Duncan Meerding
Lighting and Furniture Designer
Running his own designer-maker practise since 2010, Duncan has gained interest within the national landscape, gaining awards and more recently has gained places in international based awards, such as the peer judged DARC Award for having ‘Best Floor Light’ of 2018 for the Stump Light and then gaining a Winning placement in the Field of ‘Decorative Lighting’ in the SIT Furniture Design Award in 2022 for the Propeller Bloom 1500. He has also had a range of works commissioned both locally and internationally.
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In 2019 and 2022 Duncan was a guest teaching fellow in a world first bridging course called Architecture Beyond Sight in London, teaching blind and vision impaired architecture and design skills to the blind and vision impaired. Leading up the design-making module, Duncan was engaged due to his unique skillset as a world-leading vision impaired practitioner.
Duncan has exhibited his work in various countries around the world, including at the Euroluce lighting expo as part of the Milan Design Week in 2017 and 2019 and the Venice Design exhibit as part of the 2018 Biennial. His ‘Light Forest’ was included in the Vivid Sydney light walk in 2023, showcasing an interest in larger experiential works.
"Duncan creates lights and furniture inspired by Tasmanian nature. Light bursting from the periphery and the highly tactile nature of the work, reflect the alternative sensory world in which he designs"
Duncan will talk about this and his processes, alongside how one does not necessarily need to see in order to visualise; how utilisation of primitive design tools and ‘playfulness’ with the actual material being beneficial to the design process no matter the size or scope of the end work.