Studio Œ
Lisa and Anne - Sophie, please introduce yourself:
We are Lisa Ertel and Anne-Sophie Oberkrome. We establish our own Design studio in Berlin in 2022. As Studio Œ, we work on a range of projects - whether they are self-initiated, commissioned or within academic contexts.
photo : Peter Oliver Wolff
#1 Can you tell us something about your training? What did you study and how did you find your way to working together under the name Studio Œ?
We met during our Product Design studies in Karlsruhe, in the south of Germany. Right from the start, we discovered a strong creative connection and began collaborating on projects from our very first semester. Over the course of our studies, this partnership naturally deepened and evolved. By the time we graduated, we were already working on commissioned projects beyond our academic work. Founding Studio Œ was a natural next step, it gave our collaboration an identity and formalized what had already become a strong working relationship. The name "Œ" is a ligature combining the first letters of our surnames, symbolizing how we merge our individual perspectives into something new.
#2 Your plywood chair prototype, 'Neil', is on display in the Vitra Design Museum's chair collection. Its innovative shape demonstrates the potential of this flexible material. What is your approach to choosing materials and shapes for your designs?
We’re particularly drawn to exploring the inherent properties of materials. Working with their texture, form, and even their color to push their potential. Our process often begins hands-on: cutting, sanding, experimenting directly with the material. This tactile engagement helps guide both the form and the concept, creating a sensory foundation for each design. We’re especially fascinated by natural materials and their ability to change over time, how they respond to touch, age, and use. They carry a vitality that becomes part of the narrative of the object. Often, we focus on just one material in a project, allowing us to fully explore its possibilities. This approach also supports sustainability, as it simplifies recycling or disposal at the end of a product’s life cycle.
#3 For the Italian furniture manufacturer Mattiazzi you worked on a series called 'OTO' focusing on the woodworking process with the aim of creating a mobile extension of architecture that blends seamlessly into its surroundings. Could you tell us a bit more about this project and your second series for Mattiazzi, 'DOPO‘?
In both of our collaborations with Mattiazzi, our focus was on exploring the natural qualities of wood – not just visually, but especially through touch. We wanted the tactile experience to be central, inviting a more intuitive interaction with the objects.
Both OTO and DOPO challenge conventional norms in their own ways. With DOPO, for instance, we introduced a fourth leg that extends above the seat, resembling a walking stick. This unexpected detail creates new functions: it can be leaned on, used to hang a bag, or to easily move the stool. The idea was born from field research we conducted in Berlin bars ;), where we closely observed how people interact with stools in real-life settings. These insights directly influenced the ergonomics and usability of our design.
OTO, on the other hand, draws inspiration from architectural details like steps or ledges. Its slim, elongated form allows it to sit neatly against walls or alongside other furniture, functioning as both a seat and a storage element. During development, we worked with raw beams and planks, treating them almost like building blocks. This hands-on process helped us refine the proportions and discover new possibilities for form and function.
photo 1: Neil (2018) - Marcel Strauß & Jannis Zel, photo 2: OTO MC23 (2023) - Florian Böhm (Studio AKFB), photo 3: Dopo (2023) - Simon James
#4 As well as working as a duo, you founded the FAN Collective and collaborated with other designers as the Farm Group. What is your working routine as a duo, and what role does exchanging ideas and collaborating with other creatives play in your product design process?
Collaboration is at the heart of our practice. Our main and most continuous collaboration is our work together as Studio Œ. Every project begins with open dialogue. Brainstorming, exchanging thoughts, and building on each other’s ideas. It’s a bit like a ping-pong match: one of us serves an idea, the other responds, and the process continues until we land on something that excites us both.
As a duo, we primarily work on commissioned projects and within academic settings. Collaborating with companies gives us valuable insights into their specific expertise, production techniques, and craftsmanship that broadens our design perspective. On the other hand, teaching fosters a more experimental and reflective approach, encouraging us to question assumptions and explore new directions.
In collective groups like FAN and FARM, we carve out space to explore self-initiated themes and test alternative working methods. These collaborative environments allow us to shape the tempo of our work and dive into more experimental territory. The insights and approaches we develop through these collectives often feed back into our client work, enriching our overall design process.
photo 1: Silo Swing (2023) - Julia Sang Nguyen, photo 2 - 3: Romer Glasses (2020) - FAN Collective
#5 For the past three years, you have also been teaching Open Design alongside Konstantin Grcic at the HfBK Hamburg. What have you learnt from the process of teaching design, and has it influenced your own work?
As the name suggests, the Open Design class is deliberately open in its scope. The students bring a wide range of interests—spanning social, environmental, and ecological issues to more formal questions within product design and even artistic practice. The HFBK, as an art university, naturally shapes this interdisciplinary and experimental spirit within the design department.
It’s inspiring to see the variety of perspectives and working methods that emerge. Each reveals different ways design can be understood and applied. At the same time, this diversity continuously challenges us as teachers: how do you develop a semester program that resonates with such a broad and varied group?
Teaching has made us reflect more deeply on our own practice. It encourages us to question established processes, stay open to new ideas, and remain flexible in how we define design. In many ways, it sharpens our thinking and pushes us to keep evolving, both as designers and educators.
#6 What are you looking forward to in the future? Are there any materials or topics that you would like to explore?
We’re currently preparing for an exhibition that will take place next year as part of the World Design Capital in Frankfurt. For this project, we’ll be collaborating with another design studio and for the first time, working closely with a stonemason.
We’re excited to dive deep into the material to explore the history of regional stone, understand traditional craftsmanship, and engage directly with the production site. It’s an opportunity to learn about a centuries-old practice from the inside out, and to explore how this material can be reinterpreted in a contemporary design context. We’re especially looking forward to the dialogue between designers and craftspeople, and to discovering new potentials through that exchange.
photo 1: Oyster Lane (2025) - Studio OE, photo 2: Belle (2025) - Benjamin Lund
#7 How do you see the role of an architect in today's society?
With the building sector accounting for almost 40% of global CO₂ emissions, architects have a unique opportunity to drive change, by designing with sustainability in mind, using resources more efficiently, and helping to shape a more climate-resilient future.
#8 How does your environment influence your work?
A good example of this is the project Genius Loci, which we realized as part of Many to Many, an interdisciplinary collective of ten female designers. As a group, we spent a week in a small village along the Moselle River, where we engaged in an intensive, collective research process that evolved into a symbiotic approach to design.
This self-initiated residency was shaped by long walks through the surrounding landscape, conversations with local residents, small workshops using regional materials and resources, and the daily exchange of ideas over shared dinners. At the end of the week, we presented a small exhibition in an abandoned monastery ruin in the village, a space deeply influenced by the Genius Loci and open to visits from the local community.
#9 Three things that inspire you at the moment?
The seasonal way of working and the use of resources on organic farms.
Movement of Textile
How we understand and read time
#10 What do you currently read, watch, listen to?
The Shakers: A World in the Making
Architecton, a A24 documentary on stone and fate of concrete
photos: Peter Oliver Wolff
Links
Instagram: @studio__oe
Website: www.studio-oe.com
Interview by Loretta Pittino