Olga Engel: sensory experiments

Olga Engel exhibits her work at Galerie Armel Soyer from March 20 to July 26. The show gives visitors a good sense of her work: it is imbued with luxury, minimalism, functionalism and has a sense of irony.

There is a certain focus on textures in her objects. They seem sensitive, yet strong. Created by the different materials in the series.  For example, wrought iron is combined with the gentleness of china spawns elegant pieces. This is a play with textures that create a sensory experience, which has a curious, naive or primitive effect.

In particular, the designer pays special attention to proportion and harmony as she says:  “Beauty and harmony are treated on an equal footing. An object can only be beautiful if it is animated by a powerful idea or an emotion”.

This makes sense when we know how Olga Engel was attracted to design from a young age. Even before secondary school, she started experimenting with fabric and foam. Eventually, textile caught her attention and started to produce her own furniture and even designed bags, promoted by a local fashion house.  She graduated from the Moscow State Textile University, one of the oldest institutes for higher education of textile studies in Russia. Then, she continued her education at KLC School of Design in London. During her studies in the UK, she spent a lot of time in the studio of the renowned designer Mark Humphrey, where she had time and space to develop her personal style and designs.

All images by David Zagdoun.