Mark Goetz is an accomplished furniture designer whose work for Herman Miller stands next to mid-century classics by Eames and other legends. He is a source of inspiration to his students and a source of advice to his former students. We met him in his Manhattan studio and discussed his approach. www.markgoetz.com



What is your personal design philosophy?

I don't view myself as a signature designer. I don't try to create a Mark Goetz style. I'm much more interested in appropriate design. If I do my job correctly, the products I create, not only express my point of view, they equally express the personality of the companies I design for. They're an extension of the brand. I go into companies, try to understand what their strength is, and give them products which will make them much stronger and visible in their respective markets.

My business centers around improvement. I like working with companies who are financially strong, with good distribution, but are in need of a new product direction. I love designing chairs, but I'm less interested in doing one chair for a company. I'm more drawn to a company who wants to reinvent their entire line, ones who want to transform their business through design.

For most of my 20 year career, I really just worked for two companies, Herman Miller and Bernhardt Design. Recently that has really expanded. While I'm still working with Herman Miller, I'm also working with a variety of other companies. It's fascinating because each company sees the world differently. Each has unique capabilties, different types of facilities, and achieves their success differently.

You've worked for a variety of high profile clients including Bernhardt, Marimekko, and Herman Miller. How did you get up to this level?

Early on in my career, I approached Herman Miller with a few pieces I wanted to design for them. They considered them, and when opportunities arose, they contacted me. I've worked for them off and on for eighteen years. It has been a tremendous learning experience to have access to their design, research and engineering departments. My first production chair for them was the Aside chair, a stacking, high volume project.

At the end of the project, during Neocon, they asked me if I'd like to design a sofa for the home which could compliment their existing collection. I remember beads of sweat forming on my forehead, and asking, well, didn't Eames and Nelson design some of the most important sofas of the 20th century?

What they wanted though, wasn't merely an innovative design, but one that could be a usable centerpiece of the home. A classic sofa that could work within their collection, but could also fit into everyday life. The resulting piece, the Goetz Sofa, is the piece that I'm now the most known for. It's a quiet piece which listens to the masterpieces around it. It doesn't try to assert itself against the other classics, but rather it works within the context of their history. The back of the couch is visually striking, because it features both the beauty of the plywood which connects it to Herman Miller and the mitered plywood detail which distinguishes it from the Mid Century Modern pieces.



As for Bernhardt, I worked with them for about seventeen years, creating a good portion of their contract seating collection. Over several years, I designed 70 chairs for them. There was one year when I designed 17 pieces in 6 months - if a piece didn't go out each week I was behind. The company was still young in the contract market then, and we all really worked together to define a new direction. Working for them, without question, formed the bulk of my experience.

When did you decide to strike out on your own and start TZ Design?

I got a job designing a store display for a fashion designer. Although the project was complex and time consuming, I felt so honored to do work I loved, I was initially going to ask only $1,000 for several weeks of work. Then a model maker I had worked with told me that he had bid $8,000 for the job. He said, "Why don't you ask for more, and create a scenario that also works for you?" So I asked for 5,000, and when I got it. I couldn't believe I was doing what I loved and getting paid for it. At the time $5,000 seemed like all the money in the world. I thought it would never run out! So, once I'd made the money, I quit my job.

When I was first working for myself, one of the most memorable days was watching the people outside my window as they went to work in the morning. I would watch the men with briefcases passing by, and I envied them. They knew exactly what they were going to do that day, where they were going to work, and what their responsibilities were. I had no idea what I would do, who I would call, or how I would spend my time. I felt really nervous about the whole situation.

I started my business by just reaching out to companies. I would call them on the phone, introduce myself, and tell them I wanted to design for them. You have to make a point to get to know people, and establish a connection with the other people in your field.




When designers go to companies and say "I would like to design for you," they are asking two things. Firstly, they want to design so they can make a living, but secondly, they want to be told that they're good. They want this stamp of approval that they're talented. That's not the role of a company, though. I learned early on that if a company wasn't interested in my work, I had to ask them why. Sometimes the answer is as simple as "We have a freeze on product development," or "We have three in house designers." Or the owner of the company is also the designer, and no matter how good your piece is, you're not going to design for them.

Eventually Tim Richartz and I founded the studio TZ. We found an artist space which we renovated, and called the studio TZ because both our names ended in those letters.

What was the first piece you had manufactured?

I designed a chair named the Washington Avenue Chair which I pitched to Brickel Associates. I went in, showed them my sketches, and they wanted to put it into production. The piece pretty much went forward without revisions. I remember thinking, wow, this is going to be so easy to make a living as a furniture designer! It was one of the only times in my career that this has ever happened. It's still on the market, but through Geiger. Brickel was bought by Geiger, Geiger by Herman Miller, and Herman Miller still offers the chair for sale through Geiger. Its funny because now, after twenty years, I'm designing for Geiger again, so it's really like I've come full circle.



You also teach design. How has teaching affected you as a designer?

Teaching has given my the ability to verbalize and develop my philosophy about design. I've always been open to lots of different approaches and vocabularies in design, as my own personal taste is very eclectic. I get bored if I work within one narrow path for too long. Teaching a furniture design class, where the students are encouraged to create whatever they want, is a really good fit for my own point of view. I try to leave my own taste out of it, and help students navigate to their personal goals. This is my 16th year of teaching, so I've taught a lot people, become very good friends with many of my former students, and collaborated with a few of them. I just designed a bench for Blank Blank, a company started by one of my former students. It was a great compliment, but also a great challenge.

We recently interviewed Todd Bracher, also one of your former students, with whom you started to22. Could you tell us a little about the studio?

Todd Bracher, Efe Buluc and I started a conceptual group together. We wanted to create designs which were meant to capture imagination not respond to market concerns. The idea of to22 came about right around the change of the millennium. Everyone was saying we better prepare for the 21st century, and we we're laughing, saying, "well we're going to prepare for the 22nd."

Most of our projects have really just come out of good times, humor, and enjoying talking about the future of design. The work was very much about experience based design. Each project dealt with both time and personal investment. For instance, Unbroken, a piece made of shattered ceramic plates, was about letting go of our objects. We are constantly considering the pieces around us as precious; we clean them, keep them on a shelf up high, and protect them. This is was a piece where we literally smashed something to create something else entirely new. It was a great experience, and design wise, against everything that I'd ever been taught.



What advice do you have for someone trying to start a creative business?

My first piece of advice is to always be creating. Whether you're getting paid for it or not. I think one trap you can get into is just stopping. You don’t necessarily need to make a living with the same work you generate to creatively express yourself. You can continue to explore your language and voice outside of paid work. I think it's also important to take stock of what kind of work you want to do, and go out meet people who are succeeding with that kind of work.

When we look at brands, the best brands, we see them as a company. We see the showroom, the signage, the glossy facade - it can be very intimidating. We tend to forget that companies are run by people, people we can meet and introduce ourselves to, get advice from, and show our ideas to. Opportunities begin when people talk to people.

When I first started, I was so nervous, I remember riding an exercise bike, just do get my heart rate up and give me the confidence to call companies. Some people I spoke with were very open and we’ve remained friends for years. And, some companies were not as nice. You never know how someone will respond when you approach them. You can never predict which companies will say what, who you will become friends with, and who you'll work for. What is most important, is to continue learning, keep creating, and have the courage to share your ideas.