Mood Board: 5 Things That Inspire Furniture Designer Christian Woo

1. My Kids

I love seeing what inspires and interests them, how they interpret the world around them. One of my daughters was playing with wood blocks, and I took one of her stacks and turned that into a collection of work, which became the source for my series for Zanotta. From very simple beginnings, it’s become a cornerstone of my work in studio.

2. Our House

We’d walked by this place for years and always loved it—but we didn’t know it was an early collaboration between architects Barry Downs and Fred Hollingsworth until it went up for sale. There’s an amazing room at the top of the stairs where we listen to our records, with an incredible view of the mountains—I go every morning with my coffee and just sit there.

3. Vintage Stories on Vinyl

We have an automatic record player in that top room of the house, and my daughters—they’re 5 and 7—love operating it and listening to old stories: Hans Christian Andersen, Dr. Seuss, folk records for kids. It’s a relaxing ritual for all of us.

4. Caulfeild Rocks with Buff

Buff’s been my dog for 14 years now, and going to the Rocks has been the one constant thing since he was a puppy. It’s an inspiring place to be: the shoreline is made of massive granite rocks that heat up in the sun, and when the tide comes in, it’s a clear and warm spot to swim.

5. My Studio

When inspiration strikes, it often happens here.  It’s an industrial area, but you can see the masts of the sailboats on the water in front of us, and we look out on the Ironworkers bridge—it’s a pretty unique part of the city. Plus, one of our fellow artists here, Bobbie Burgers, has these incredible vegetable gardens in planters from Green Theory that  define our space—we even get hummingbirds and chickadees. It’s a really peaceful spot.