IN STUDIO with Jonathan Friend

A series of conversations with designers, makers and creatives who create with intention and longevity in mind. We visit them in their studios, homes and spaces - to understand the thinking behind their work, and the life around it.

IN STUDIO with Jonathan Friend

On Making, Materiality and Spaces That Stay With You

JONATHAN FRIEND OF JFORM

Jonathan Friend is the kind of designer who has earned his eye the hard way. Before he was drawing spaces, he was building them - hands on timber, learning how a material behaves under pressure, how a detail either holds or doesn't.

That instinct for making is what gives his studio, JFORM its edge. You'll find his work behind some of Sydney's most beloved retail and hospitality venues - among them The Shop & Wine Bar in Bondi and September Studios in Darlinghurst — and now, a growing series of residential projects that carry the same familiar charm.

We met him at Sona Place, his newest residential project: an intimate Airbnb in Surry Hills, finished with Bondi Wash amenities throughout. The space feels familiar almost immediately. It asks you to slow down and stay a while. We sat down with him to hear about the collaboration, what drives his process, and where he's headed next.

You've been on both sides — the one drawing it, and the one building it. Does that shift something in how you design?

"To a degree it definitely does. Having a background as a maker gives me a more grounded understanding of how things actually come together — how elements are built, detailed, and resolved in reality. It shapes the way I design in that I'm always thinking about what's achievable, not just what looks good on paper.

My approach is quite fluid. It tends to evolve naturally over the course of the project, responding to the space, the materials, and how everything starts to come together on site."

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There's a constant awareness of process, materials, and practicality — which helps bridge the gap between concept and execution.
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What was the concept behind Sona Place?

"Sona Place was really a collective effort - between myself, Matt (Rhodes), Kate and Olivia (Parsons). It was important from the outset that it felt like a shared vision rather than any one person's idea. Having that mix of perspectives helped shape something more considered and layered than it would have been otherwise."

The concept, he says, was centred on calm. "Somewhere that feels familiar almost immediately. More than anything, I want people to feel at ease, like they can settle in and stay a while."

Walking through the space, that intent is clear in every decision: the materiality, the scale of the furniture, the way light moves through the room. Nothing is trying too hard.

What regular rituals or habits keep you feeling grounded and inspired?

"For me, it's having something on the side that brings me back to making. I'm trying to spend more time designing and building furniture - getting into the workshop, working with my hands, and focusing on a single piece from start to finish.

It's a slower, more intentional process. And it pulls me out of the noise of day-to-day work."