Designer Selects - Objects that tell stories with Coco Flip’s Kate Stokes

For Kate Stokes, one half of Melbourne-based furniture and lighting design studio Coco Flip, the best design objects are those that tell stories.

As a design studio, Coco Flip’s process is anything but hurried. The studio emphasises letting ideas unfold over time and allowing inspiration from its travels, community and the artisan makers it collaborates with to bubble to the surface naturally. As a result, the pieces it creates are imbued with soul, materiality and an authentic narrative.

As part of our Designer Selects series, Stokes shares the international and local design pieces she turns to for their colour, playfulness and innate character.

*Kate Stokes, left and Haslett Grounds, right. Founders of Coco Flip. Photography: Pier **Carthew**.*

Akari UF3-Q (Isamu Noguchi)

*Available from Vitra. Image: via Vitra.*

This is a classic piece that has held my attention for a very long time. It has such a strong presence and I love that each lamp is still handmade in the Ozeki workshop, a traditional family-run company based in Gifu, Japan.

Wayne Pate artwork

*Wayne Pate, ‘Trying To Get Somewhere’. Original artwork. While this exact piece may not be available, Pate’s work is available from Wayne Pate. Image: Wayne Pate’s Instagram*

Wayne Pate is a Brooklyn-based artist whose work I’ve admired for a long time. I’d love to have one of his paintings at home one day. There’s something about them that really resonates with me. I think his use of colour and form, and his linework are exceptional.

Dehei bedding

Bedding and towelling are my weakness – I can’t get enough. Perhaps, it’s their ability to lift a room on a relatively small budget. I find Dehei bedding really nostalgic and the colour combinations are just amazing. What a treat to jump into a soft, colourful bed at the end of the day!

Shane Gabier bookends

*A pair of New York ceramic artist Shane Gabier’s bookends. Available directly from the artist via Instagram. Image via Shane Gabier.*

Shane Gabier’s ceramics feel so fresh, playful and unique. I love their handmade quality, the patterning and the colours. So yummy.

Fe y Lola rugs

*One of Fe y Lola’s striking rugs. Available from Fe y Lola. Image via Fe y Lola.*

We’ve just returned from spending three months in Mexico and were lucky enough to meet the family behind Fe y Lola. They have a four-generation lineage of weavers and natural dyers from Teotitlán del Valle, a Zapotec community in the state of Oaxaca, Mexico. Their story and history are so beautiful, and they combine their traditions with really considered, contemporary design to produce incredible one-off rugs.

Dancer table lamp (Coco Flip)

*The Dancer lamp, available from Coco Flip. Image supplied by Coco Flip.*

Dancer is Coco Flip’s most recent lighting collection – a collaboration with talented Melbourne-based ceramicist Belinda Wiltshire. The bold, hand-brushed stripes add a really striking presence and the tilting feature of the table lamp makes it easy to adjust the lighting and set the mood.

For more bold, artful design inspiration, check out Penman Brown’s selection of curated furniture pieces that make sculptural statements.

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