Vincent Tsang is among Australian Design Review’s 30UNDER30 Interior and Product Designers for 2024/2025. Here, we get to know the industrial designer at Vert Design, who talks about his creative influences, Jony Ive and Ivy Ross, and his career highlight working with Zero Co. 

Australian Design Review: Do you remember your first encounter with design? 

Vincent Tsang: I don’t remember my first encounter with design because its impact is so deeply subconscious. However, growing up, I think it was closely linked to my experience with technology. I distinctly remember in middle school having such an affinity for the white iMac at the time, which sat in a close friend’s living room. I remember being amazed that a computer could look this clean. This formative experience sparked a lifelong adoration for the work of Jony Ive and the Apple design team and my journey into industrial design.

ADR: What guiding values drive you and what kind of impact do you hope to make through your work? 

VT: The privilege to be able to work on industrial design projects is that the work has the potential to impact a lot of people as it becomes mass-produced and sold. As a result, I must ensure that I take a lot of pride and care in the work I do to ensure that I am ultimately contributing to society with a net-positive outcome. It is, therefore, very important that ‘the why’ is always considered and defined as a way of grounding the work and that it is uniquely clear to every project. In the studio, we call this ‘achieving conceptual clarity’ as it is important when working within a team that we are all aligned on the ‘why’ as we focus our efforts towards our client brief.

Part of my practice is also to study culture and to be immersed in the work of others, from architecture to art and fashion and to learn how others are able to solve problems elegantly and to admire products that are successful and understand why. The long-term impact is that we are able to create products that lend dignity to people and their needs as they engage with our products in their daily lives. The hope is that through good use, they might be able to discern, at a subconscious level, the care and consideration that was put towards coming up with the solution.

ADR: What has been a highlight in your career so far?

VT: The highlight in my career so far has been the pleasure of working on some truly spectacular work with Zero Co on their ForeverFill project. It is not every day that we have the ability to work with a client who truly stands for sustainability and they are passionate about creating solutions for household waste. While my contributions were predominately in the early conceptual thinking and design phases, it was in this space that I was able to come up with some truly novel insights based on research and thinking, which amounted to a product that felt different and truly represented the mission-based brand of Zero Co. The product can also reach so many homes and workspaces, which truly excites me, as people benefit and quietly appreciate our collective efforts.

ADR: If you could work with any designer, artist or other creative – living or dead – who would it be and why?

VT: Someone who has become deeply influential in my work and practice is Ivy Ross, who is the chief design officer for consumer devices at Google. Her work in collaboration with the International Mind + Arts Lab at Johns Hopkins University around neuroaesthetics was deeply fascinating and features the study of the neural activity of the human brain as it encounters the arts and its effect on psychology, wellbeing and physiology. 

The work lends dignity to our practice and proves that careful consideration towards form and function truly matters and taps deep into our psychology. Her playful and child-like curiosity, wisdom and ability to draw connections across disciplines and paradigms of thinking through collaboration is what I aspire towards with my own personal practice. It would be an enriching experience to be able to work on a project with her and the team at Google. 

ADR: How did it feel to make it into Australian Design Review’s 30UNDER30?

VT: I feel truly humbled to be part of the 30UNDER30 this year as a representative of industrial design and the team at Vert Design. Having practised for a few years now, it is clear that often our efforts in design are hidden in plain sight, and it is gratifying to be acknowledged for the work we do day-to-day. 

Images supplied. Headshot by Caity Duffus.

ADR’s 30UNDER30 Interior and Product Designers stream is brought to you by major sponsor Neolith, alongside partners Miele, Interface and Tongue & Groove. The program is also supported by practice partners Arent&Pyke, BLP, BVN, Cera Stribley, COX Architecture, GroupGSA, Hassell, HDR, Richards Stanisich, Rothelowman, SJB and Williams Burton Leopardi. To find out more about the final 30, head to the winners page.