Mazda’s European Design Director Jo Stenuit arrives in Venice to discover the intrinsic relationship between art and automotive design
You could be forgiven for thinking that, from a design perspective at least, Mazda’s European Design Director, Jo Stenuit, would be a hard man to please. This is, after all, a graduate of the London’s Royal College of Art, who has spent over two decades creating a global design language for Mazda, (working both in Europe and at Mazda’s global headquarters in Hiroshima, Japan) which is known today as the ‘KODO – Soul of Motion’ design philosophy. And yet, it’s safe to say, as we sit down for our interview, that the Venetian celebration of contemporary craftsmanship, Homo Faber 2024, has had a profoundly positive effect.
Jo Stenuit, Mazda’s European Design Director discovering the beauty of Homo Faber 2024
“I don’t think there’s another event like it,” he insists. “It was like the Japanese style of Omotenashi, where you felt completely welcome. It seems to be the only event in the world that celebrates craftsmanship at such a scale, and the way they have done it is just mind-blowing. Every room I walked into was just…wow”. And did he find the audience as equally captivated? “Completely. The positivity was fantastic. They asked so many questions; ‘How is it made? What material is it?’. It’s exactly what we want to achieve with our cars. When people see a Mazda, we want them to go, ‘wow!’”.
Now in its third year, the flagship project of the Michelangelo Foundation stands as global celebration of artisans, craftsmanship and creativity. Held at the Fondazione Giorgio Cini on the Venetian Island of San Giorgio Maggiore, this year’s immersive exhibition was a celebration of the Journey of Life, consisting of 10 spaces, each one dedicated to one stage of human life, from Birth to Afterlife. The vision of art director Luca Guadagnino and co-art director Nicolò Rosmarini, the immersive spaces took the visitor to each of these stages of life through hundreds of handcrafted objects made by talented artisans from all over the world, in the process highlighting the diverse skills, techniques and innovative approaches that goes into their craft.
A perfect fit, then, for Mazda, who brought their Japanese craftsmanship and design philosophies to life through globe-making and bookbinding workshops. These were accompanied by a raft of curated artifacts both designed to showcase the artisanal skills evident in every Mazda vehicle and made by craftspeople featured in the #MazdaDiscovers online series. In fact, the only thing missing from the Mazda exhibition was an actual Mazda. “Even our logo was very subtle,” Jo smiles. “It meant we could concentrate on the brand, and the craftsmanship, and not focus on cars. Plus, everything we saw was a one-off, whereas a car is mass-produced, so a sculpture represented Mazda best.”
Mazda Stories: Mazda was the only automotive brand at the event. Did the audience immediately understand the connection between car and art? Jo Stenuit: For the last fifteen years, we have been telling a story about craftsmanship through KODO design language, and yet people still don’t really know about our car design process. They are surprised to discover that, in this digital age, we still use clay models and rely on physical tools and the passion of our modelers.
“In this digital age, we still use clay models and rely on physical tools and the passion of our modelers.”
MS: And yet Mazda are always innovating… JS: Exactly. In the car world, everyone knows us now, and knows that we are making beautiful vehicles. That’s a huge achievement. We managed to create a design language that’s appreciated around the world. It’s a language of beauty, which everybody understands. It’s a very human thing. So, we make beautiful objects that are understandable on a global scale. And it sounds easy, but it isn’t.
Roberta Mazzone
MS: As a designer, do you feel there’s a natural bond between yourself and the Homo Faber artisans? JS: Of course. Talking to the craftsmen here is very easy, even if they do something completely different to me. The way we work is similar. There’s an instant connection. We kind of understand the occasional suffering and the time we go through to make beautiful objects.
MS: The Mazda workshops seem to have been a particular highlight. JS: I was proud of them. We’ve done workshops before, and they always work well. Everybody gets very excited and of course it’s fantastic for them to understand our cars just a bit more. And the whole experience always gets better if you get more out of it. I’m sure they will go home thinking, ‘wow, that was an amazing exhibition and experience.’
Jo’s HIGHLIGHT: PAPER FLOWERS, “LOVE” SPACE
JS: I chose this one because of the way they transform paper – a simple two-dimensional object – into a beautiful three-dimensional flower through shaping, through bending and through the play of light and shadow. It brings value to a simple material. It talks to Mazda’s exterior where we play with light across a simple surface material to deliver a level of excitement, but also it talks to the attention we pay to choosing materials for the interior, which are often sensitive, slightly fragile and unexpected.
Eternal Bouquet paper sculpture. Crafted from white watercolour paper by Studio Marianne Guély.
MS: It’s a great way of discovering the intricacies of craftsmanship. JS: Especially with the globe making workshop. I had a lot of respect for the globemaker Leonardo Frigo, because he has not just one skill, but multiple. He makes the paper, he does the copper etching, he does all the research, and he makes the wooden structure for the globe. And then people could get their hands dirty understanding that process, discovering the tools and materials that are used and realising the difficulty in doing things that look quite simple on the outside.
MS: Do you think Homo Faber has a wider creative responsibility than simply educating those who attend? JS: It’s a global event, and it’s clear that they are thinking about the next generation which is incredibly important. It’s true that people are inspired by the objects and experience, but how do we make sure the next generation are excited about craftsmanship, and believe it has value in a technical and very distracting world? That’s what we are celebrating on a global level.
Jo’s HIGHLIGHT: Glass Bowl, “CELEBRATION” SPACE
JS: I was instantly drawn to the colour. It’s bright yellow and, the first time I saw it, there was sun coming through the window directly onto the bowl which brought it to life, just like the sun on Mazda’s Soul Red Crystal. It looked so simple and pure, but it had a lot of different aspects. You see it from afar and you think you get it, but as you get closer, there’s more depth, especially with the light, it was quite amazing. It’s the same power of colour and reflection that we value at Mazda.
Glass bowl from LINES collection. Hand-blown and hand-cut by Filip Dobias, David Gabera and Jakub Petr.
MS: What did you personally learn from Homo Faber? JS: That there is still excitement about craftsmanship, and the way you present and explain it is very important. It’s the Omotenashi approach, with a focus on the way that you invite people and make them feel welcome. As a storyteller for Mazda, I learned a lot. And I’m also even more confident that what we do at Mazda is right.
“At every stage we want the people to feel good, to feel connected to the car”
MS: So when you say Mazda, what do you want people to think? JS: That we make beautiful, engaging cars that people really want to drive. It goes back to that wow factor we were talking about. Some cars, you see the exterior and say wow, then you open the door and you’re disappointed… you drive disappointed. Whereas at every stage we want the people to feel good, to feel connected to the car and that it becomes a part of their lives.
MS: Finally, what do you think the world of design can learn from Mazda? JS: Oh, everything! Don’t go left and right just to please someone. Be confident in what you do. And do it well, do it with love and do it with passion. Keep believing.
