Durwin created Custom Industrial as it combined two of his loves. The first: to build and create beautiful and highly detailed products and the second: to work with like-minded design enthusiasts. "I've always been able to conceptualize and build what's inside mine or someone else's head. It's about asking the right questions to get a good understanding of the job, of the client's needs and expectations and what the project means to them". It's a skill he learned from a varied and sometimes unusual career.
Durwin spent time working in set building for blockbuster movies and stage plays. The job required him to be creative enough to build any set design that was thrown his way, be it a two and a half story sphinx or a gilded birdcage. He explains the process: "I had to quickly understand drawings and concepts that hadn't been fully detailed then be able to engineer and translate that into something that could be built. It was a lot of fun. Not only did it have to look pretty but people had to walk on it, jump on it, there are moveable parts that were required to stand up to the punishment the performances dealt them".
Durwin has also managed and built architectural homes. From 20 million dollar mansions to straw bale houses, but they all had something in common: the delivery was in the detail - in putting the care and thought into getting things done right. "I liked to ask clients at the beginning what their favourite part of the house or detail will be, how they picture themselves using those special spaces. Then I would set this as my end goal, otherwise you run the risk of forgetting the users.'
Now Durwin has turned his focus towards creating furniture along with picking up one of his earliest pursuits of art and sculpture. “I have been blessed with the ability to create with my hands. It’s an amazing gift and am very grateful for this for it enables me to create my furniture for other people and that’s the ultimate dream. I always tell clients, be careful with my art, you are its custodian. Of course, you invested in it, but it’s still mine, it’s my creation!
At the end of the day it is more rewarding working for yourself and anybody else who works for themselves will relate to this. It can be challenging doing this, doing what you love, my grandfather always said; “The impossible we do straight away, miracles take a little longer!” Which is why I will always prefer to take the job that is going to mean something, it has to be significant, there has to be passion both ways. If the client isn’t getting passion from it or deep satisfaction then surely it’s not worth it. Passion is what makes the impossible possible.”
Durwin spent time working in set building for blockbuster movies and stage plays. The job required him to be creative enough to build any set design that was thrown his way, be it a two and a half story sphinx or a gilded birdcage. He explains the process: "I had to quickly understand drawings and concepts that hadn't been fully detailed then be able to engineer and translate that into something that could be built. It was a lot of fun. Not only did it have to look pretty but people had to walk on it, jump on it, there are moveable parts that were required to stand up to the punishment the performances dealt them".
Durwin has also managed and built architectural homes. From 20 million dollar mansions to straw bale houses, but they all had something in common: the delivery was in the detail - in putting the care and thought into getting things done right. "I liked to ask clients at the beginning what their favourite part of the house or detail will be, how they picture themselves using those special spaces. Then I would set this as my end goal, otherwise you run the risk of forgetting the users.'
Now Durwin has turned his focus towards creating furniture along with picking up one of his earliest pursuits of art and sculpture. “I have been blessed with the ability to create with my hands. It’s an amazing gift and am very grateful for this for it enables me to create my furniture for other people and that’s the ultimate dream. I always tell clients, be careful with my art, you are its custodian. Of course, you invested in it, but it’s still mine, it’s my creation!
At the end of the day it is more rewarding working for yourself and anybody else who works for themselves will relate to this. It can be challenging doing this, doing what you love, my grandfather always said; “The impossible we do straight away, miracles take a little longer!” Which is why I will always prefer to take the job that is going to mean something, it has to be significant, there has to be passion both ways. If the client isn’t getting passion from it or deep satisfaction then surely it’s not worth it. Passion is what makes the impossible possible.”
