Furniture | September 6, 20074 Comments

Designer of the Week: David Moser

I had the fortunate experience of talking to David Moser, the principal designer at Thomas Moser Furniture, which has been making hand crafted furniture for more than thirty years. And, in a world where almost everything we buy today is made in China, Thomas Moser remains in Maine. Their Freeport showroom (one of eight) is the next town over from where my Grandfather lived. That’s where I first saw and admired their furniture. I’ve always loved the clean, somehow-modern-yet-timeless design of their furniture. Now they’re coming out with new designs, such as the Edo. I asked David about his new designs and where Thomas Moser fits into the larger world of furniture design. Here’s what he had to say.

Design Hole: Moser furniture is often compared to Shaker. How do you characterize the Moser “style”?
David: I think of our style as an amalgamation of Shaker, Japanese, and Danish design aesthetics. For example, Thos. Moser is like Shaker in that when we make a joint we embrace it as part of the design. We don’t hide anything.

Design Hole: You have some new lines, like Edo, and Vida. Why did you decide to branch out?
David: My father came up with 20 good things, such as the New Gloucester Rocker. For the next 20 years we used those designs to build the business to a place where we now have showrooms around the country. Those 20 good things allow me to create new pieces.

Design Hole: Are you the principal designer at Thomas Moser?
David: Yes, about 10 years ago my father said he would retire. We hired a company to take over the business end of the company. It freed me up so I could design full time. I fancy myself more as a creator and an artist than a furniture designer. I love doing new things. I need to take everything I learned yesterday and apply it in a new way tomorrow.

The new Vita dining table is a risk for me. I designed it and I decided to run with it. We don’t do focus groups. I would rather ask for forgiveness than for permission. I believe this new design will have an impact and will do well.

Design Hole: Sustainability is a big deal these days. Everyone claims to be Green, but you’ve always had that reputation. Why?
David: We use a lot of lumber from Collins Pine. They got an award from Global Green, which is run by Mikhail Gorbachev, as the first lumber company to raise sustainable Black Cherry. But we’ve never advertised that fact because I feel that those people who really know about our company know that we’re a company with integrity. All our wood comes from sustainable growers. We just don’t pay for the audit to certify it.

Design Hole: Who are your favorite designers?
David: I don’t look to fashion. We’re not trying to satisfy the next trend. I don’t go to design shows. We just do what we do.

Design Hole: How do you see yourself relative to furniture artisans like George Nakashima?
David: Others made George Nakashima famous. He had a particular way of working and he was discovered. The outside world really decides who or what the next big thing is going to be.
In my opinion, his body of work was very narrow. He designed a few things and then never took it further. Nakashima stayed so myopic. He couldn’t recreate himself.

I do the work that I do and I hope that people like it. I derive great happiness and joy in the work that I create and if people recognize the work that I do and it impacts future designers that would be wonderful. But I don’ t know if I’ll ever receive that kind of recognition.

What we do is timeless and it takes a long time for that to be proven. And it’s not for me to prove.

Design Hole: What makes a piece of furniture timeless?
David: It’s a piece that doesn’t try to make an overt statement. It can stand alone in a room and have a dignified presence. Yet it can also yield to other more outspoken pieces in a room and still have meaning. No matter how short the skirts get, the piece still looks good.

I like working with just a few elements. It’s a real challenge. If you make something really simple that’s also beautiful, it will stand the test of time. That’s hard to do because with only three components because you can’t hide imperfections.

Design Hole: I’m reading a new book by Dana Thomas called Deluxe: How Luxury Lost its Luster. Basically, it’s about how we used to pay a lot of money for something because the quality was better. Now, the quality is in some case worse, yet we’re paying more for a designer’s name. Do you see that happening in your business?
David: I think that pertains to Dakota Jackson. Someone is being exploited and someone else is getting rich. Stickley Furniture is made in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

We stayed in Maine even though it costs us and arm and a leg. The United States is not a place for manufacturing, so it costs a lot to pay a living wage to a worker. Our average employee has been with us for 10 years. That’s why our prices are what they are. Thomas Moser is cost based. So the price we charge for our furniture starts at the lumberyard and goes all the way up to the packaging.

Design Hole: What advice would you give to a young designer?
David: Find your own voice and be true to yourself. If it’s a design that has an impact for the greater world it will have success. But design for yourself, not for the world. You won’t necessarily be a financial success, but money shouldn’t define success.

Thomas Moser Furniture will open its ninth showroom in Los Angeles soon. You can see their furniture and read more about the company by visiting their web site here. Don’t forget to tell them that Jennifer at Design Hole sent you! And thank you David, for taking time from your busy day to talk to me.

UPDATE: I wanted to clarify David’s statement regarding Stickley furniture being manufactured in Vietnam. I confirmed via Stickley’s website that they have a line called Antiquities, which is made in Vietnam. The remainder of their furniture is made in the USA. Just wanted to clear that up.

Tags: designers, interview, sustainable