The Home Front: Christian Woo crafts a statement piece for luxury appliance brand

Vancouver based Christian Woo is a master craftsman and designer. His studio makes beautiful furniture for commercial and residential projects, and was chosen to design and deliver the 15-foot black walnut dining table for Fisher & Paykel’s Experience Centre, in Toronto.

Here, Woo describes how this commission came about, what was involved and where it’s led.

Fisher & Paykel’s design team approached him with a clear idea of what they wanted — the 3 Column (dining) Table that Woo’s studio produces.

It was the perfect starting point and his vision grew from there, says Woo.

“We sketched, built models and worked out a few kinks before arriving at the final design. Our table proposal was a scaled up version of the Column Table,” he says.

Woo came recommended to the Fisher & Paykel team by architect Omar Gandhi, which was a great honour, Woo says. He received an email from Fisher & Paykel’s COO, Crt Prasnikar, requesting to visit Woo’s studio.

“During his visit, he said the project architect (for the experience centre) Omar Gandhi had recommended us. What a massive compliment. I was really thrilled and honoured to hear that. I had never met nor worked with Omar Gandhi before and he is a legend, so obviously I was very flattered,” he says.

The meeting went well, Prasnikar shared a bit about the project and Woo felt 100 per cent on board, he says.

From that point, they worked closely with Fisher & Paykel’s design team, led by senior brand experience designer Xanthe Whiteley, and Scott Sampson, a senior architect at Omar Gandhi Architects.

Collaborating with these teams made the project feel seamless, says Woo.

“There was so much creative freedom, and a lot of trust placed in us to make something special.”

The decision to use black walnut felt like a natural fit, chosen for its gorgeous, timeless quality, says Woo. All the hardwood pieces they use, at his studio, are FSC certified, he says. This certification means the materials are sourced using sustainable practices.

Designing a statement piece that balances bold esthetics with functionality is no easy task, but the column design they chose does achieve this, says Woo.

“The column design language is a theme I have been working with for maybe the past decade. It has become a language within our studio and therefore has become somewhat recognizable and distinct.”