Although Sanghyeok Lee has received several awards for his furniture designs and exhibited his pieces around the globe, he doesn’t fully identify as a designer – not in the formal sense, at least. Instead, he sees his work as an exploration of concepts, stories and art connected to our relationship with objects and space.
Born in South Korea, Lee studied design in The Netherlands and has been living and working in Berlin for four years now. When we entered his studio, we were met with graceful wooden forms and quiet piano music. There was something about it that exuded an aura of lightness and poetry. Almost immediately, we recognized his two most well-known pieces: An elegant chair inspired by the nomadic nature of scaffolding structures in construction sites and a dark walnut desk with multiple drawers that open and close as if by magic. Even though the space is peppered with furniture, boxes and abstract objects, there was something about it that exuded an aura of lightness and poetry… Much like the way Lee softly spoke about the stories behind his work, and much like the designs themselves.
We visited Lee’s studio and workshop to learn more about his award-winning projects, where he draws inspiration from as well as how architecture and urban spaces inform his pieces.