Q&A Benja Harney | Paper Engineer
Benja Harney is a self-taught Paper Engineer based in Sydney. He has been creating pop-up books and paper construction professionally for about 5 years for a variety of applications including advertising, magazine illustration, fashion, packaging, invitations and fine art. He recently crafted the magnificent window display that is currently on view at Hermés, Sydney. His portfolio includes advertising clients such as Japanese Architect Shigeru Ban, Topshop, Clarins, JC Penny and UKTV. Benja is also participating at The Smirnoff Black Room event which we are giving away VIP tickets to.
Name: Benja Harney
Profession: Paper Engineer
Location: BJB Studio, Surry Hills in Sydney, Australia
Passion: Paper! And the technical challenge of creating anything with it.
I get my inspirations from: The past, the present and the future.
How I got my break:
Lots of hard work and late nights, plus a little help from my friends.
My top tricks of the trade: Precision, focus, creativity and play.
My style in a sentence: Modern Gatsby
Bet you didn’t know I can:
Make a killer soufflé and can speak a bit of Swedish.
My latest project is about:
Creating a dynamic and moving pop up bottle box for an exhibition I am involved in The Smirnoff Black Room this month. The bottle will be encased in a ‘jewel casket’ of sorts, designed to be tactile and interactive for the viewer. It emulates my own personal interpretation of the ‘Essence of Black’ as the exclusive event aim to revive all senses of Sight, Touch, Sound, Smell and Taste.
mecho is giving away two VIP double passes to the exclusive Smirnoff Black Room in Sydney on Thursday 11 March 2010. Hurry, entries close at noon on Thursday 4 March 2010!
My last purchase:
A bespoke orange blazer and a large conical chemistry beaker.
My current favourite mecho item:
The OLED wallpaper, which coincidently I posted on my Facebook page a few weeks ago.
Travel destination and tips:
Stockholm, Helsinki, St Petersburg and Alexandria
Pssst… One time I…
Went swimming in Sydney Harbour in my underwear with Grace Jones
The mecho team invites you to continue the conversation below with Benja during March… Make it fun! Post comments with your own free personal Gravatar
NOTE: ARCHIVE ONLY from Mar-10. You may leave a comment but please note Benja is no longer actively responding to any questions post 31 MAR-10.
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5 comments
5 Comments Add your own
1.
mischa | March 1st, 2010 at 12:33 pm
Paper Engineer – wow what a title! Did you invent that title yourself or this is a commonly known profession? Nice work, very impressed!
2.
Emma | March 1st, 2010 at 1:37 pm
Hi Benja,
What was your first job in this field? Do you know how to make Japanese origami by the way, where can I learn?
Emma
3.
Tim | March 2nd, 2010 at 8:58 am
I want to know how you ended up swimming in your underwear with Grace Jones!!?
4.
Benja | March 22nd, 2010 at 9:31 am
Hi guys,
Thanks for your interest in my work. The Smirnoff Black project was a great success and I really enjoyed working on the project!
@mischa – A Paper Engineer is a used job title. There a few of us scattered around the world (although it is a rather niche profession!)
@Emma – My first job was to create a pop-up book for my friend Michelle Robinson. She is a fashion designer here in Sydney. She asked to create a lookbook to accompany her range. It was a great challenge and from that point i was hooked on it! I love making origami too… Anything with paper really.
@Tim – Grace Jones (one of my idols ps!) was led to me via my pop-up books and my mate Philip Treacy would you believe. It was a lifelong dream to meet her and when she actually had my paper constructions in her hands I almost fell over! It was one wild ride that week. I was exhausted by the end!!
5.
Dan | March 24th, 2010 at 3:02 pm
What did you do before becoming a Paper Engineer? Awesome work!
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