- Interior
Pursuing a dream starts with small steps. Former web interface designer Marc Personick had long toyed with the idea of opening a gallery one day. Eventually, reality became even better than that. Monolith is his own studio through which he markets self-designed furniture and objects aimed at collectible design enthusiasts. Although it is his first collection, he makes it unflinchingly clear what he stands for.
The essence of Monolith is cleverly incorporated into the name. Debut collection Sanctuary is minimalist, a touch brutalist and - of course - irrevocably monolithic. There are nine pieces in total, including consoles, a sofa, lounge chair, side chair, bar stool and side tables. Each expresses an ode to the beauty of their material. Although Personick deliberately worked with heavy forms, he consistently steered towards a final balance. The entire collection is available in four materials: oak, walnut, Jalapa travertine and dark grey, oil-finished Recinto Negro. The latter is a type of Mexican lava stone used locally in construction. The project's premise is convincingly multifunctional. For instance, the designer explains that it is both art and utensils. On the bench, for example, you can also display objects and the side tables are perfectly dual-use as chairs. ‘To the eye, they are works of art, but they serve a purpose. Each piece is meant to be used. They are not there to be merely looked at.’ Originally his ambition was to start a gallery, but things ended up going slightly differently. For years, he had been a design enthusiast.On Instagram, he kept a directory of work by artists and designers that he liked, until it burst at its virtual seams, so to speak.After a while, it was suddenly crystal clear to him what the common factor was between all those pieces.Namely, all of them had sculptural contours and often consisted of only one or two primary movements.Even more striking was that, without exception, he chose designs that consisted of only one material. 
Sanctuary is minimalist, a touch brutalist and - of course - irrevocably monolithic
Eventually, Personick realised that he also wanted to start designing himself. He transported his ideas to paper and modelled them digitally, while contacting potential partners.The idea was that they would realise the pieces and he would then take on sales. At the time, he regularly travelled to Mexico City, and suddenly realised that he was at the source of various natural materials there. He started looking for a reliable studio and, after a while, ended up with a group of talented artisans in Guadalajara. Apart from sandblasting, everything there is done by hand. That tradition pays off, as the success of the Sanctuary collection encourages more.
Moreover, the name is a reference to the ritual connotation of the pieces. ‘They could be in a Mayan temple or in the desert,’ says the designer himself.With that, he indeed hits the nail on the head.Free of adornments and unnecessary details, the furniture radiates from its pristine essence and a sacred atmosphere surrounds it. Monolith will undoubtedly present more phenomenally well-crafted creations to its audience in the future. Personick already knows the direction he wants to take and is confident that the studio's underlying concept will pave the way. Indeed, he uses the monolithic idea as a consistent guideline to which his creations must conform. Simplicity, a limited number of movements and the atmosphere of a sculpture are the recurring characteristics he wants to stick to in the long run as well. On top of that, he hopes to expand the material palette and explore even more possibilities. We are confident that he will continue his path as a designer intuitively and several more successes are in the air. From enthusiast to professional: the gap is clearly closing. 
Images courtesy of Monolith
Text by Cara Jacobs