DESCRIPTION:
French-born Agathe Jacquillat and Austrian-born Tomi Vollauschek met on the Royal College of Art’s post-graduate Communication Art and Design course in London and set up FL@33 after graduating in July 2001. FL@33 deals in “graphic design, including its blurry boundaries.” The studio’s clients include MTV Networks/VH1 European, Creative Review, Laurence King Publishing, Royal Festival Hall, Alsop Architects/Valencia Biennale 2003, Toicommoi.com, Matelsom, and École Normale de Musique de Paris.

VOICE:
“We believe that keeping a balance between commissioned and self-initiated projects and publications is good for one’s soul, and also good for our customers,” says FL@33. Their personal projects include trans-form, a magazine, CD-ROM, and website dedicated to exploring the magic of urban sculptures that appear and disappear in the cities we are living in. Another personal project is Bzzzpeek.com, a website that juxtaposes animal and vehicle noises from different countries using sound recordings from native speakers. FL@33’s most recent endeavor is Stereohype.com, an online boutique of limited-edition commissioned artworks.

DISTINCTIVE MARKINGS:
As students, Jacquillat and Vollauschek tended to listen constantly to music as they worked. “For some strange reason we have altered this habit. Now we either work in total silence—without even realizing it—or we listen to music far too loud and can’t even hear the phone ringing.”

HABITAT:
FL@33 is currently based in London’s Notting Hill area, chosen for its plentitude of bars and restaurants, to “cheer us up in our spare time.” Spring 2005 sees FL@33’s move eastward across London to a new (and much larger) office space in Clerkenwell.

SPOTTED BY:
Aidan Walker, editorial director of Media 10, London: “What appeals to me about FL@33 is their totally original imagination, their quirky sense of curiosity which they manage to express in the most elegant and eloquent ways. Their projects are infused with a highly individual humor that comes from ironic and precise observation. The world is definitely a better place for the work of Agathe and Tomi.”

CONTACT:
+44.207.313.9783 | www.flat33.com

Written by Alice Twemlow