There is a great article in the Wall Street Journal today by Witold Rybczynski entitled When Buildings Try Too Hard which explores the phenomenon in which architecture is purposefully conceived as an icon as oppossed to earning the status when it becomes “…a popularly recognized symbol of something larger than itself…”. Rybczynski cites examples of buildings that have earned their status: Frank Gehry’s Bilbao Guggenheim and those that have failed: Frank Gehry’s Experience Music Project in Seattle. So maybe nobody has a lock on iconic architecture (or design of any kind for that matter). If the goal was revised to accomplish good design, in the natural course of things, we might end up with more successful built environment overall.
Witold Rybczynski is an interesting guy, to say the least. Educated as an architect in Canada (although I can’t determine the extent of his time in practice), award-winning architectural critic and author, he is currently a Professor of Urbanism at the prestigious Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania. His writings are particularly interesting because they speak in very clear terms to a broad audience - no architect-speak.
November 22nd, 2008
So what will you see at Touch? First up, Mermaid Earrings - Designed by Mana Bernandes, you can feel good about earrings made from recycled bottles and bamboo toothpicks, embellished with a beautiful pearl. Or how about Egg Vase by Patricia Naves - a recycled egg container repurposed as a pretty little bud vase. Finally, Agua Table by Domingos Totora - things are not always what they seem - those are not stones you see supporting the glass top, rather recycled Kraft paper with natural pigments. Just a sampling of what you’ll see at Touch.
November 21st, 2008
Los Angeles showroom Touch opened last night and I have to say it felt like the real thing. The well curated and thoughtful collection supports the mission of bringing to market beautiful, environmentally and socially responsible, handmade products. The space is spare and the designs are well displayed in a friendly gallery atmosphere. Many of the designs are from Brazil, Portugal and Argentina. Touch should definitely be on your radar - from jewelry to tabletop to furniture, a real jewel. Touch - 11914 Washington Blvd, Los Angeles (on Washington just East of Inglewood Blvd).
November 21st, 2008
FTF Design Studio is offering a healthy discount - 25% off furniture orders placed before December 1st, 2008. They have some beautiful pieces, its worth a look.
November 20th, 2008
Suspension 01 Light can easily move between residential and workplace application with its graceful curves. The piece is made entirely stateside in California. I’m guessing that not only reduces lead time, but probably makes customization a breeze.
Suspension 01 is designed by Tim Richartz and is fabricated of steel and brass with available custom colors and finishes. The body is almost 4 feet long and 4″deep. It houses a 120 volts in a twin base porcelain socket. It is suspended from adjustable cables.
Tim Richartz is not only an alumn of Pratt Institute but currently teaches the Senior Furniture Design Studio there. His more than twenty years of design experience is with a wide range of companies including Herman Miller, ICF and Bernhardt, to name a few. Currently, Tim is working with Blank Blank to develop a personally branded design collection.
November 20th, 2008
This Point Loma home by San Diego based deFreitas Architects features a clean, white, modernist aesthetic. In the foreground, the iconic Sinus Chair designed in 1976 by Reinhold Adolf and Hans-jurgen Schropfer for Cor. Also featured is Sticks by Hsu-Li and Stefan Kaiser for Extremis - it can be used as an art object or as a room divider. Design by Mixture, San Diego. Photo by Harrison Photographic.
November 19th, 2008
Jose Graces’ Disitrito Restaurant in Philadelphia combines woven natural materials with high spirited, colorful woven synthetics to create a modern Mexican environment still rooted in tradition. Brooklyn based Creme Design and Miami based PIE Studio joined forces to create the environment in which large seating elements were done in natural materials and the bright synthetics were used on the smaller pieces. The result is a dynamic, lively, light and modern environment which evokes the tradition of a Mexican fiesta.
November 19th, 2008
This little beach cottage in seaside town of Whitstable in the UK is 388 square feet of pared down bliss. Designed and owned by Danish designer Nina Tolstrup of Studiomania - I have to say, we need a lot more of a little something like this. Pared down to its essentials, the house provides a shelter which is cognizant of the real star here, the sea. Accepting the sea as the focal point, the rest of the house sits in support of that. I love beautiful stuff, but there is real grace in minimalism and restraint that is hard to beat. Thanks to Jennifer Chait at Offbeat Homes for the heads up. Jennifer also blogs about green lifestyle.
November 18th, 2008
Handmade specializes in fine custom furniture and cabinetry for home, office and retail.
John McDonald
Handmade
2300 Central Avenue, Unit I
Duarte, CA 91010
323-660-5531
info@handmadehome.com
November 17th, 2008
The Huntley Hotel in Santa Monica California recently rennovated by Thomas Schoos Design relies on natural materials, comfort and an homage to the sea. Schoos deftly mixes modern pieces like the Strata Chair from Stew Design Workshop with clean white upholstered chairs, leather benches, fluffy white pillows and rustic woven tables. The wall features hundreds of lacquered white piranhas. Not your typical interpretation of a seaside resort, which makes it so intriguing.
November 17th, 2008
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