Mike Knowles has a simple mantra for life: "I passionately believe that if you can get the balance of a design right you can also get the balance of life right.''
And once you get to know the 58-year-old professor of design, furniture and product design at the Sushant School of Design in Gurgaon, Haryana, on the borders of Delhi, the better you will realise that he has achieved the balance perfectly.
Hailing from Britain, Knowles along with his wife Preeti, has been instrumental in designing some of the most spectacular interiors of not just hotels (Savoy, InterContinental, Hilton and the Taj, to name a few) but homes of the rich in India (he says this list is confidential).
His house in New Delhi is a blend of modern and traditional Oriental and Occidental decor. In a word, it is eclectic. The duplex has clean and contemporary living areas interspersed with English country style corners earmarked by modern art and tribal crafts. Heading an interior design practice in Delhi called Inline, the couple have clients not only in India but all over the world.
"I always had interest in fair-based societies and the position of craftsmen in society,'' he says, relaxing in his tastefully decorated study where in one corner lies a clutch of Oriental knick-knacks. "This could be because I grew up in England, where even 150 years ago, thinkers like John Ruskin recognised that a truly evolved society is one in which craftsmen and people in other vocations hold equal positions with the likes of doctors and bankers.''
The eighth child of Florence and William Knowles, Knowles was born in Surrey not far from the workshops of one of his mentors William Morris. After schooling, he got a place at Southlands College Wimbledon to study sculpture and ceramics.
"Life in post-war Britain was quite dire. Images from those times still haunt me,'' he says, leaning back in his chair. "I can say without doubt that they strongly influenced me in my belief that beauty is the stuff of life, not strength or wealth." Perhaps deep down he was keen to re-construct the destroyed structures because he soon moved on from the world of sculpture and ceramics (where he spent much of his early life) to work in the field of design and interiors.
Knowles joined Amos Reynolds, a small interior design studio just outside London sometime in the early 1970s. His career started to take shape from there. "It was very exciting working in a place where we not only designed but had access to some of the finest works available and easy access to workshops where one could develop his designs. I was also fortunate that the owner of the practice, Richard Reynolds and his wife gave me ample opportunity, be it through the Design Council in the UK or travel and work experience, to firm up my design understanding."
He soon graduated to design manager at Amos Reynolds after which he moved to international design house Roche Bobois London as design manager in 1978.
"Those were exciting times. At Roche Bobois we had the best clients from all over the world coming to us. It was not only great being involved in high quality projects, but discovering other cultures was also quite an important part of my personal evolution. I particularly enjoyed learning more about the very cultured Middle Eastern etiquette." For a short while he also had his own design studio in London.
Now, with more than 40 years experience in the design industry, Knowles looks back on his projects with pride. He specialises in interior design projects as well as furniture design and has designed a variety of products, including chairs, tables, cabinets, beds and garden furniture.
"When you work with high-end clients, you discover that their life experience often creates a strong design ethic. Although they're looking to us as trained practitioners to make their dreams come true, most often the reality is that the dreams are theirs, not ours. The biggest compliment one gets is when a client owns the project so much in his heart that the designer takes a back seat when the back patting starts.''
I, ME, MYSELF
I developed a deep interest in three-dimensional designs the moment I discovered clay and cement fondue. Interior and furniture design in particular demand a hands-on understanding of spatial relationships. And there is no medium quite like clay to start the process of shape interaction.
I moved to India and realised that so my beliefs and aspirations were fulfilled here. My journey started when I met my wife Preeti in London in 1984. She had come from Delhi to study for her bachelor's degree in interior design. I ran a successful practice in London's St Johns Wood. Preeti came to me for work experience. The rest is history, as they say, and for me a very delightful chapter of history.
We got married 22 years ago and thereafter I visited India several times. There's one thing quite unique about the country - once you start getting a taste of India or feeling a love for it, you can't help but want to do something for or with India. So, it was partly a selfish reason, but also to do with strengthening family ties that we chose to move our base from London to Delhi 12 years ago. We felt the need to let our two young children grow up with their grandparents and enjoy their company. We anticipated staying here for just two years, but a person with a creative mind can do so much here. And as India grew in its design interest, we grew with it and stayed put here for good.
I can say my stay in India has been quite productive. Along with Preeti's brother Vikram, we set about building an industry manufacturing furniture.
I am sentimental about England in some ways. There are things I miss about home. But the sad thing is that many of the things I miss the most don't exist there anymore anyway! I went to London recently after a year and the changes I saw there saddened me. One major change that I do not like is the way soap operas seem to have created stereotypes. Perhaps I may be wrong. I didn't like the new wave humour at one time but now I love it. But nothing will get me interested in rap-inspired music!
