BIOGRAPHY
Riku Toivonen was born in 1985 in Helsinki. Before Bachelor studies Riku studied in the carpentry school and graduated from there in 2012. Riku worked for a while in theatres as a set carpenter and cabinet maker. Riku graduated in spring 2016 from Lahti Institute of Design and Fine Arts, Furniture Design department. After finishing his bachelor studies Riku worked as a design developer at Aito Products in Helsinki. In autumn 2017 Riku started his master’s studies in Design Products at the Royal College of Art. Riku graduated from the RCA in summer 2019.
In his practice Riku tries to explore and question the norms of human behavior and how we interact with objects and products in everyday life. Riku’s goal is to solve the problems of everyday life with a touch of humor and thereby making life better. In product design Riku aspires to create functional, aesthetic as well as long-lasting and timeless products considering the challenges of today. Finnish culture as well as Riku’s background as a wood artisan can be seen in his design