BKK Expanded Talk Series 2026: Making. Materials. Matter.
Description
As systems change faster than the hands that make things, an old boundary is being tested. Where does design end and craft begin?
As design and manufacturing systems shift beneath us, this conversation brings together three distinct vantage points on craft: a maker's lifelong devotion to material and technique, a value-systems perspective on where craft sits within design and economy, and a practitioner's eye on accessibility and culture. Together, they ask whether we are asking the right questions about craft's place in contemporary design, not as decoration or "value-add," but as a foundational discipline in its own right.
Featuring Jon Goulder, Simone LeAmon (Design Institute of Australia), and Kate Stokes (Coco Flip), the panel will be chaired by Vaughan Howard (maker and architect at BKK Architects). The conversation will traverse craft guilds and mercantile pressures, the erosion of local manufacturing access, the fetishisation of "handmade," and craft's uneasy relationship with the wider design community. It will ask who gets to be a craftsperson, who decides which practitioners are brought into the design process, and whether new technologies — AI among them — might restore visibility and respect to material intelligence rather than erode it further. For anyone curious about where authenticity, economy, and design thinking meet, this is a conversation about protecting what making still has to teach us.
Lineup
Simone LeAmon
Simone LeAmon is one of Australia's leading design advocates, with more than thirty years of experience spanning design practice, cultural leadership, education and strategic sector development. As Chief Executive Officer of the Design Institute of Australia, she leads the national peak body advancing design representation, policy and professional practice. Previously, she served as the inaugural Hugh D.T. Williamson Curator of Contemporary Design and Architecture at the National Gallery of Victoria. An award-winning designer, curator and educator, LeAmon is also an Adjunct Professor at RMIT University and a recipient of the 2021 Good Design Australia Women in Design Award. She is committed to strengthening the cultural, social and economic impact of Australian design.
Jon Goulder
Jon Goulder is an Australian designer-maker and fourth-generation furniture maker whose practice spans limited-edition collections, bespoke commissions and furniture for significant architectural projects. Working from his Adelaide studio, his work is defined by a deep understanding of craft, material and making, with particular expertise in timber, leather and textiles. Goulder’s work has been exhibited and represented internationally and is held in the permanent collections of most Australian state galleries and the National Gallery of Australia. From 2018 to 2024, he was Senior Designer at Snøhetta, and today works with leading architects, designers and craftspeople to create enduring contemporary Australian furniture and lighting.
Kate Stokes
Kate Stokes is the founder and creative director of Coco Flip, a Melbourne-based furniture and lighting studio she established in 2010. Her work explores the relationship between material, function and form, creating pieces that are thoughtful, enduring and made to be lived with. Working closely with local manufacturers and craftspeople, Kate's practice is grounded in collaboration, curiosity and a commitment to Australian design. Alongside leading Coco Flip, she enjoys fostering conversations around design, craft and the role of creativity in everyday life.
Vaughan Howard
Vaughan Howard is an architect and maker whose practice spans civic and infrastructure projects to residential, furniture, objects and model-making. Alongside his work with BKK Architects, his Riverbend Chair was recently featured at the Melbourne Design Week Exhibition 100 Chairs, and his ‘Paper Walls’ model commission is on permanent display in the State Library of Victoria. Vaughan has a fascination with craft, materials and making by hand, which informs his designs at all scales.
Description
https://b-k-k.com.au/expanded/making-materials-matter
You can find out more on our Instagram @BKKArchitects
BKK Architects acknowledge the Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung people of the Kulin Nation, Traditional Custodians of the land upon which we live and work. We pay our respect to all Elders past, present and emerging. We also recognise all Torres Strait Islander people.
Tickets for good, not greed Humanitix dedicates 100% of profits from booking fees to charity