I miss the English countryside more than anything else. Admittedly, I have a better garden at my studio in Delhi than I did at my apartment in London. But there is something about English garden lush that evokes a feeling of magic.
I have the art to turn things around. We are very fortunate to be living in Delhi and I am happy to be working with the design industry. Most of the things that I'm doing here now are very similar to what we did whenI practised in England in 1970. In the 1960s and 1970s England, people en masse were just figuring out their way to dress well. Although they had big houses, not much attention was given to decorating the environs. And then the evolution of society began. I have lived through that era of people discovering themselves and finally sprucing up their homes and workplaces in artistic ways. A similar change is happening in India.
I constantly try to focus on self-discipline. Creative designers think laterally, not vertically but I have to think both ways because I run companies [as well as design things]. I also have a tremendous responsibility to those we employ.
I am a Fellow of the RSA (Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts) and helped set up the India chapter. Over its 250 plus years of existence, RSA has helped make huge changes in education, especially vocational education and indeed the attitude of the society as a whole.
My association with RSA and recent appointment as a Visiting Professor, University of the Arts, London in 2009, has pushed me towards working in education. Undoubtedly, design is the heart of every great society.
I am delighted to say that I have been given the opportunity to compile a design course for a college in Gurgaon, Haryana. The Sushant School of Architecture is considered the third-best architecture school in India. We have now set up the Sushant School of Design.
I, ME, MYSELF
Me and my entrepreneurial venture
I believe that one can have a crafts-based industrial revolution and I am using my entrepreneurial skills to create just that. We are building beautiful modern things still using traditional skills in craftsmanship.
Me and my design studio
I would say it is Preeti's studio and she is the boss. I help out there! We have some very creative people working with us. We have a diversity of crafts being practised here including sculpting, weaving, carving and upholstery work. We have about 100 undergraduates coming from the UK to experience various new techniques and skills. The idea is to help them to have the real feel of India. We work a lot with local craftsmen. In fact, the first thing we generally do if anyone wants to understand anything about Indian crafts and skills is to get him to make a matka (clay pot). It's the most difficult thing to make and sadly, the most under-valued product that one can find in India. Once people try their hand at it, they realise the skills required to make such a simple are of a very high calibre which unfortunately are still not being appreciated.
Me and my prized possessions
I am not a materialistic person, though my love for music led me to buy a couple of guitars that I still play. Otherwise my prized possessions are my family and friends.
I have two children from my first marriage and they are very close to our daughters Jehan and Meera. Jehan is off to study at St Martins in London this year. She topped India in Art and Design in her IGCSE's (International General Certificate of Secondary Education) two years ago. Meera is still at school and already showing signs of considerable talent. Among many things she is a wonderful cook. My elder daughter Becs runs our company in the UK and I am delighted to say that not only is she a good manager but also a great designer. She recently had an exceptional range chosen by the John Lewis Partnership (a major UK worker cooperative retailer). My son, Sam, based in London, is a painter.
Preeti is a great wife, mom and cook. When we first met in the UK she was one of my biggest critics. I was, and still am bit of a modernist and she being an Indian had a fantastic understanding of products, colours, textures and materials. Preeti is a much more accomplished designer than I am. I can inspire, but when the real finish has to come in any design product, she has to take over. She is also the secret behind the success I have achieved.
Me and the influences in life
Among the people I consider my mentors are the philosopher and classical scholar John Ruskin, Mahatma Gandhi and the great Irish comedian Spike Milligan.
Me and my one big passion...
...is to be with my family. I love being with people I care for and doing as much for them and enjoy their company. I am not into cars anymore, which at one time was a passion. But I still adore Formula One.
I, ME, MYSELF
Is furniture all about design skills, good marketing and sales skills or does one strive to achieve perfection in every single piece of furniture?
It's about design. If I have a client who wants a $40 (about Dh147) chair then I will design it and if I have a client who prefers a $20,000 (Dh73,000) dining table then also I'll design it. But yes, I would look for perfection in every piece.
What is your take on creativity?
Everyone has a creative streak in them, and it's sad to hear people say ‘I do not have any creativity'. The biggest technique to become aware of one's creativity is to be observant - and that can happen even when you sit in the back of a car for an hour. Your observations of what's outside can trigger your imagination and help you create new designs.
What is more challenging - creating something new and unique or turning around existing settings and giving them an altogether new meaning?
I find creating something new more challenging. For a trained designer the ‘technique' is something he develops and keeps as a tool. Looking into the future and developing a ‘new creation' - now that is special.
