A little interview with Emmanuel Lawal

A man of many talents, Emmanuel Lawal is one of London’s brightest artists. His work bridges music, product design, visual art and spatial storytelling. He is also known for his DJing, AUDIOCOMINGSOON (his music production venture) as well as his design studio Forestalgia. It’s here that he creates art that remarks on social connection, such as the recent Modular 001, which draws inspiration from traditional Japanese chabudai and horigotatsu forms reimagined as a low-set table and seating arrangement to encourage conversation. Consequently Lawal was celebrated by the Design Council through its newly announced 25 for 2025 Planet Trailblazers, a group of creatives recognised for redefining their industries through sustainable and socially engaged design . At the heart of his practice is a commitment to fostering community and emotional connection. He first began his creative journey as a DJ, using music to create atmosphere and bring people together.

Emmanuel’s work has evolved to explore how physical environments, objects and materials can shape how people feel and connect, while his design and creative studio Forestalgia creates immersive, tactile environments that explore themes of memory, identity, and shared experience.

My uncle Sherif, cousin Obi and next-door neighbour Nikki (who I fancied) were my holy trinity as a kid. They were all older than me so I was living my life kind of vicar- iously through them. Outside of my imme- diate surroundings, Thierry Henry was my biggest inspiration as a kid. The year is 2003-2004, I’m 12 years old and Arsenal has run through the Premier League season unbeaten. Unforgettable!

For as long as I can remember I have been creative. Although one of my earliest dreams was to play tennis professionally, but that was short lived. By the time I hit 17 years old, my eyes, ears and heart were fixated on design and music.

Today everyone, everywhere, inspires me. I love learning so I’m inspired by anybody who will spare me some insight. I’m a sponge for knowledge. My team consists of both young and older people who sharpen my iron every single waking day. I’m inspired by the future.

My love of music began in my adolescence, and definitely started at home. My parents would play traditional Nigerian music any moment they could. By the time I started secondary school, grime was erupt- ing, consuming me and my friends. I also found hip-hop, funk, jazz and all the other good stuff around the age of 16 and pretty much went down a rabbit hole of discovery. In fact, I’m still discovering!

I admire so many people in the music space. It’s an eclectic list, but to name a few: Larry June, Westside Gunn, Curren$y, Freddie Gibbs, The Cavemen, Ragz Originale, Qendresa, Casisdead, Men I Trust, Cleo Sol, Blood Orange.

I spent most of my teenage nights blagging my way into parties, with the DJ booth always in sight. In 2015, myself and [fellow AUDIOCOMINGSOON DJ and model] Ashton Gohil went to Westend DJ on Hanway Street in London and purchased the Native Instruments S4 Traktor Controller and the rest is history. We play a lot of edits and mash-ups to songs you may or may not know. We recently did a Friday Late at the V&A and played 75 per cent bhangra music in homage to south Asian culture.

For season one of the ACS show, we focused on incredible leading men and non-binary talent due to our sponsor being Mytheresa Men. If there was ever a season two, we’d love to flip the coin with a whole season dedicated to female game-changers.

Outside of being a creative design studio, where the focus is currently on the physical form including objects that bring people together, Forestalgia is as much about creating a definite feeling as it is a tangible product. For me, it’s an organic daze — the single most impor- tant moment in any given day. It’s the near-future realisation of what is yet to come.

I want to create unique products while curating activations with the objective to communicate and connect common val- ues between global communities. Through the studio, we want to bring together the meetings of minds from var- ious walks of life, to share, to listen, to make moments.

With Modular 001 I wanted to convey togetherness! We’re currently living in a world that encourages people to be afraid of one another. We want to celebrate our differences but also strengthen the string that binds us all together. With Modular 001, we dreamed of an informal setting where people could connect, converse and create. I really wanted the piece to be a sensory experience so the optional mood-light and music component was vital to creating a world within a world. The piece brings together form, community and music.

One exhibition I am definitely excited to see is easily the World Design Congress at the Barbican Centre on the 9th and 10th of September this year! For me Frieze is always a highlight — being on the Frieze 91 Committee, it’s exciting to witness so much new talent com- ing through each year. The energy and innovation from emerging artists never fails to inspire, and it’s incredible to see how their work is shaping the future of contemporary art.

This article was taken from the summer 2025 issue of Gentleman's Journal

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