YINKA ILORI
PICHI KICHI PRESENTATION
I got tasked with looking into Yinka Ilori for my Pichi Kichi presentation. He is a modern-day designer working out of London alongside a small team at his studio. He works across a variety of mediums including Architecture, Sculpture, Furniture Design and Graphic Design gaining popularity in recent years. When I first heard this name, I realised why it sounded familiar, he designed a shopping bag for M&S. This is where I work part time at the moment shifting stock around the store. I’ve been seeing these bright coloured bags kicking around at work for quite some time, but I didn’t give them much thought. As soon as I started looking into his work, I made the connection immediately. He designed this bag because he also used to work at an M&S in London while studying. This is due to the bold and colourful nature of his work. Once you’ve seen it, his signature style is instantly recognisable. With such a wide range of products I decided to choose some of my favourites as a backdrop, while summarising his design story and give my opinions on some of his work. So, here’s my first D&T presentation.
His earlier works were upcycled furniture, given a new lease of life with vibrant colours and a contemporary design inspired by his blend of Nigerian and British heritage. These were the designs that really got him started after he graduated. He spent some time in Nigeria, where his parents are from, where he fell in love with the culture and the rich design language. You can see clearly how the patterns on these chairs in particular are reminiscent of West African fabrics and clothing. He has taken this traditional style that is close to his heart and applied it in a fun new and sustainable way.
So, this was one of the better examples I found of this being applied to a whole new product. A door handle for Omi & Ododo. These similar themes of bold and bright colours are again seen combined with patterns in a more simple and modern way. I just think this is really interesting. Door handles are something you don’t think about often. They serve a very simple but important purpose, often designed to blend in as opposed to stand out. This turns that on its head turning something mundane into a statement piece. It would take a certain door and house to pull it off, but I find it a fun take on a door handle.
His architecture again continues these themes. The colour palace in London is a perfect example. The simple geometries enhanced by the patterns on the facade, which he says are inspired by the markets in Lagos.
His most well known and most common work is likely his murals. You can see them painted in different places across the country, mostly in London. I thought this ‘Happy Street’ was a good example of this because it turns such a usually dark and dingy place into somewhere that’s inviting to walk through. That’s a pretty successful design if it is managing to make an underpass in London seem more inviting. Some of his other murals include quotes and messaging aimed purely to cheer up and inspire those that see it. It’s harmless fun and something we probably could do with some more of.
Now his interior design work is possibly a bit much in my opinion. This collection above is a set of 5 bright colours and 2 patterned wallpapers. Now obviously you can combine these in any way you would like but the promotional material takes a very bold approach. It’s maybe not to my tastes for an everyday living space but it certainly is fun. Especially when you compare this style to many minimalist beige houses you see today it does make you think. There’s a happy medium, I think. Somewhere between dull lifeless beige and headache rainbow.
His graphic design work is also unsurprisingly very bold. It all follows a very similar style but each pattern is different and unique. Distinctly Yinka while also being different. While these covers perhaps lack any indication of the context there is no denying they would stand out on a bookshelf.
Alongside his murals he also created many art installations. This is an example of one installed at the V&A in Dundee, which we visited just last year. There were many similar exhibitions, but I feel the name and purpose of this one made it a good ending to my presentation. It is an exhibition that is purely designed to instil joy into whoever walks through it. A path of patterned glass walls, seats and paths accompanied by joyful music. It sums his work up perfectly. It makes you happy. It is fun.
While a style as bold as this is obviously not going to appeal to everyone, I think it is important to appreciate it. So much of design today takes the easy way out. Bland colours and simple forms. Yinka shows it doesn’t have to be this way. We should all take a leaf out of his book. His focus on heritage and culture is really interesting. I’ve spoken about it before with buildings. Places and the things from those places shouldn’t lose their culture or sense of identity in the modern era. Not everything needs to look sleek and modernist. There is a time and a place for intricacy sometimes. I think it’s also important for people like this to bring this kind of cultural style to different places to almost educate. As looking into some of his work has shown me more of an insight into design from an area of the world I am not overly familiar with, and it is stunning.