Dowel Jones and Ries Launch Volta

Australian design brand Dowel Jones and Buenos Aires-based Ries have paired up to create Volta, a collection of tubular-framed furniture with contrasting autumnal upholstery

Dale Hardiman and Adam Lynch of Melbourne’s Dowel Jones first met the founders of Argentinian design studio Ries back in 2018 during New York Design Week. ‘We shared many qualities, both in terms of our personalities and our companies,’ says Hardiman of Ries studio directors Marcos Altgelt and Tasio Picollo. ‘Like us, they focus on producing locally, and they run several other projects to support their community, which is something we do too. There’s a great alignment between us in terms of thinking about what a design brand actually is.’

The serendipitous meeting was the start of a global partnership that unfolded over 18 months. ‘It was an incredibly collaborative and fun process. As there are only a few overlapping hours each day for video calls, we ended up messaging and speaking most days. We had complete trust in each other,’ Hardiman says.

The result is Volta, a range of chairs and a coffee table with a rolled-edge timber top, all of which feature symmetrical tubular frames with upholstered seating and solid brass details designed to patina naturally over time. ‘We launched the collection with a black frame and autumnal Kvadrat fabric colours to highlight the language of the pieces,’ Hardiman explains. ‘And although we’re known for our use of colour, we applied restraint, allowing the silhouettes and details to be the focus.’

With manufacturing taking place in Melbourne, Dowel Jones worked on the development and execution of the pieces, while Ries contributed design advice and guidance. Local production also has the added benefit of fabric customisation, and Volta buyers can choose from over a thousand textile options and several timber choices.

The Volta campaign imagery adds yet another layer of collaborative expression to the project, with Hardiman and Lynch enlisting their personal friends, art director Natalie Turnbull and photographer Victoria Zschommler to shoot the contemporary pieces in a hyper-decorative Victoria-era mansion. ‘The intention of the campaign imagery was to mirror the purpose of the Volta collection, to bring a new design language and feeling to Dowel Jones,’ Hardiman says. ‘We’ve always been known as a playful and colourful brand, so this was about creating contrast with our previous works and imagery.’

Text / Carli Philips
Images / Victoria Zschommler
Styling / Natalie Turnbull