Pooja Ashok

Background

About Pooja Ashok

As a designer, my end goal is to design an environment for my client, that evolves and grows to suit their needs, today and continues to do the same, tomorrow. Mindful consumption and timeless design is a very important personal goal I hope to achieve in my work. My design aesthetic has evolved over my work in hospitality and retail design with a focus on residential design. Equipped with a Masters and a Bachelor’s degree in Interior design from prestigious schools, I began my career with an intent to bring traditional Indian crafts and specialised labour to the forefront of my work. Over the course of 4 years in the industry, I did manage to achieve those goals, working closely with artisans in stone, textile, metal, wood and traditional craft. Spending many hours with individual craftsmen gave me a lot of insight and knowledge on the specific materials they worked with, It’s benefits, flaws and strengths. What we were able to achieve was, contemporary forms that would very easily flow into the modern Indian homes but with the traditional finishes and stories. Giving a chance for these marginalised communities that possess this old, sometimes ancient knowledge, a chance to stay relevant in our modern society. My last professional stint, gave me considerable experience in managing the production phase of a design cycle. Working in a modern cutting –edge furniture factory, I gained insight into the technical aspect of working with machinery and forms to reduce wastage and maximise material. I was also thrust headfirst in to managing and coordinating purchases, labour, store, quality control, delivery and customer redressal along with managing site work for the projects I was working on as well as members of my team. As an individual, I am a strong willed, outspoken woman, and a mother to a 4-year-old. I have an avid interest for fiction novels, science and true crime documentaries, cooking Asian flavours, hiking and yoga.