Cool by Design: Mexico's LCMX Heads for Dubai
BY JANA PERKOVIC | SEPTEMBER 23, 2015
Ricardo Rodríguez Elías, founder and Creative Director of LCMX
(Courtesy of LCMX)
RELATED
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EVENTS
Dubai Design Week
Design is all about making things, and the way we make things has undergone
a revolution in recent years. From 3D printing to crowd-funding, there have
never been more tools for enterprising designers to step out of corporate
employment and set up on their own.
Blouin ARTINFO has started Cool by Design, a series designed to showcase the
enterpreneurial spirit, and creative flair, of design start-ups around the world.
Founded in 2009, LCMX is a design and architecture studio and workshop run by
two brothers from the heart of Mexico City. Specializing in solid wood furniture,
LCMX's projects range from domestic interiors to conceptual spaces, including
the furniture for Mexico's pavilion at Venice Biennale in 2014. In October this
year, LCMX has have been invited to represent emerging design in Mexico at
Dubai Design Week.
Name of Business: LCMX
Makes: furniture, interior design and architecture
Since: 2009
Based in: Mexico City
How many people do you employ: 5 – 10
Age of oldest employee: 50
Age of youngest employee: 30
Name & Role: Ricardo Rodríguez Elías – Creative Director / Founder
Who are you, and how many are you? I'm Ricardo Rodríguez Elías and
togheter with my brother Otniel Josue we lead LCMX.
The company - what exactly do you do? LCMX is a design & architecture
studio currently working on architecture, interior design and furniture.
And what do you definitely not do? We just work on projects that like us, so
we try to keep this idea alive...
What did you do before starting this business? Before LCMX, I was
involded in a communication agency with some friends, working on marketing
projects with big brands. My brother was involded in architecture projects with a
couple of firms from Mexico City. Our father is a cabinet maker-carpenter, so our
family background was a big influence in our decision to create LCMX
What is your favourite/most popular product? We love tables, and is one
of the products the clients frequently asking for.
Where can one buy your products? You can buy our products directly from
us in our studio-showroom. www.lc-mx.com.
Who buys your products? Our customers normally are private clients.
What is your typical day at work/in the office? In the morning I start with
answering emails and making to-do lists, for myself and for the people who work
for us. After midday I'll start with the crative process for the projects in wich we
are involved, making new designs, sketching, prototypes, etc.
What important lesson have you learned in the last year? "Sometimes
you win, sometimes you learn."
What is the best thing that has happened to you since starting the
business? One of the things I love to do is travel. When I started the business,
one of my objectives was to try to show our products and projects internationally,
with the idea to travel often. The goal has been accomplished: we had the
opportunity to be part of the Mexican Pavilion of the Architecture Biennale in
Venice Italy in 2014 – we were invited by Gaeta-Springall architects, the curators
of the Pavilion. And now, we will participate in the Design Week in Dubai in
October, thanks to Abierto Mexicano de Diseño who has invited us.
How would you describe your design community? We try to stay in
contact with other design firms and studios, to share experiences and ideas, or
just to have fun. Mexico City at this moment has a significant design community,
working together with the idea to consolidate the brand of Mexican design in the
international context. Also, different platforms have been created some years ago
by independent designers. These are Abierto Mexicano de Diseño, (AMD), La
Lonja, Design Week México, Decode, Mextropoli, to name a few. Those platforms
are an excellent example of how this design community is growing.
What what you got planned for the rest of 2015? At Dubai Design Week in
October, we will present one of the latest tables we have designed, and our
favorite collection of Lamps, 'Felina'. For the rest of the 2015, we are working on
interior design projects, and also planning a collection of objects inspired by
scientist experiments. We will show you.
In five years, design will be... Amazing