[Designers of Brazil]: The invention of the Northeast according to the Mula Preta studio

By Simões Neto

I have always had the impression that "freedom" is the word that most represents Mula Preta, a product design studio, created in Rio Grande do Norte, with a flagship in São Paulo, and present in important Brazilian capitals. I confirmed this concept by reading the answers to each question that permeates this interview. Everything flows and this spontaneity comes from what the brand stands for, its values, the solid roots on which they were created, and more: the Northeastern originality that is inserted in everything, especially in a design to see, feel, wear, and enjoy.

"I think that the most striking element in our creation is trying to represent the globalized, irreverent, and sophisticated northeast. That's why the design of our flagship has this modern look, being able to be anywhere in the world without losing its essence. Our root is very strong, very own, and it is our interpretation of how we are what the Northeast is", says designer André Gurgel, who, together with architect Felipe Bezerra, created the Mula Preta, a name that pays homage to Luiz Gonzaga's music, northeastern icon-singer. More rootsy, impossible.

What you will read from now on is a lesson in beautiful design, consistency of ideas, freedom of creation, and business strategy, because, as André Gurgel said, "first of all we are entrepreneurs - half of us are artists and the other half are businessmen". So, enjoy.

EXPO REVESTIR: You recently launched the Montecarlo poker table and already have in your portfolio other works in which entertainment is the bias. When did you come up with these ideas of flirting with leisure and games? I ask because I know few Brazilian designers who work with this concept, who go beyond armchairs and tables.

BLACK WOMAN: It came about in a very spontaneous way. The first of the game pieces was the foosball, which we developed for a friend of ours in Natal, who owns a gym. In a meeting we were developing a projeto together and talked about having an eye-catching piece that would stand out with different materials, and we thought about making a foosball. At first no one really believed it would work, because of the mix of materials, for having glass and acrylic, but when we made the prototype it worked and the usability was very good, besides the durability, because it has been in the gym for a long time and working very well.

It drew a lot of attention even to our Studio, from the moment we made it, and out of curiosity, it became a best seller, not only here in the store in São Paulo, but in all the stores that resell our products. I believe it was the initial spark for us to develop all the other games that joined our collection.

Next we developed the snooker, but always with a very strong appeal for aesthetics and concept, and most of them with the duality of functions. The snooker, for example, can be used as a dining table just by placing the top.

Ping-pong, for example, which came before snooker, has the same function as a dining table when you take the net off. It has a very striking design, characteristic in our studio.

Then came the Cambito chess table, which we launched at last year's São Paulo Design Week, and which was a huge success. We took the hook of the series called "Queen's Gambit", and made a joke with the thin legs of the table and called it Cambito, we even designed the pieces.

And this year we launched the Montecarlo poker table, which also has the double function of becoming a round table, with a secret compartment for storing chips. And the cool thing is that it is floating. The whole base is made of a molded methacrylate, giving the sensation of a floating flying saucer.

We really got into this niche of games and it became one of the important features of our work.

EXPO REVESTIR: From 2012 to 2022: ten years of Mula Preta. What do you notice that has changed the most in these ten years when it comes to maturity in the duo's design?

BLACK WOMAN: First of all we are business people. We often joke that half of us are artists and the other half are business.

Even though we created Mula Preta 10 years ago as a side business, as a way to exacerbate our hobbies and walk around an area that we didn't have as much contact with, everything we get involved in has a content to develop something or some business. So over this decade we started to learn how the industry works, how to create an element and a branding that made sense. We also learned throughout this time that loyalty to your story has a value that cannot be measured, and also how to use several different materials and apply this in the most intelligent way to the concept of our studio.

We have matured a lot in understanding the industry, about brand positioning, branding, and pillars of all sectors that are involved in the universe of design, whether in retail, wholesale, or industry. How to talk to the end public, how to understand the consumer's desire, ergonomics, finishes, and how important the translation of their story is to this brand development endeavor.

EXPO REVESTIR: Any celebrations in mind to celebrate the 10 years, like a book...?

