My Favourite Things with Brandon Gien

This story is featured in the April 2016 edition of Monitor, the University's magazine for alumni, supporters and friends.

Dr Brandon Gien is something of a powerhouse in the Australian (and international) design world. Over the past twenty years, he has worked on industrial and environmental design standards at Standards Australia, the peak non-government Standards body in Australia, and as CEO of Good Design Australia, an international design promotion organisation responsible for managing the annual Australian Good Design Awards. Good Design Australia also manages a number of leading industry award programs including the Victorian Premier's Design Awards and the Young Australian Design Awards.

The Good Design Awards is Australia's longest standing national design award and promotion program, and one of the few forums for professional industrial designers and manufacturers to showcase their design expertise to national and international audiences. At its helm, Brandon, who completed his doctorate in Environmental Design at UC and founded the company in 2011, has dreamt up and collaborated on some amazing design projects, from the creation of the World Design Impact Prize to being the first Australian to hold the position of President of the World Design Organisation (also known as International Council of Societies of Industrial Design).

So just how does a design expert think? We gave Brendon a camera and asked him to show us his favourite design pieces from around his office all the while explaining what good design means to him.

My favourite... design

Lumio Lamp

This beautifully designed lamp was one of the Good Design Award winners in our Furniture and Lighting Category this year. It folds up into a timber-covered book when not in use and when you open it up, it fans out to reveal a soft and elegant light. The best thing about this light is that it runs off a rechargeable battery so you can take it anywhere – I just love it.

My favourite... re-design 

Hegs Peg

This clever clothes peg received a Good Design Award in our Lifestyle Category. It is a peg with a hook that allows you to hang clothes on a line and also hook certain items securely (such as heavy, wet jeans). It was designed by a friend of mine in Adelaide and to me, it represents everything about good design. It is simple, it works really well, it has been very well made with high-quality materials and commercially, it is doing really well in the market. I love this little peg as it reminds me there are so many things that can still be re-designed to be better and more useful. 

My favourite... treasure

Pen Holder

One of my most treasured items. My little boy bought this for me for Father's Day with his pocket money (he was only six at the time). He was so proud to give it to me and told me how much time he spent thinking about the perfect present that was both functional and would look good on my desk. Every time I look at it, I think of him!

My favourite... gift

Elephant

This is a very special gift that was given to me at the end of my term as president of the International Council of Societies of Industrial Design – now called the World Design Organisation. The gift came from the incoming president who is from South Africa and who told me I reminded him of a wise elephant. 

My favourite... sound

Sonos

This wireless speaker represents design excellence in every way. It is so incredibly intuitive to use and produces brilliant sound quality. We constantly have music playing in our house and without a doubt, this device is one of the most used products in our house. The people who started Sonos were designers from Bose and absolutely understand how important design is to products in this space. Simplicity and elegance make this one of my favourite things.

Would you like to share a week at work with your fellow alumni? We'd love to hear from you! Simply send us an email and we'll be in touch. And don't forget to check out the many different cool and interesting things our graduates are doing on our blog.

Words and images by Dr Brandon Gien

Dr Brandon Gien PhD in Environmental Design, University of Canberra (2011) Dr Brandon Gien is the CEO of Good Design Australia, an international design promotion organisation that conducts Australia's Good Design Awards program. The award is one of the oldest and most respected accolades in the world with its origins dating back to 1958. Dr Gien is also the first Australian to be named the President of the International Council of Societies of Industrial Design (ICSID). The society is a non-profit organisation that protects and promotes the interests of some 400,000 industrial designers in more than 50 countries worldwide. Dr. Gien was formerly the General Manager of Design Strategy and Head of Corporate Services at Standards Australia, recognised by the Government as Australia's peak standards body. He was made a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia (DIA) in 2011 for his contribution to the design profession in Australia and holds a PhD in Environmental Design from the University of Canberra's School of Art and Design.