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    Sizar Alexis

    Sizar Alexis

    1. Where were you born and where are you from ?

    I was born in Ankawa, a small town in the northern part of Iraq.
    Currently living in Eskilstuna, Sweden.

    2. What is your first memory connected to the art world ?

    My first memory connected to art is when I was maybe 5-6 years old and found my
    fathers portrait sketches in graphite hand made by him, hidden in our storage room.
    This is where it all started for me. And I have been drawing and loving creative
    pursuits ever since and it has been a big part of not only my life but my sisters also.

    3. Have you always worked in the art/design field ?

    I am trained design engineer and worked as an engineer after I realized that I
    wanted to work more creatively and started over again and studied at Beckmans
    college of design in Stockholm and soon after started my own design studio.

    4. What led you to the design creation ?

    I have always loved being creative and creating art at a very young age. It all started
    with me designing and making furniture for my first apartment. Realized shortly after
    that this was what I wanted to do.

    5. How would you describe your creative process and it influences ?

    Throughout my process, I have a certain feeling of serene emotion and aesthetic
    expression that I try to convey with my design. I keep in mind a certain environment,
    space, or interpretation that my objects will inhabit, that sets the mood before I start
    my work.
    But the inspiration for a project differs, everything from culture, geometrical ply of a
    brutalist architecture, a great read or just a feeling of a certain conversation can
    stimulate my creative thoughts.

    The first step is typically always allowing myself to express my idea or a certain form
    in many elaborate hand-drawn sketches to test and see the form taking shape and
    evolving.

    — Further on in the process is searching for the essence of the object, where I look
    closely at the volumes and the first step of how it should be constructed. To test the
    volumes of an object more accurately in terms of dimensions, I use 3D software and
    this is where I get to experiment with the volumes in different layouts.

    — When I finally feel that the object represents the feeling I want to convey, I move
    on to making the first 1:1 scale prototype. This is where I get to see the volume in
    real life and can interact with it and make the necessary changes.

    It sounds linear when I describe the process but it’s far from it, all the steps are
    interconnected and I go back and forth several times to achieve my vision. I am very
    motivated by curiosity and I tend to be more driven by seeing an object or project to
    its completion when I don’t know what the outcome will be — which allows me to be
    more experimental and where I see myself more courageous in terms of freeing
    myself of my predictions.

    6. Could you describe a typical day of your work ?

    It all depends day to day. One day it could be working on an order throughout the
    day. Another day I can be doing some administrative work and design an interior with
    my sister Sinar Alexis who is also a designer. Every day is different depending if it’s a
    new project or new design I am working with or handling orders.

    7. Why did you choose the specific materials you work with ?

    I aim to create objects that display a sense of stillness and strong character through
    mostly natural materials, mostly different types of wood, to bridge the bond between
    man and nature and often base my idea on which material I will use.

    8. What are the technical particularities of your creations ?

    With the natural materials handcrafted naturally various in texture, tones and
    imperfections. This allows for uniqueness in every livable object created and to age
    gracefully with time.

    9. What advices could you give to beginning artists who would like to create sculptural design works ?

    First of all, don’t be afraid to start and start making mistakes. Mistakes and rejections
    are crucial to success. Work harder and be consistent with your work. Strive to
    improve with time and stay true to yourself and the work you do.

    10. If your works had to belong to a design movement, in which one would you define it ?

    DIfficult for me to say, I would leave it to the observer to decide.
    I am working more and more towards combining Brutalist esthetics and contextual
    inspiration from the rich cultural and architectural heritage of ancient Mesopotamia.
    So maybe contemporary ethno-graphic.

    11. What designers have influenced you ?

    Obviously goes without mentioning Rick Owens, the design philosophy of Claudio
    Silvestrin & John Pawson, Donald Judd, Halleröds, Carlo Scarpa are some of them
    and there are many more.

    12. What contemporary designers do you appreciate ?

    I appreciate and get inspired by artists like Carl Andre, Vincent Van Duysen, Doriana
    and Massimiliano Fuksas, Formafantasma

    13. What contemporary artists (in any kind of art) have you been inspired by ?

    Yohji Yamamoto, jil sander, tezontle studio

    14. If you had to summarize your creations in one word or sentence, what would it be ?

    Livable objects for the soul.

    15. Is there anything you would like to add ?

    Move slow and allow yourself to dream.

    Proust Questionnaire with very short answers (one or a few words) :
    (The Proust Questionnaire is a set of questions answered by the French writer Marcel Proust. Other historical figures who have answered confession albums are Oscar Wilde, Karl Marx, Arthur Conan Doyle, Stéphane Mallarmé, Paul Cézanne…)

    1. What is your idea of perfect happiness?

    The simplest times of life

    2. What is your greatest fear?

    Be convinced to follow the norm

    3. What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?

    Need for confirmation

    4. What is the trait you most deplore in others?

    Greed

    5. Which living person do you most admire?

    A strong independent mother

    6. What is your greatest extravagance?

    Opportunities

    7. What is your current state of mind?

    To be the best version of myself

    8. What do you consider the most overrated virtue?

    Talent

    9. What is the quality you most like in a man ?

    Generosity and a fighter in life in general

    10. What is the quality you most like in a woman ?

    Generosity and a fighter in life in general

    11. Which words or phrases do you most overuse?

    Right?

    12. Which talent would you most like to have?

    Willing to practice over and over

    13. If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

    Self doubt

    14. What do you consider your greatest achievement?

    My Family

    15. If you were to die and come back as a person or a thing, what would it be?

    Me but with all the knowledge from the past and future

    16. Where would you most like to live?

    Currently, somewhere by the Mediterranean

    17. What is your most treasured possession?

    My memory

    18. What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery?

    To ponder things that have happened and not be able to move on

    19. What is your favorite occupation?

    Designer

    20. What is your most marked characteristic?

    Mysterious

    21. What do you most value in your friends?

    loyalty & Reliability

    22. Who are your favorite writers?

    Currently: Yuval Noah Harari

    23. Who is your hero of fiction?

    Don’t have one

    24. Which historical figure do you most identify with?

    in some strange way Charles Eames

    25. Who are your heroes in real life?

    My grandmother and mother

    26. What are your favorite names?

    Enlilo

    27. What is it that you most dislike?

    To spread hatred

    28. What is your greatest regret?

    None

    29. How would you like to die?

    Quickly

    30. What is your motto?

    Time is not money, you can never get back the time you have spent.

    ItooRaba Lounge Chair by Sizar Alexis 10
    ItooRaba Lounge Chair by Sizar Alexis 9

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