no one in the studio is, really. There are about 20 of us, including industrial designers and ethnographic researchers, who just happen to like designing furniture. We do a lot of human-focused work, and we use the same approach and apply it to furniture. We find it difficult to do just nice things. Of course, it has to be beautiful, but there needs to be something more. The more choices we have and the more we consume, all the more we need stories that resonate beyond style in a given season or year. It’s not grandiose, but we aim to build layers of smartness into something that may not have it.

Tell us how your collaboration with Moroso evolved.

Patricia Urquiola put Patrizia Moroso and me in touch back in 2012; a year later, we launched the Net table and Talma armchair (both pictured above). The most important thing about working with a firm that collaborates with many designers is finding your place. I have always admired the way Moroso works with textiles and upholstery. At Layer, we work with technical knitting, which is undergoing massive growth and development—just look at the majority of sneakers out there to see how it’s exploded. We were able to find this common ground of interest and build from there.

Why are you so excited about the Tent chair (opposite)?

I think it’s a milestone in digital knitting. It has more than two million loops of knit, and from the point of view of the factory in Austria, it is the largest piece of digital-knitted upholstery that has ever been produced. To produce digital knit, we need to work on a complex matrix that requires mathematical calculations and considerations, such as how things stretch. It’s not as simple as it looks.

With technology now a driving force in design, how do you see it changing lives?

Today, we want information all the time, but we also want to relax—we want more technology, but fewer screens. Integrating technology subtly and making it more human is the next step of this evolution.

Problem-solving is at the core of Layer Design. Which issues are you most interested in tackling?

At design fairs, you’ll see endless new chairs, even though the problem of tired backs and legs from prolonged standing was solved long ago. What could happen if we put a tenth of that creativity and design prowess into solving real problems to do with healthcare, sanitation and water? We need to step out of the bubble for meaningful change to occur. There are many opportunities for designers to address real-world issues—and not just create for consumption’s sake.

THERE ARE MANY OPPORTUNITIES FOR DESIGNERS TO ADDRESS REAL-WORLD ISSUES—AND NOT JUST CREATE FOR CONSUMPTION’S SAKE