Interview with Ryan Russell.

Aesop in Doncaster, IDEA 09 winner in the Retail Category. Photography by Dianna Snape.

Aesop in Chatswood. Photography by Dianna Snape.

Aesop in Armidale. Photography by Dianna Snape.

Oh. My. Goodness! I can barely contain my excitement people! Ryan Rusell is in the house!!!

Ryan first came onto my radar back in 2007 when his first solo project, Left, was nominated for an Interior Design Award in the Retail Category, and his practice was awarded Emerging Interior Design Practicethe same year. I distinctly remember opening the magazine and seeing a “hero” image for Left and instantly attempting to look up Ryan’s website hungry to see and know more. But his site at the time didn’t reveal much, other than that it was “coming soon”. I bookmarked it for later, and eagerly awaited it’s launch. There was something about Ryan’s work that instantly drew me in, and I’ve been watching this young man go from strength to strength ever since.

I approached him about an interview a few weeks ago, and I nearly fell of my chair when he accepted. What can I say – I am a HUGE fan. But it wasn’t until I’ve had further dealings with this inspiring designer that I realised just how incredibly lucky I was for him to accept my offer. I am absolutely humbled by Ryan’s generosity, and the care and attention with which has approached this interview. I remember writing in my welcome post what were some of the reasons for starting this blog. Never could I have imagined how profound and inspiring this journey would become after such a short period of time.

Thank you, Ryan, for being a part of yellowtrace.

Dear readers, I hope you find as much inspiration in this inerview as I have.

x dana

Ryan Rysell. Photography by Dianna Snape.

Tell me a little about your background – when did you first decide to become and architect and what lead you to establishing your own practice?

I grew up in Queensland and I originally thought I was going to have a career in medicine, having always been interested in human behaviour. I didn’t really decide to become an architect. It was one of those things that just happened.
Like a lot of people I found myself at the end of my high school education not really knowing what to do. I had done well in the university entrance exams and had to make a selection of the top 5 courses I wanted to study. About 24hrs before the final selections were due in I withdraw all my preferences as I decided to throw things up in the air a bit. I opened the course books closed my eyes and pointed, my finger landed on the architecture degree at The University of Queensland. That was my one and only preference and I thought, if I didn’t get in, I would travel for year and maybe come back to study.
I got in and it took about 3 years to realise I actually quite enjoyed it. I have a passion for a lot of things and see education across a variety of fields as being something that is about knowledge rather than something that can define. Architecture to me is one of those pursuits where disparate pieces of information, personal experiences and expectations of others and yet still create something that will hopefully open up new experiences for others.
I also worked in architectural office throughout my education and found the experience invaluable. After my first portion of my degree I took a job with Woods Bagot in Brisbane as the right hand to the design director. This experience opened my eyes to the business side of architecture and though the experience was sometimes difficult to reconcile on a number of levels it was an incredibly important one to go through.
I decided to shift my final years to a another university so as to expose myself to a different approach and way of thinking. I was always impressed with the research side of the course at The University of Melbourne and decided to do my final years there. During this time I was still working for Woods Bagot but in the Melbourne office. I ended up doing my Masters at The University of Melbourne and after which i was employed full time by Woods Bagot.
My first 2 years of practice I primarily worked in concept design and competition teams for Woods Bagot. After this I was offered a position at Cox Architects and Planners. I was made an Associate at Cox after about a year of being with them. During this time I worked across large quantities of projects in a variety of stages and different areas of architectural expertise.
In my fourth year of working at Cox I was having a hard time with my health and tried to keep it all going. About a year earlier I had meet a woman by the name of Nellie Panay and her partner Catherine Chauchat. Both were forces of nature and we immediately became dear friends. Nellie had been dealing with her own health issues and I found solace in talking with her. Nellie approached me during this time to design a fashion boutique for her. As it was my first interior and of a very small scale, which was something I had not been exposed to in my career so far, I relished the challenge to focus on a detailed response. The resultant project was the fashion boutique Left, on Gertrude Street.
After Left opened, it wasn’t looking clear what was going to happen to my health. I could not sustain the workload I was used to whilst with Cox, nor could I simply stop. I decided to do something I had done back it high school and throw things back up in the air. It was a hard decision as I loved my work and the team at Cox but it was actually easier for me to start a practice on my own than to continue and potentially not deliver for someone else. I have always been a bit of a loner and in times of hardship I replenish mentally and physically with solitude.
I decided to leaveCoxand I started my business, with one job“Left” under my belt and no other opportunities on the horizon. I was alone, I was scared but I had something that was mine again and I couldn’t have been more content.

