Assemble

The very impressive Northcote studio space of Assemble and Assemble Papers. Photos - Sean Fennessy.

Assemble's Eugenia Lim at her desk.  Ceiling detail designed by the Assemble crew, built by Wesley Old of Localspaces.  Photos - Sean Fennessy.

Giuseppe 'Pino' Demaio, one of Assemble's three directors.  Photos - Sean Fennessy.

Assemble is an inspiring young architecture, design and property development company focused on small footprint projects.  The business was founded in 2010 by close pals Giuseppe 'Pino' Demaio, Ben Keck and Joachim Holland, whose varied backgrounds span architecture, design, property and finance.  This dynamic group founded their practice based on the simple shared belief that small footprint living should not be a compromise. 'You can and should be able to live the fullest of lives in a small but well-considered space' they say.  Hear Hear! Based from a painfully cool workspace in Northcote (they've just finished the fit-out, amazing or what?!), this clever group of friends also publish a fantastic online publication called Assemble Papers, which supports their design practice, exploring the culture of living closer together and small footprint living. Assemble Papers is a collaborative effort, edited in-house by artist and writer Eugenia Lim.  It is such a seriously excellent and well considered publication, on first inspection to be honest it seemed kind of crazy to me that a busy studio like Assemble would have the time and energy to dedicate to such an epic side project!  But as Giuseppe explained, the publication is in fact very closely connected to their core business.  There is a symbiotic relationship between Assemble and Assemble Papers – each informs the other. 'As the three of us began sharing our inspiration and research for Assemble projects, we felt it made sense to broaden this conversation, to foster a wider dialogue about ideas of sustainability and ingenious living' explains Giuseppe.  'Living sustainably is not about being a hippy and living in a self-contained log cabin – the reality for most of us who live in cities or suburbs, is that it’s about approaching life in an informed, optimistic and connected way, understanding the impacts of our actions and taking responsibility for how we live and what we consume. Assemble Papers was born to collect, curate and proliferate this kind of thinking - offering a considered and practical approach to the clutter of contemporary life'. Assemble Papers publishes new content weekly, with a free newsletter going out to our subscribers each Friday morning.  Sign up here!

Eugenia Lim edits Assemble Papers.  Photo - Sean Fennessy.

Assemble are an ambitious bunch.  They're currently looking for a location in the inner north of Melbourne to build a special residential project that will bring to life their passion for small footprint living.  'Having spent most of last year developing a business plan to articulate (to ourselves and our investors) how we propose to do things a little differently, we finally secured funding for a small to medium scale apartment project, and we're now searching for the right location' says Giuseppe.  I've no doubt they'll make it happen!

From left, Eugenia Lim, Joachim Holland, Giuseppe 'Pino' Demaio and Ben Keck of Assemble.  Photo - Sean Fennessy.