About Taehun Ko (고태헌) — Industrial Designer, Seoul, South Korea
Industrial Designer - Seoul, South Korea
Taehun Ko, born in South Korea, has always been drawn to design, philosophy, and the humanities with genuine curiosity. One of the essential questions he asked himself was “what is the world made of?” Following that thought, he came to suspect that the things we see, use, and live among are not perfect, and that people do their best to make up for those imperfections. He works to overcome his own imperfections through his profession, and to broaden his outlook by sharing ideas with people from different fields.
고태헌은 대한민국에서 태어나 진정성 있는 호기심으로 디자인, 철학, 그리고 인문학에 늘 관심을 가져왔다. 그가 스스로에게 던진 본질적인 질문 중 하나는 “세상은 무엇으로 이루어져 있는가?”였다. 이러한 생각 속에서 그는 우리가 보고, 사용하고, 바라보는 것들이 완전하지 않다고 의심했으며, 사람들은 이러한 불완전함을 메우기 위해 저마다 최선을 다한다고 믿었다. 그 역시 자신의 일을 통해 스스로의 불완전함을 극복하고, 서로 다른 분야의 사람들과 생각을 나누며 자신의 시야를 넓혀가고자 끊임없이 노력한다.
MATERIAL | MANUFACTURING | AESTHETIC
Creating something new out of nothing sounds implausible in present-day society. The society we live in now is culturally and technologically so advanced and well equipped that it is more effective to place our focus on things already made and to develop these. His design focuses on redesigning current products and furniture in their aesthetic and functional aspects as well as in their manufacturing processes. Studying materials and making processes can produce better results in that work.
무에서 완전히 새로운 것을 만들어낸다는 것은 오늘날의 사회에서 그리 현실적으로 들리지 않는다. 우리가 살아가는 지금의 사회는 문화적으로도 기술적으로도 이미 충분히 발전하고 잘 갖추어져 있어, 이미 만들어진 것들에 주목하고 그것을 발전시키는 편이 더 효과적이다. 그의 디자인은 기존의 제품과 가구를 미적·기능적 측면은 물론 제조 공정의 관점에서 다시 디자인하는 데 초점을 둔다. 소재와 제작 과정에 대한 연구는 이러한 디자인을 통해 더 나은 결과를 만들어낼 수 있다.
Education
- 2012 — 2014 Master of Arts, Design Products Royal College of Art
- 2005 — 2011 Bachelor of Fine Arts, Product Design College of Design and Art, Hongik University
Exhibition
- 2014 Show RCA 2014.06.27 — 2014.07.01
- 2014 RCA Design Products Work in Progress Show 2014.02.05 — 2014.02.09
- 2013 RCA Design Products Work in Progress Show 2013.02.12 — 2013.02.17
- 2011 Seoul Design Festival 2011.12.14 — 2011.12.18
- 2011 BMH Gallery Lighting Fair 2011.07.19 — 2011.07.27
- 2011 BMH Gallery Furniture Fair 2011.05.21 — 2011.05.28
- 2010 Hongik Univ. Degree Show ‘Probono Publico’ 2010.10.20 — 2010.10.21
Experience
- 2021.03 — Current Samsung Electronics | Senior Industrial Designer Seoul, Korea
- 2017.11 — 2021.02 Samsung Electronics | Industrial Designer Seoul, Korea
- 2016.04 — 2017.11 LUNAR Design | Industrial Designer San Francisco, United States
- 2015.12 — 2016.03 Tom Dixon | Freelance Furniture Designer London, United Kingdom
- 2015.07 — 2015.09 Max Lamb LTD | Freelance Designer London, United Kingdom
- 2015.04 — 2015.07 United Visual Artists | Industrial Designer London, United Kingdom
- 2014.07 — 2014.10 Tom Dixon | Freelance Designer London, United Kingdom
- 2013.08 — 2013.11 Tom Dixon | Furniture & Lighting Design Intern London, United Kingdom
- 2013.07 — 2013.08 Max Lamb LTD | Design Assistant London, United Kingdom
- 2011.04 — 2012.03 Mobjec | Furniture Designer Seoul, Korea
- 2011.08 — 2011.11 Media Skin | Architectural Intern Seoul, Korea
Recognition
- 2026 IDEA Consumer Technology — Winner
- 2026 Red Dot Design Award Consumer Technology — Winner
- 2019 IDEA Product Design Concept — Winner
- 2019 iF Design Award Product Design — Winner
- 2017 Fast Company Innovation by Design Award Honorable Mention
- 2017 IDEA Consumer Technology — Bronze
- 2013 IFF / JOOP Design Competition Final List
- 2012 Red Dot Design Concept Award Winner
- 2010 Seoul International Competition Honorable Mention
- 2010 11th Korea Optical and Sunglasses Competition Special Prize
- 2008 SEBANG Advertisement Competition 3rd Prize
Selected Clients & Collaborators