michele@theneverendingballoon.com
The Neverending Balloon is an interdisciplinary studio whose work includes explorations of custom furniture, spaces, and objects. Thinking in terms of systems, processes, and relationships, our creative process is grounded in seeing design as a kaleidoscope of interconnected parts, finding seamlessly functional answers to (often-unnoticed) obstacles. We believe in the “simple expression of the complex thought,”* allowing inquiry, the delight of play, and a thoughtful consideration of use and material to guide us. Through our process, we ask how the mindful act of creation can set a foundation for preservation; how working with one’s hands, resourcefully minimizing waste, consciously sourcing materials* can find solutions that intuitively integrate into and enrich daily life. In doing so, our offerings are purposeful and de facto designed to last, keep, and treasure — connective threads that bring us closer to our surroundings and to each other.
The Neverending Balloon is the practice of Michele Liu, a designer based in Los Angeles, California. As an undergraduate at Otis College of Art & Design, Michele studied Environmental Design, a program that explored the overlapping relationships between humans, the spaces we occupy, and physical objects. Her studio, formed in 2015 in the Los Angeles hills, is a continuation of this curiosity-led inquiry into these ideas and the endless potential of objects to hold both beauty and utility, representations of art and function.
Michele holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Fine Arts from Otis College of Art & Design and a Master’s in Design from the Design Academy Eindhoven, a program which focuses on the social roles and responsibilities for designers attuned to contemporary ecological and social challenges. She has worked alongside companies including Nike and Japanese cult fashion brand Visvim; her list of clients and collaborators includes Pine & Crane, Union Los Angeles, Deegan Day Design, Bephie's Beauty Supply, and Grist & Toll.
In addition to running her studio, Michele is the Director at Would Works, a nonprofit social enterprise that provides job training and employment opportunities in the craft of woodworking to formerly or currently unhoused individuals.
Michele’s friend once received a comically oversized foil balloon as a birthday gift. The balloon lingered, a persistent resident that — despite odds and bets — continued to float for months. The image stuck: a balloon bouncing from here to there...a curious and dedicated witness to its surroundings.
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