The designer

Di Tao trained first as a product designer—a Master of Arts from the University of Art and Design Helsinki in 2005, followed by more than a decade designing for international brands. That training still shows in the work—an eye for elegance and originality, and an instinct for charm: the quality that makes an object genuinely wanted, not just admired.

He works now where design and art are no longer separate things—objects that function, shaped with a sculptor’s feeling for surface and form.

“I am interested in the moment a raw material sheds its original identity and becomes something else—an object with its own expression and presence.”

Perspective

Born in Nanjing, educated in Finland, and based in Canada, Di’s work continues to be shaped by three enduring influences: the lyricism of Chinese art, the vastness of the Canadian landscape, and the sculptural language of Finnish design. They have shaped not only his visual language, but what he notices before he begins.

Collections & Recognition

Di’s work is held in private and institutional collections across several continents and is installed in Canadian embassies and consulates in Europe and South America. The Wye Rocker received a European Design Award in 2018, and his earlier product design was recognized with multiple Red Dot and iF awards.

For all of it, he is most at home in the studio, with his hands in the work itself.