dBodhi Mood Board
When I experienced dBodhi’s furniture for the first time at my interview, I was captivated by the feeling the furniture gave me as I entered the room. I felt at ease and grounded in the present moment due to its authentic design. This feeling is one that I hope to bring throughout the journey of dBodhi into the future.
This mood board takes you through how dBodhi can design branching off into other cultures around the world. It then takes you through several other lifestyle products that dBodhi could develop. Lastly, I showcase some spaces designed in Midjourney that could help us tap into new markets.
I hope to design products and spaces that tell a unique story and offer people tranquillity by engaging the senses through nature.
Culture Design.
As dBodhi aims to expand its visual appeal by working with local crafstman from around the world. How might one draw inspiration from other cultures and nature whilst keeping the design style homogenous and timeless?
For this mood board project, I have drawn inspiration from two diverse continents, Africa and South America. In addition to dBodhi's current Indonesian-influenced products. In doing so, I have consciously avoided delving into graphical cultural contexts to ensure respect for the rich traditions of these regions. Instead, I have chosen to explore the broader theme of how nature generously provides for us all.
Rugs + Fabrics
The same concept can be applied to rugs and to vases. I would recommend to keep a harmonious colour palatte in natural tones in order to blend with the rest of dBodhi’s work.
Keep the pattern simple, but weave through elements from South America plants and for the same with African rugs.
By keeping the base of furniture simple and timeless, we can create variety in furniture by having customisable cupboard draws. Here customers can choose what texture they prefer, Indonesian Coconut, South American Maize or African Sugar Cane.
Natural Dying
dBodhi can dive into natural dying as a way to create sustainable prints for curtains, cushions, table linens and even in the form of paper for notebooks and diaries.
South America:
Avocado pits and skins can create delicate pink and coral colors.
Indonesia:
Turmeric is a native spice to Indonesia and is widely used as a natural dye. It produces vibrant yellow and gold hues.
Africa:
Baobab trees are native to Africa, and their bark can be used for natural dyeing. The bark can yield various shades of brown and has been traditionally used by indigenous communities.
Pottery
Raku firing is an old firing process invented in the 16th century in Japan using natural materials to wrap around pottery to give a unique and unpredictable glaze effect. In Zimbabwe, clay is hammered into holes in the ground to get their shape and then later baked in a separate hole for firing.
Applying Raku firing in different countries we are able to wrap pottery pieces with nature that is distinctly from those countries, such as feathers from a spotted guinea fowl or a parrot feather from South America.
Lifestyle.
Here are several other product ideas that I found inspiration if dBodhi wanted to tap into lifestyle design. dBodhi could expand its products into more sculptural elements like carved sinks, bowls or using stone as a light to highlight its natural features.
Each product has its own handmade uniqueness to it.
Spaces
In this section, I tried to grasp how dBodhi could move into spaces and tap into other potential markets by doing so. The first chapter explores how dBodhi could move to outdoor spaces and accessories. To attract a wider audience, dBodhi can create woven hammocks and sun shades for festivals as a way to promote their new furniture line.
- The following sections were created in Midjourney AI. The program can be used more as a tool for inspirational ideas rather than the final aesthetical output.-
Interiors
As our world continues to evolve into a fast-paced and highly digitalized environment, there is a growing interest in spaces that reconnect people with tranquillity and the natural world. dBodhi, passionate about nature and design, has a lot of potential in this field to offer people an enhanced sense of well-being, ranging from the smallest products to more expansive space.
I drew inspiration from nature's remarkable ability to create a spectrum of forms, ranging from delicate, soft, and fragile to robust, solid, and enduring. When integrating nature into my designs, I firmly believe in embracing these contrasts within spaces to satisfy our senses.
I explored the interplay of softness, as seen in the lamps or couch's design, with the rugged and weathered textures of the walls. In furniture, I love to see the irregularity of nature combined with structured elements. I admire when furniture has the power to not merely occupy space but to craft it purposefully such as the table in the second left image below.