BLACK WING: To celebrate this first decade, we are already drafting books and understanding how to make a collection of the last 10 years. I don't think we should launch anything this year, but probably next year we will take advantage of the special moment to make an event at the store and even launch pieces that we have already been designing.

EXPO REVESTIR: Felipe is from the 1970s and André is from the next generation. Both are from the Northeast of Brazil. How was it to get in step with the difference in generations and thoughts?

BLACK WING: What brought us together, despite the generation difference, was design, the desire to do something and the appreciation and passion for this art. Good things have no age, so we have always been inspired, absorbed, and drank from the fountains of the best designers. This is a common characteristic, besides personality. Both are playful, this irreverence thing is very strong, especially on the personal side, so age has no barrier when there is a connection that becomes strong through the interests and the very friendship that is formed.

And the cool thing about this is that I, André, come from a different generation and see things in a different way, although I drink from sources that Felipe also drinks from, he already has inspirations and experiences from other times and elements from other daily life things, from the youth, and the cool thing about this is that the range is much more extensive. We go from something very modern, current, to a Kichute, for example, which is not from my time, but was very present in Felipe's life. So we are able to go through all these moments and the range becomes even wider, for this reason.

EXPO REVESTIR: I believe that being from the Northeast makes all the difference in the work of Mula Preta, even because the name comes from Gonzagao's music. What are the strong points that these references add to your work?

BLACK WING: The choice of the name is the central element, due to the fact that it characterizes our studio very quickly, a name you don't forget. We always talk about this, in a list of designers, you see the name Mula Preta and you wonder who these crazy people are. Lol. Maybe the person will be curious to look it up.

I think that our most striking element is trying to represent the globalized, irreverent and sophisticated northeast. That's why the design of our flagship has this modern look, being able to be anywhere in the world without losing its essence. Our roots are very strong, very our own, and it is our interpretation of what the Northeast is and how we are.

We have traveled a lot and absorbed a lot of things from the world, and our personality is translated into our work, whether by the lightness or irreverence of our Northeast. Gonzagão is a figure who is an icon and has a very great representativeness for us, and because of this our homage is daily in a very elegant way.

EXPO REVESTIR: How does it work to create in pairs? Who likes what better? Do you think about the product together or each one in his own square (if yes, which is your square)?

BLACK WORD: It is very dynamic, sometimes we are on a plane, on a trip, and we conceive some product. Sometimes we sit down to develop it together, many times it is born from one and the two interact to improve.

But the most important thing is that there is no ego, all the drawings are born for Mula Preta, regardless of whether it is André or Felipe, our brand is more important. And because we don't have this fight between egos, we are able to raise the level of the drawings. The reception of any change from one drawing to the other, be it from André to Felipe or from Felipe to André, is very valid.

We are aware that everything we say and suggest is always for the better, so during these 10 years we had practically no bad discussions for our business and design. Precisely because we have in mind a much larger scope, both for the design and for the drawing.

EXPO REVESTIR: Your creation is constant, intense, warm and vibrant. What are the references for this vigorous creation? Where are the inspirations for Mula Preta?

BLACK WING: The main engine driving these ideas is the passion for design, I think we share a lot of that, it's a common thing between us, we collect design, we absorb design constantly, we travel to see design and architecture, so maybe the big difference is our background, our northeastern roots.

Our irreverent personality by nature makes everything we create very unique to our brand. We have already created an identity for it all, so when all these characteristics are aligned it is much more fluid and easier to develop the work together, we can play and dare having in mind the brand scope as a whole, the inspirations are the most diverse, the big difference is how we interpret and translate this alignment of characteristics, making our language unique.

EXPO REVESTIR: Of the awards you have received, which ones have had the most impact on your career? The one that makes you realize that you are on the right path with no turning back?

BLACK WORD: The first ones are the most important. Imagine two adventurers trying to enter the world of design out of pure passion, outside the consumer and producer axis, in Rio Grande do Norte. At the A' Design Award, we went to receive the Platinum, the top prize of the award. And being in that world, breathing and meeting other designers and receiving invitations at that time to exhibit in Paris, Milan, even in China, was the turning point.

And it was a very wise decision to participate in these awards. Maybe an unconscious strategy that worked very well. Basquete, Duna, Serpentina, were the most important, and we like to affirm this always, until today.

