Konrad Sauer will present at UXcamp 2014

An early member of the maker movement is about to make his UXcamp debut in 2014.

Hiding in Plane Sight: Craftsmanship and Design
Nov 8, 2:10pm / 50 MINUTES

Form and function. These two ideas bind designers of all stripes, across disciplines, industries, even time and place. We seek to understand context of use, the “job to be done”, the motivations of our audience or users — then design beautiful, breakthrough solutions. But for those of us who work in bits and pixels, it’s easy to forget that we share another attribute with our broader tribe: craft. We’re all craftspersons, even when we don’t manipulate a tangible medium.

Get a behind-the-scenes look at what it takes to bring a furniture maker’s handplane to life, from initial idea to that moment when a delighted customer wipes a tear of joy from the polished handle. Through Konrad’s stories, we’ll discover the parallels between his work with metal and wood and our work in other mediums as UX professionals. Come away with a new perspective on and appreciation for the craft in your own practice… and for the craft inherent in all design.

Speaker Bio: Konrad Sauer

If you’re not familiar with Konrad Sauer just yet, we’re pretty sure that after his UXcamp session you will gain a new appreciation for the similarities between UX and his craft. He is a designer who became a maker long before it became a trend, as the man behind Sauer & Steiner Toolworks, the renowned brand of fine infill (hand) planes.

Konrad started out in the advertising world as a graphic designer and began climbing the agency ladder in Toronto. After years of living the dream as an Art Director, he left the ad business to regain his soul — and to pursue a passion for crafting custom handplanes, full time. You see, he realized that the basic handplane design has remained virtually the same since the 19th century, so he was intent to change all that.

In 2001 he built his first set of infill planes with business partner Joe Steiner (who was a dentist by trade – he has since left the business) and soon thereafter they got their first commission job. Nowadays, Konrad is one of the world’s premier makers and his work is recognized and envied for incredible design, materials, fit, finish and attention to detail.

Apart from an unforgettable presentation, rumour has it that Konrad will also bring a worktable to the UXcamp happy hour on Saturday to give the attendees a tactile feel for the tools and experiences he creates.