Left on Gertrude Street, Ryan’s first solo project which was nominated for the Interior Design Award in 2007. Photography by Dianna Snape.

Commercial fitout for H+B. Photography by Dianna Snape.

Commercial fitout for Harvery Publicity. Photography by Dianna Snape.

Can you describe what you are seeking to portray in your work? What is fundamental to your practice – your philosophy and your design process?

The goal of the practice is to create design solutions that extend thresholds and blur the line between different fields of design practice. This creates a dialogue between people and the places they inhabit and engage with. In this way interiors become urban design schemes, industrial design works become art pieces, architecture as industrial design pieces.
We treat every space as a unique opportunity to reveal the hidden personalities and goals of our clients and/or their businesses. This is a fairly eclectic and sometimes difficult approach but it is one that constantly reinvigorates and reinvents our design view and process.

What advice do you have for young architects and designers wanting to start their own business? What was one of your biggest lessons learned in setting up your practice?

Firstly, make sure it is something you really want to do. Speak with sole practitioners before making your decision. Before starting get as much experience as possible across a variety of different disciplines in variety of different roles. Understand your skill set as you may only be good at one thing and not good at others. Running a business requires a completely different set of skills than designing so ensure you have the right systems and or people in place to help.

How do you deal with the pressure of running your own business, meeting project deadlines and personal life? Do you have any tricks you can share with us?

Mentally separate all key aspects of the process, personal business and design. This sounds easier than it is. Make sure you exercise or do an endeavor completely unrelated to make the head clear and to quiet the mind. Try to not take it all too seriously but be serious about things that can make a difference. Understand how long things take you and double it, and be honest with your client if you cant make a deadline well in advance of the deadline itself.

Set design for The Inhabited Man. Photography by Dianna Snape.

Robert Fritzlaff exhibition at The National Trust. Photography by Dianna Snape.

You have had the good fortune of being featured in a number of glossy publications and have received a significant amount of exposure thanks to being nominated for several design awards. Creative people often find it really difficult to network and market themselves – how do you approach this side of your business? Do you makes a point of actively seeking out publications you would like to be featured in?

We have been fortunate enough to win a number of awards and get a bit of exposure through these programs. Clients generally find us so we tend not to do too much marketing.
From the outset I have always made sure all our work is professionally photographed. I approached Dianna Snape to shoot all our work when I first did Left. We find that by using her services our projects land on editors desks around the world as she already has established relationships with them.
We believe in paying for expert services that add value when required as it reduces our time doing things we don’t know about so we can focus on what we are good at.

Where do you turn for creative inspiration ?

My personal design approach is one of variance and subtlety. As an office we look to the everyday, the historic and the abstract for inspiration. We tend not to focus on the industry or looking to others for inspiration but prefer a broader approach.
Attention to detail is always paramount in our execution of design comprised with a subversive understanding of the materials we choose to work with and the tension they can create between one another.

What other architects, designers, artists, business people/ entrepreneurs, or peers do you admire?

There are obviously the well known architects, like Le Corbusier and others, but also Ettore Sottsass and Joze Plecnik. I tend to like things for the hidden reasons rather than the obvious.

What are you most proud of professionally – your favourite project, a turning point in your career, recognition?

I am most proud of having known Nellie Panay and the gift she left me, “Left” and the things it has created.

Computer renderings of residential work in progress.

What are you working on at the moment?

We have about 20 projects on the go at the moment, across retail, hospitality, residential and multi-residential, graphic design, industrial design and set design for theatre. This year should see the first architectural work being seen with a couple of house being completed.

What’s next – can you share with us your vision and some of your goals?

My partner Byron George and I have decided to establish a practice Russell & George this year. We will still maintain our separate businesses, Ryan Russell and Byron George Architects to allow us to work on individual projects when we want to.
We have established a good team of people around us to help us do this and to keep moving forward.
My individual practice will remain as eclectic in approach as ever and this year will see our first major overseas project built in Rome. I hope to continue to develop and explore new ideas and territories.