EXPO REVESTIR: André, you have just become a father. What changes in the life of a designer when he faces such a strong and rich experience as fatherhood?

BLACK WOMAN: That's right, amazing! My "little son" is one year and seven months old and has already completely changed my life and my wife's life. It is magical! The universe starts to revolve around that little being and all the love in the world that you thought did not exist is there, a kind of inexplicable thing.

It's interesting for a designer, because as soon as my wife got pregnant I started thinking about cradles, miniaturized chairs, etc. And it's cool, because nowadays we even see design in a different way and we even get to know some designers who work in this children's world, toy design, and this is very cool.

And the cool thing is that I could live a double experience with the arrival of my son, since the store was set up at the same time, becoming my other son, at almost the same age. Like a gestation, that we build to launch.

The reality is that the life of any human being changes completely with the arrival of a child, and you begin to see things in a different way, and always want to be better than yesterday. Somehow I want to leave a legacy for my son and this is fundamental, I am sure that it will help me to go further.

EXPO REVESTIR: What is the Mula Preta dying to do in terms of creation that you haven't done yet? Is there any projeto where you did everything: you thought, discussed, designed, but when it was time to execute there was some technical problem that could not be solved and projeto was shelved?

BLACK WEAVE: In the area of furniture we have been expanding our range more and more, we even recently launched a line of outdoor area, which has a series of minor materiality, such as the fact of using aluminum, wood and special foam, etc. We have several other projects that are more complex, even kind of sculptural, which we have not yet taken off the paper because we do not have the technology, such as a very specific plastic injection, for example.

All of this means that we have designs already in the pipeline that will be developed over time. So far everything we've done we've been very happy with the decisions and choices of the concept we've developed and there's a wide range of things we need to explore, so the way is open.

EXPO REVESTIR: What is the most tense phase of a projeto?

BLACK WORD: For me, André, the most tense phase is when we transform a digital idea, a concept that goes from sketch to digital, until the transformation to real, because in real life everything is different. 3D has no gravity, it is much easier to conceive a lot of things, but when we try to produce, to make the first prototype, it is always more tense, because I am in a huge expectation of what is going to happen.

Sometimes we get it so right that any modification of the prototype is much better than the real thing, but many times we create all the adjustments from there, because in real life the angles we see, in the three-dimensional universe we live in, have another visual connotation and aesthetic appeal.

EXPO REVESTIR: Finishing: if it is not impeccable, the Black Mule freaks out (lol)?

BLACK WORD: It is a constant search of ours, internally we are crazy, because there are times that the industry cannot achieve what we want, and the finish says a lot about the piece, about the way it is perceived. Our design has a very high added value, the fact of having even the complexity of shapes many times and having a very strong concept behind it, makes us always look for a 100% result, even more, but we are not crazy if we don't reach this level. Of course, to extract the maximum result, if we do not strive outside the comfort zone, even take the industry outside the comfort zone, we do not evolve, after all success is a reflection of a constant work of years and years in search of evolution.

EXPO REVESTIR: Future: What to expect from Mula Preta's production and range? What plans are in the pipeline?

BLACK WING: The last move we made was to open the flagship in São Paulo and for that we had to remodel our business model. Before we only designed for industries with intellectual property and received royalties for that. Currently, our business works in a different way, we have a flagship and the concentration of products and the visualization of the brand is greater than the industry, and we walk in parallel developing this work in a very solid way. From more than ninety stores that sold our products punctually, today we have fifteen exclusive partners with Mula Preta spaces in Brazil, and we aim to reach twenty, twenty-five in the next few years. In a way, it is a little piece of what we do here reverberating in some of the main capitals of Brazil, and this is very important for us.

I think that a future step will be to explore the external market, to understand how exports would be, to improve the design more, to live much more actively with the industry, to think about the future of how this would be, even if we could control some of this production in a closer way. So, in the medium term, it would be to expand our horizon of visualization of the brand, to expand our portfolio. We already have a wide range of products, but to expand it a little more, even because of the stricter relationship today, having a store with the final client. We know the need for this.