Interview with Designer Becki Chan, Producer of PechaKucha 08.05.18

Becki Chan is a Vancouver-based spatial and jewelry designer—she is also the producer of the Design Week PechaKucha Night on May 8th! We chatted with Becki about the event, about her relationship to her creative practices, and the necessity of grid paper. Check it out!


SAD: Hello! How are you today? What's on your mind?

BC: I am doing very well. Mostly PechaKucha right now. The next PechaKucha is in a week and we are busy getting ready for the event. 

SAD: What's your relationship with your different art and design practices? 

BC: Given my educational background in sculpture and architecture, I am interested in installations at a human scale, that people can interact with. My public installation often aims to engage visitors in a playful and open-ended experience, inviting participants to question the relationship between functional design and art. I started creating sculptural jewellery due to a desire to design something that is at a much more intimate scale. Wearable art that is focusing on innovating with form to create jewellery silhouettes that frame the body in unique ways.

Photo Credit: Becki Chan

SAD: What moves you to create?

BC: Design keeps me sane. I sketch daily to sort out what matters to me and my emotions. I think I tend to use a thicker pen when I have a bad day.

SAD: Do you have anything in particular that facilitates your process? People, music, food, environments?

BC: Trace paper roll and grid paper. I don’t like to sketch on expensive notebook or nice paper. I would be too worried to make a mistake, or questioning if the concept is good enough. I also like the idea that I never run out of room. All my design has a strong architectural aesthetic and grid paper helps me to sketch to scale.

Photo Credit: Janis Nicolay Photography

SAD: What themes do you find occur in your work?

BC: Clean and minimalist perspective manifests through the use of primary forms, linear relationships and geometrical composition. My work attempts to interpret and respond to cultural, historical and architectural features of a place using a design language that is influenced by minimalist form and the repetitive use of simple elements. 

SAD: Are you looking forward to PechaKucha?

BC: Yes! This is a special edition as part of the Vancouver Design Week. We have an amazing group of speakers. One of our speakers, Abi Huynh, designed a custom type and poster for this event. Walrus will be giving out a few gift bags throughout the night. And we will be hosting this event at the beautiful Vogue Theater. 

Photo Credit: Janis Nicolay Photography