Oliver MacLatchy of Wood Melbourne

Oliver has worked as a carpenter for over 16 years, on both rooftop apartments in Melbourne’s CBD as well as smaller scale residential projects. It was at one of these jobs that he realised that no one else was doing timber tapware. The carpenter, builder, tinkerer and inventor went home that night and began to create Wood Melbourne,  which officially launched in 2014.

Wood Melbourne‘s timber spouts provide a warm, sustainable and natural alternative to traditional spouts. Each individual piece is designed and made by hand in Oliver’s workshop in Melbourne using reclaimed timber to guarantee that each piece is unique. Oliver has now developed his brand’s aesthetic further delving into a concrete line.

As each piece is made by hand, their sizing is entirely customisable. Oliver’s complete range can be viewed on his Designer Profile & purchased at our Local Design Marketplace.

Tell us about your design studio & workshop; where are you based, how long have you been there, and what is your specialty or signature style?

I’m in Fairfield, Melbourne where I’ve got about 150 meters squared or so of room to move. It’s a great space – a huge shed, basically. I’ve got a little fireplace which is perfect in winter and a mini ramp which is great for a quick break or a broken leg! I’ve been here for three years now and I’m not planning on going anywhere.

I launched Wood Melbourne with our signature piece; Timbre Bath Spouts. Since then I’ve been able to add lots of creative tapware products and bathroom furniture to the range – I want to reinvent the bathroom space.

My signature style is raw materials and clean lines. When I’m working through a new design I try to keep it simple, which is really quite difficult. I like to let the materials do the talking.

Tell us about the pieces you produce; what are your main influences and how did you incorporate these into the design?

I think my main influence is the materials, trying to show case their natural beauty. I did a little bit of work in Sri Lanka in 2004 and have been back many times seeing a lot of Geoffrey Bawa stuff. This really opened my eyes up to the use of natural  materials, in particular timber, concrete and stone. This had a big effect on me and my designs. As far a techniques go, I come up with a design and push it until it works. I’m not afraid of trying new things and have a knack for making things work – a combination of hard work and know how!

How do you find doing commissioned pieces for clients? How does the creative process differ from your set collection pieces?

I really enjoy working with people who have an idea or a vision, it gives me drive to make it happen. If someone comes to me with an idea and we’re on the same page, I become so engrossed that I wake up at 3am and go to the workshop to try a new idea. I really love this, when you have these nutty ideas that actually work, it’s why I do it. Having a brief to work to can bring out some great stuff, it’s basically experimenting until it works or doesn’t. There a few things I’ve done that don’t work, I keep them in the workshop on display as a reminder and just incase I come up with a way that it can.

What’s your favourite aspect of being a designer/maker? Are there many challenges?

As corny as it sounds, it’s pure passion! I get to hang out in my workshop with the best tools and make things I want to make. As far as challenges go, yes for sure but they are far out weighed by the positives.

What are your inspirations when creating new pieces? Do you have a favourite designer that influences you? 

Materials and environment. I find the things around me are the biggest inspiration. I love travelling and just taking in the little things that are different, thinking about how I can use this or what can I do with that? There is so much stuff around us that can be used in different ways and that’s what excites me. Oh, and people saying “you can’t do that”, that really inspires me to make it work.

How do you feel mass media and social platforms are influencing the furniture industry?

Things are very exciting. I like to think that people as designers are really quite brave, doing things that not long ago were thought impossible. There are a lot of individual players that are raising the bar. I love social media, particularly Instagram. It’s a great platform to share anything visual and I think it has given a lot of access to independent designers, which has helped the industry to flourish the past few years – in Melbourne and Australia particularly. I think it has also helped designers to connect with each other in their own communities and others – there’re some great pockets of flourishing design industries around the world at the moment. Melbourne definitely feels like one of these places and I love being a part of that. I think there’s a lot of really interesting stuff happening with product design in Iceland, Portugal and Indonesia, and with architecture in South America – there’s so much out there.

How important to you is the relationship between product and interactivity – do you think our surroundings influence how we live, work, or play?

Yes, yes and yes. If you wake up in the morning and you’ve only got one pair of shoes that you hate, you put them on and go about your day, but you don’t feel right. There is something holding you back – it’s the dodgy shoes. If you have shoes you love, you get up and have a great day. This is kind of a strange way to look at the influence that design has on our lives, but it sums it up. If you surround yourself with stuff you like and love and want to be around, you will be happier full stop!

What materials do you enjoy working with and why? How does manufacturing locally affect your design process and final product? 

I love working with natural materials, things that are pliable. Timber first and foremost, concrete is also wonderful, brass and marble are materials that I’ve only recently started exploring and it has opened up so many doors – the combination is just perfect. I’m a strong and true believer in local, I have nearly all my componentry made within 20kms. I love hunting down and finding people who understand what I’m trying to do. I have people doing brass folding, sealing and electroplating, and they all get it. Many people don’t think about the local employment that is created through the design and making process. I design around what I can make here and, believe it or not, you can and should do it. The final product speaks for itself. Just hold one of my taps, showerheads or basins; It’s hand made, made in Australia and feels and looks like nothing you’ve ever seen.

Why are design pieces & furniture important to our daily lives?

It shapes who we are as individuals. Your furniture is a story about you. Affordability is a real factor but I think that as a whole, clients are changing what they value. We’ve had access to cheap furniture for many years now in Australia and the appeal is starting to wear off. We are seeing more and more clients who value quality crafting over price. I really make a point of finding the balance between using quality materials and making the finished products affordable. People are remembering that when something lasts a long time, it is good value.

Can we expect some new released this year from Wood Melbourne?

I’ve got a few things coming out later in the year, which I’m sure you will be one of the first to hear about. I expect that we will be branching out from bathroom and tapware with our next products, but keeping the same focus on raw materials and simple lines.