Designer Steffany Trần: Memory Made Material
Vietnamese-American designer Steffany Trần builds ceramics and fixtures from memory, observation, and the overlooked moments that make up a life.
After a blur of design events across New York, Steffany Trần retreats to her quiet studio in NoMad, Manhattan. It is here, behind the glow of a computer screen, that she transforms emotion into form.
In just a few years, Vy Voi has become a name to watch on the international design circuit. The studio has appeared at NYCxDESIGN, Milan Design Week, and 3daysofdesign Copenhagen. Collections such as Root and Mushroom, along with the Kite In-Flight fixture, have shown in galleries across the United States, marking Trần's growing presence in contemporary design.
Her path into design was unplanned. It began with childhood memories and a love of craft. What started as a simple passion gradually evolved into an independent studio—named Vy Voi, a childhood nickname that still carries weight.
Finding Light in Small Things
In conversation, Trần speaks of the Mushroom Collection with care. Each lamp carries its own character, shaped by the unpredictable results of gas kiln firing. Critics and the design community have noted that her work brings "serene calm"—precisely what she hopes to create.
When asked how it feels to see her intentions realised, Trần compares it to putting on a beloved cotton shirt: comforting, like being cared for. She becomes emotional speaking about people living with her pieces around the world, learning the stories behind them. "It is a privilege as an artist, and I am truly grateful for it," she says.
Her grandmother shaped both her eye and her philosophy as a designer. The elder woman taught her to observe closely—birds building nests, ants moving along a fence, the smallest gestures of the natural world. Before she passed, her grandmother touched a few small ceramic vessels Trần had made. Today, five years after her death, Trần imagines what her grandmother would say upon seeing the studio's current work. First, she thinks, would come the practical questions: "Have you slept enough? Are you eating properly?" Then, with characteristic bluntness, her grandmother would likely declare the Cassava lamp far too large for anyone's home. Trần can still hear that incredulous voice.
Inspiration Everywhere
In previous interviews, Trần has spoken of collecting discarded objects as a habit. When asked whether these finds have ever sparked a design idea, she laughs and says yes, absolutely. For her, inspiration arrives from anywhere. A scrap of fabric. A line of poetry read by chance. Fallen leaves on a street. What excites her most is the act of observation itself—studying small, overlooked things to uncover the wonder hidden within.
A cast-off oyster shell she once found became the source for a ceramic glaze with an iridescent sheen, mimicking the surface of the shell itself. These small discoveries feed her larger vision.
Looking back at NYCxDESIGN 2026, Vy Voi maintained a busy schedule across roughly five events and gallery spaces, from the Look Book Offsite at Host on Howard to independent art venues. For Trần, these moments of showing her work mark a quiet kind of victory—one rooted not in fanfare, but in the genuine connections between maker and viewer.
