Kwerk Furniture: A Conversation with Nickolas Gurtler
Presented by Kwerk Furniture
DETAILS
Free, booking required
565 Chapel Street, South Yarra VIC, Australia
Kwerk Furniture collaborates with IDEA Interior Designer of the Year nominee Nickolas Gurtler to present Designed for Artful Living, an evening celebrating distinctive design, refined craftsmanship and creative practice.
The event brings together bold ideas, thoughtful interiors and artistic expression, marked by the unveiling of Kwerk Furniture, a first look at the Melbourne-designed and made brand. Attendees can explore a curated gallery of furniture, experiencing craftsmanship and design up close.
Nickolas Gurtler will speak about artful living through considered design.
5:30 pm: Kwerk Furniture unveiling
6:20 pm: Introduction by Design Director and Furniture Designer, Susan Willems
6:30–7:00 pm: Guest speaker, Nickolas Gurtler, and Q&A
Participants
Susan Willems
Founded by Design Director and Furniture Designer Susan Willems, Kwerk Furniture is a family-owned Australian brand specialising in architectural luxury - creating modern minimalist pieces designed to inhabit expansive residential interiors and refined commercial spaces. Each design is conceived to make an artistic statement while maintaining a sense of balance, restraint and timeless appeal.Drawing inspiration from her travels throughout Europe, Susan developed a deep appreciation for refined forms and rich materiality. Influenced by this aesthetic, she began designing custom pieces for her interior design clients for the past twenty years, responding to a clear gap in the Australian market for furniture with architectural presence.What began as bespoke commissions soon evolved into a dedicated focus on furniture design. Transitioning from interior designer to furniture designer, Susan now creates pieces that combine sculptural presence with playful sophistication for interior designers and architects alike.Committed to Australian design and craftsmanship, Kwerk Furniture is proudly made in Melbourne using locally sourced materials and produced by skilled Australian artisans. Through this approach, the brand celebrates the country’s rich craft heritage, supports local industries and embraces sustainable practices; resulting in furniture that is as responsible as it is refined, and built to stand the test of time for generations to come.
Nickolas Gurtler
Nickolas Gurtler is the principal of Nickolas Gurtler Office, founded in 2015. With over a decade of practice as an interior designer and interior decorator, he leads a boutique team delivering work across residential, multi-residential and commercial projects. Each project is approached with a discerning, thoughtfully edited sensibility, shaping how space is felt and inhabited.Gurtler’s references range from history and film to product and fashion, recomposed into spaces that are precise, tactile and emotionally calibrated. A respect for honest materials underpins the work, balancing the raw and the refined, the organic and the machined, through distinctive combinations of natural stone, timber and metal. Light is central to his work: carefully controlled and choreographed to shape atmosphere, rhythm and mood. Gurtler is a strong advocate for Australian design, emerging makers and local artisans, preferring to work with local product wherever possible. Nickolas Gurtler Office undertakes work across Australia and the United States, and in 2025 he was shortlisted for Designer of the Year at the IDEA Awards.