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South Drawn’s Inner Workings
A glimpse inside Melbourne-based lighting company South Drawn’s studio and workshop reveals a team with a diverse design sensibility and a true reverence for craft.
Led by brothers Luke and Christian Mills, South Drawn has produced visually refined and technically resolved lighting since its launch nearly four years ago. Its output is layered – from design and fabrication to distribution and marketing – and the creative process illustrates its nascent centre. Spearheaded by Luke as the company’s design director, it is defined by an intuitive, explorative and hands-on approach that draws on the interests and aptitudes of each team member.
The creatively charged atmosphere is pliable and fluid, and it ultimately leads to exciting and authentic outcomes in both material and form.
As Luke says, individual input undoubtedly enriches the outcome and, as such, prototyping and experimentation are always encouraged, and brainstorming sessions know no bounds. “We hold a lot of workshops as a design team, which means tapping into the product sample library or exploring new concepts together,” he says. “A lot of it just comes from curiosity around a material or an idea but that’s what’s so nice about being under the one roof – we can all be involved.”
Not every material or method reaches a finite resolution, yet this, as Luke attests, is the point. He believes having an inquisitive mindset without the confines of a specific function or purpose is integral to the creative process. Thus, any given day in the workshop can see a slew of new materials and concepts brought to the proverbial drawing board, including flame-charred oak, glazed ceramic and seaweed. “Sometimes it can be really precise and other times we might look at how we can manipulate [a material], then someone might take it into the workshop to cut it, mould it and prototype it.” This creatively charged atmosphere is pliable and fluid, and it ultimately leads to exciting and authentic outcomes in both material and form.
Collaboration lies at the heart of many design studios, and at South Drawn, it transpires both in-house and among the broader creative community. Christian, who oversees production and logistics, says, “Keeping a close circle and network of trades, suppliers and artisans allows us to easily connect and communicate with our collaborators. Being able to visit them enriches our own understanding of the collections we produce.” Though speciality items are sent out to local manufacturers including Bendigo Pottery, much of the assembly and creation occurs in-house. This means the work returns to the hands of South Drawn’s team before illuminating the interiors of private residences, hotels and office spaces.
For Luke and Christian, producing exceptional lighting is only one part of the equation. They are equally as interested in cultivating a positive and creative space for their team. “Because Luke and I are family, there’s that dedication to each other fuelled by the knowledge that we’re building something we’re both passionate about. It’s a creative outlet and a business,” says Christian.
“Because Luke and I are family, there’s that dedication to each other fuelled by the knowledge that we’re building something we’re both passionate about.”
Fostering this is something that seems to come naturally to the pair. For example, Luke is always willing to lend an ear – or a hand – to a colleague’s personal project, team lunches are frequent, and Christian encourages clients to visit the studio and workshop to better understand the company and its endeavours.
This sense of openness is redolent of the company Luke and Christian have built which, unsurprisingly, carries similar values to that of a family – a bright, warm and creatively driven family, to be precise.
