An unusual name can be more hassle than it’s worth. I’m originally from Northern Ireland and I’m the youngest of six brothers and one sister so I think my mum just ran out of ideas! Namon, I reckon, is just a version of the Irish name Eamonn, and Gaston is French. My dad always had a workshop and he was happy for me to play about in there as a kid. Before I went to university, I worked part-time welding wrought-iron furniture. It became clear that my skills could be put to better use, since I was designing my own pieces. I did a foundation course in Northern Ireland before going to Edinburgh College of Art to study furniture design. There were only eleven of us on the course and we’re still really close, even now. We learned from each other but we also grew in our own ways. I loved it. We spent half our time in the workshop and half our time in the studio. I befriended the technicians, though, and spent more of my time making. I quickly realised that mid-century Danish design was an aesthetic that I was really keen on.
I’m interested in detailing and construction, and I love working with wood. It is a really flexible material and you can do so much with it. It’s also structurally sound so you can really pare back what you do with it because the wood can withstand it. Timber selection is really important. The more solid the wood, the more you can do with it. I go right to the source.
This is just a taster, you can browse the full article with more stunning photography on pages 61-62, issue 105.
DETAILS
Words Catherine Coyle
Photography Neale Smith
