Ahonen & Lamberg is a Paris-based design studio founded in 2006 by Finnish art directors Anna Ahonen and Katariina Lamberg. They have been designing magazines, currently SSAW, as well as doing visual and logo design for numerous fashion brands such as Carven, Diesel and John Lawrence Sullivan. We asked them about being female designers and what they think designers should be aware of in a world of fast-paced consumption cycles.
– How did you meet at the first time?
Katariina Lamberg: Actually we met already in Finland before moving to Paris. And then, we met again in Paris, where we both were already living.
Anna Ahonen: We both worked in Self Service magazine before we started our own design studio in 2006.
– You have been working together already 16 years!
Katariina : We are surprised too! In a good way. Maybe we are still working together because we started to work together before becoming close friends. If we had started working together being already friends the situation might be different.
Anna : We work closely together when discussing ideas and concepts for the projects, and then with our clients.
But when we do execution we can separate the work and have different roles in the process.
Katariina : We do the research and brainstorming together, but also work remotely after learning that during the pandemic. We share the work depending on the project and timeframe.
THE SISTERHOOD
– Could you explain what each other is good at?
Katariina: That is a very interesting question because many times people ask us if we do everything together.
Anna : I feel that Katariina always have a solution for every problem, even before anyone else even recognizes the problem — and she does it in a beautifully mathematical way.
Katariina：Yeah, okay…I tend to be more analytical, and Anna handles the more emotional parts. Our minds are different and we see things in different ways. That is why it works. We are very critical towards each other and one has to convince the other before moving forward with an idea. We have a big respect towards each other, that is very important.
– As you mentioned, both of you have a different perspective, so when you visit some art exhibition or watch a film do you end up appreciating different things?
Katariina：We don’t often visit art shows together. It happens when we travel, but not really in Paris. We can go to see same exhibitions but different times, and we can absolutely have different thoughts about them.
Anna: Yes we can. But even though our perspectives can be different, of course there is a common taste that we share. If we had big aesthetic or philosophical differences, we would not be here.
– How do you choose your clients and projects?
Katariina：It is quite rare that clients come to us and we have to say no…
Anna : We have been very lucky with that.
Katariina：It seems that people find us for what we do and who we are, and they already appreciate our work beforehand. They choose us to be part of their process. Also, it’s a different approach to work with a small design studio than a big advertising agency for example.
Anna : Also we are very open about the fact that we love to work with different clients, different fields and new challenges.
Katariina：It can be challenging to work with a client in new field, but it is also very exciting for us. Over the years we have developed a large network of professionals like photographers, stylists and programmers, so we can always find a perfect team for each project.
– Do you think it is important to play around to make new networks?
Anna : Sure. We like to go out and get inspired, meet new people. Together and separately.
Katariina: We went to a Halloween party together in Tokyo last night. It was a lot of fun! (Laughing)
PRINTEMPS
– Do you feel any different from the last time you came to Tokyo?
Katariina：The last time we visited in Tokyo was in 2014. Before we came here very often, and we didn’t even realize it has been that long! I think Tokyo feels somehow more open and international.
Anna : You can feel the same happening in Paris. People are more open.
– The topic jump a bit, but when the development and value of the central city develops, it can create a gap from the suburb. Now, we hear the voice of the rights and gender equality in Tokyo or Paris, but maybe it doesn’t happen outside the cities.
Katariina：Interesting. The central cities are doing better with the privileged bubbles, but on the other hand outside of these bubbles people might be more and more conservative. That’s very scary.
– Do you feel any change in the situation of gender equality in the design industry as a female designer? I don’t want to judge to say female or male designer thought.
Katariina：Since 2006, there has been a big change in general. In the field of graphic design, it used to be very masculine world of big advertising agencies and old school values. Some years back, all famous graphic designers, editor in chiefs and art directors were men. And now it’s not the case anymore.
Anna : Absolutely. There has been a change. That is great.
Katariina：Still though, we are not yet equal, even if the situation has changed for better. For example, our friend – a successful male art director – once sais to us: “How is it possible that two young women are running their own company?” He said it in a positive tone, as a joke, but still it was strange. Gender shouldn’t matter here. Often we have been also surprised (by women too) by comments like “You have kids even though you run your own company?!” It is possible to run your own business being two independent mothers!
Anna & Katariina : C’est la vie~!
– C’est la vie~! I feel the same situation while working in the creative industry, but I feel positive from your comments.
Katariina : As our client, the music world has changed a lot. We used to design a lot of CD and Vinyl covers. But now it’s digital and the format is completely different.
Anna : We still work for paper magazines, but less and less things are being printed these days.
Katariina : There’s also the ecological point of view with the printing.
SSAW
– Logo boom happened until recently. What did you think about it as designers?
Katariina : It’s not a new phenomenon. I remember Kappa, Lacoste etc logos everywhere in late 80s and early 90s.
Anna : It’s just recycling.
Katariina : Fashion world has always recycled everything, and now the cycle is getting faster and faster, you can see trends repeating more quickly. Also the pace is very fast, fashion brands used to have two collections per year, but now it’s more like six collection or even more. Plus you have different special projects in between.
– Would you like things to be slower?
Anna & Katariina : Yes. We don’t think that the current speed is positive.
Anna : We can work fast too, but we enjoy the process much more if we are able to take time for it.
Katariina : It also depends on the project, if we are working on a visual identity for a brand, it is ideal to have time for the process. Also for the client to understand their identity and story before we can put it in a visual form. With Arashi (creative director of John Lawrence Sullivan) we work with mood boards and keywords and we appreciate the working process with him.
– Now everyone can learn how to use the design tools that is digital, so it may be that we are entering an era in what design is.
Katariina : In our opinion, designers need to think a bigger time frame for the client’s identity and design for the future — whatever tools or media is used in the process.
– Do you have any upcoming project?
Anna : Yes, many, but nothing we can mention yet. The new issue of SSAW magazine, that we design, is out now, check it out, you can find it in the Tokyo bookstores.
Katariina : Well… John Lawrence Sullivan’s 20 years birthday will be next year, so we are planning to celebrate that with Arashi!
JOHN LAWRENCE SULLIVAN x Ahonen & Lamberg CAPSULE COLLECTION
text Yoshiko Kurata（https://www.instagram.com/yoshiko_kurata/）
Ahonen & Lamberg
HP : http://www.ahonenandlamberg.com/
Instagram : https://www.instagram.com/ahonen_and_lamberg/
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