A balancing act of “an artistic aesthetic with architectural discipline” is how British Nigerian artist and designer Mimi Shodeinde describes her work. She is work embodies the poetry of movement.The largely self-taught furniture designer founded her London-based interior design and furniture studio, Miminat Designs in 2015.She draws from multiple influences to create designs that are prosaic and poetic through a sinuous fluidity of form.  Her furniture, lighting and objects are all influenced by the things she is interested in, including nature, travel and aviation. Defying categorisation, her style is fluid, sophisticated and functional but seeks to imbue each project with a personality of its own.

Shodeinde’s designs skillfully dovetail craftsmanship and innovation, breaking down the relationship between form and function. Often described as objects that lay in the crevasse between art and design, her designs are akin to poetry in which wood, metal, and leather take shape. Take for instance the Oscar series, which succinctly represents the visual language of her body of work. The Oscar Chair, crafted in oil-stained mahogany, is made up of elegant curvilinear surfaces and whiplash curves which seem to be frozen in motion. Similarly, the gentle curve of the Oscar Lamp captures the fluidity of form. To Shodeinde, furniture is a form of artistic expression, one that she is passionate about.

When asked about her process Shodeinde called it“more fluid than fixed”, adding,“The way my mind works, I have endless inspirations. I guess you could call these micro influences, I seem to remember certain trips, certain scenes, certain soundtracks, that spark this small flame that turns into a larger fire. I have always been interested in art, music, architecture - I go to bed and wake up thinking about design, it's just a part of who I am.”A range of interests and curiosities informs her work from her Nigerian heritage to music to even historical figures.

Part of Shodeinde’s inspiration stems from her own femininity. She recounts,“I love the female body and its fluidity of form, and I find myself drawn toward curves and anything that flows organically. I think there’s something innately sinuous and graceful about the female body and that definitely consciously and subconsciously influences the sculptural form of my designs too.”

Shodeinde has been passionate about design from a very young age, and her portfolio showcases the care and expert artisan attitude she possesses. She believes that since everything we use, touch and interact with, starts with design, it must be at the forefront of sustainability as it informs our daily lives. One of the most individual and thoughtful designers working today, Shodeinde’s body of work subverts the expectations of what functional design is: at once feminine and brutalist, relaxed and elegant.