In conversation with Ayush Kasliwal

What is the earliest memory of being aware of what design meant in your life?

It was when I saw paper models of homes at an architect’s office. I was at a boarding school, and I went to visit the home of a classmate over the weekend. I saw the models made by his dad, an architect. I had seen doll houses earlier but it was for the first time that I figured that I could make them too. The first models prompted me to think of space, and plan it, and then add small bits of furniture and paint; it was more like play.

What is the one thing that one can always find on your work desk?

My red moleskine diary, I am never without it.

Why did traditional crafts draw you in so intensely at the start of your career?

The incredible capability of the hand to manipulate materials, and the elegance of handling things simply, but in a very sophisticated way is what has drawn me to our traditional crafts. My education as a designer, in NID, Ahmedabad, gave a wide exposure to the crafts of our country and instilled a great respect for the handmade . With teachers like Ashok Chatterjee and M.P Ranjan, who have worked extensively with crafts and craftspeople , my working with the crafts was a natural extension of my education.