Yuni Jie, Design must be functional

Kurniawan Hari ,  The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Sun, 06/28/2009 11:35 AM  |  People

Yuni Jie, 32, recently launched her latest book on interior design, titled Yuni Jie: Contemporary Urban Living. This time, her satisfaction and happiness is greater than when she launched her three previous books.

In the process of finishing this latest book, Yuni got a special gift. A beautiful baby girl was born in February from her marriage to Ferry Subianto, her high school sweetheart.

"I was pregnant when I was working on this book. Now the baby is four months old," Yuni says at her comfortable office on the 25th floor of a Central Jakarta office tower.

Overlooking one of the city's landmarks, the lofty Wisma BNI building, her office offers a stunning view of the capital from up high.

Now that she is a mother, Yuni can no longer spend all her time only on her job. She has another important activity. She has to take care of her newborn baby before going to work. Sometimes she brings her baby, Georgina Joy Subianto, to the office.

"It's my own office, so it's flexible. My husband also works here to handle the IT stuff," she says.

Yuni has always been fortunate to have the full support of her husband in her creative work. Her latest book, Contemporary Urban Living, is a documentary of her recent works on six homes - three houses and three apartments.

What sets this book apart from her previous books, published in 2006 and 2007 in both English and Indonesian, is that this one is completely in English. It's targeted for the international market, Yuni says.

Through this fourth book, she wants to reach out to fellow Indonesian interior designers and to stimulate them into to documenting their work and writing books that can be used as references or good reading for others.

"If you go to the bookstore and try to find books on interior design written by local people, you'll only find my books. I've improved my fourth book to make it more acceptable in the international market," Yuni says.

The book is a sumptuous package. With excellent photos by award-winning photographer Martin Westlakes, printed on high-quality paper, the book retails for Rp 550,000 (US$50), a prohibitive price for most Indonesians.

"The text is in English because I wanted to go international," Yuni says. In the book, Yuni presents her outstanding works, a variety of interior designs that offer comfort for their owners. Each design combines a good choice of furnishing, wallpapers and carpeting. In preparing her designs, Yuni always consults with the architects designing the buildings and also with the lighting designers.

Yuni also always involves her clients when it comes to picking the materials to be used. This is usually a long process, as it requires an analysis of the client's lifestyle and behavior.

Before she starts making a draft design, Yuni usually asks her clients to answer a series of questions, ranging from simple ones about their cooking routine, to ones about lifestyle, choice of color and design.

"I don't start the design until I've given a list of questions to my clients on their lifestyle and habit, and then analyze the answers," she says.

Based on the answers she gets, Yuni then draws up a two-dimensional sketch before developing it into a three-dimension layout. For Yuni, all the furniture and accessories that go into a room as part of the design must have a specific function.

"I think design should be functional. I don't like placing an ornament that has no function. Everything I place as part of a design should be functional. That is why I listen to my clients a lot. I have to know exactly what their behavior is. Sometimes I feel my work is like that of a psychologist's," she says.

Through Contemporary Urban Living, Yuni wants to tell a story of the dwellings of urban people. She points out that such urban people almost always communicate or connect with each other using electronic gadgets like BlackBerrys. Somehow, she says, this mode of communication makes them "lose their soul".

"With my designs, I want to present a home that provides a warm atmosphere and good living, so that when they get home, they feel comfortable," she says, adding she has never latched on to trends, because of how quickly they fizz out.

The process of designing is a long one. Yuni often spends 18 months preparing the interior design for a house - the same time required to finish the building's construction. Once the construction is finished, Yuni's design is also done.

For apartments, it takes her about six months.

"I don't like to rush myself. At the same time, I know when to stop, so that my designs are not overdone," she says.

With her busy work, does she have time for leisure?

Yuni says that before her baby was born, she and her husband frequently traveled, both within the country and abroad. But now she has to take care of her baby first, before she can think about taking a trip.

She has been with her husband to New York, Paris and Tokyo. She also loves Hong Kong.

"I don't like mountains or the sea. I like big cities. I feel the energy of the buildings and the people in cities," says Yuni, a graduate of the Pratt Institute in New York.

When asked about the creative industry at home, Yuni says Indonesia has a lot of human resources in the architectural, animation and film industries, which gives it a lot of potential in these fields.

"Unfortunately, the government does very little for them. In other countries, governments support the creative industry," says Yuni, a finalist in the International Young Creative Entrepreneur competition organized by the British Council in 2007.

Although she has not totally incorporated a green approach into her design, Yuni says she always tries to use environmentally friendly materials. She uses glue with low formaldehyde content, for instance, to attach carpets, and also uses non-toxic wood for the furniture or floor panels.

"The choice of materials will at least not harm the workers," she says.

Asked if she is willing to draw up an interior design for public offices like the House of Representatives building, Yuni simply says she has never visited the building and all the information she gets about the House is from newspapers or TV.

"All I know is that several legislators asleep when attending plenary meetings. I guess the room is too comfortable for them," she laughs.

 

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