Check Out Bob Dornberger’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Bob Dornberger.

Hi Bob, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I grew up in rural Alabama and luckily, was able to attend an arts magnet school in Birmingham. While I was in high school, a recruiter from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago came to my high school and encouraged me to apply. It was the only college application I did and I was accepted. I studied fine art and sculpture there but after college and moving to Los Angeles, I began to work in cabinetry and furniture, combining my arts background with functional objects. I wound up working at wHY Architecture for a decade as the Director of the Objects Workshop. I was able to design larger scale projects like the furniture and cabinetry at the Institute for Contemporary Art and smaller scale such as package design for liquor brand Yuzuri. I basically worked on all the non-architecture design projects: exhibit design, furniture, objects. I also was in charge of the remodels of the office in LA and the new office buildout in New York. I left wHY in 2019 to start my own design shop, Maison Bob, where I am fortunate to work on residential and institutional projects as well as my own products.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
After a brief 3 year stint at the Natural History Museum’s exhibit shop, I opened my own cabinet shop. But I needed to shut that down during the 2008 financial crisis. People just weren’t spending on their houses and kitchens during that period. All of a sudden, there was no new work coming in and I had just had a baby. So it hasn’t been a straight line. I was lucky to wind up at wHY and learn from Kulapat Yantrasast as he grew his architecture firm and was able to widen my exposure to LA’s art community.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I design and make functional objects that take the craft seriously but don’t take themselves too seriously, I’ve done an ongoing open edition of Brush-Rocks, Brick-Brushes and Snack-Rocks. Some of my products are jokes hidden in plain sight. I like to design work that is a little off-kilter, CaveMan Modern.

I split my time between Los Angeles and the High Desert, so the form and materials of the desert informs my work. I try to design objects I want to age well and live with and use so you’ll see a lot of stone and rocks incorporated into my work. As a woodworker, I also love wood because it has its own beauty, it’s easily shaped, and it’s organic. It connects us to nature but also has structural strength. It’s warm and tactile and its grain shows its own history.

I’m also always trying to learn new techniques and new processes. I’ve been experimenting with more turned wood lately in my latest set of candlesticks that also reference more traditional forms of design. I’m inspired by vintage forms and travel. I always try to search out antique markets when I’m traveling. I feel like I can define success if something I design winds up in an antique store in 100 years and people still want to buy it. So much of design today can feel so on-trend and fashionable it ends up disposable, so I want to design pieces that have a timelessness to them.

If you had to, what characteristic of yours would you give the most credit to?
I think strong visualization skills have taken me pretty far. I have always drawn as a way to think through projects.
That allows me to take on complex projects or challenges and break them down into smaller pieces. A kitchen is really just a 3-d puzzle of small components.

Pricing:

• Objects range from $100-$1000
• Furniture ranges from $1000 to $3000
• Custom millwork and casework is price on request

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.maisonbob.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bobdornberger/?hl=en

Image Credits
Dimitri Newman Photography, Bob Dornberger Studio