Doshi Levien
There are a couple of things I am obsessed with at the moment: styrofoam, using colored tape to transform furniture, and installation design. Designing an installation became a reality for me when Cindy Allen asked us to design an installation for InterfaceFLOR which we helped to install in t…

John Wayne in the House
A couple of weeks ago, I was in Factory Antiques...Read More

Touchy Feely Greenbuild
I’m heading to the Phoenix airport on my way home from Greenbuild. I’ve been to them all, from the early “Membership Meetings” where the whole organization fit in one room and everyone knew each other, to the super-charged mega-conferences of recent years. I’m pretty …

Artecnica Stretch Bags (Flat-Pack Totes!)
I am a huge fan of Artecnica's line of accessories and designed objects, particularly their socially responsible Design With Conscience products. Apparently so was TBWA Advertising Agency, who requested Artecnica to recycle their large format billboards into something special. The result: Artecnic…

Up and Coming Ninth Avenue
“…The great big city’s a wondrous toy, just made for a girl and boy. I’ll turn Manhattan into an isle of joy.” - from Manhattan At times, I become aware of what’s been going on underneath my own nose for some time. Ninth Avenue in between 23rd Street and 1…

A New Eero: The Saarinen Show Opens in New York
The traveling exhibition “Eero Saarinen: Shaping the Future” made its long-awaited New York debut Monday night at the Museum of the City of New York (MCNY), and the event had the look and feel of a Broadway opening. Given the visual confluence between Saarinen’s mid-century inter…

Brokeback Manor with Laura Bohn & Stephanie Odegard
I drove to Brokeback Manor this past weekend with Laura Bohn, who is never shy with an opinion (to say the least). I had several items I wanted to ask her about but I was afraid if I called them a consultation she would bill me, so instead our conversation went more like this: “Laura, what do …

The Lure of Greenbuild
The Valley of the Sun is filled with green people. More than 24,000 of us, according to estimates, have collected in Phoenix for Greenbuild. This is the eighth edition of the annual conference and it continues to be the premier gathering of the green building community. Of course I’m l…

Brave New World Lamp by FreshWest
The form for the Brave New World Lamp came as a direct inspiration from scaffolding techniques in East Asia, where bamboo is notched together to produce one of the strongest (and most inexpensive) makeshift building structures. The lamp, designed by UK-based Freshwest, was developed in a similar &…

Plaid in Fashion and Decoration
“Plaid is perennial,” my friend and aesthete, Josh Van Gelder pointed out recently as were on a regular London field trip to see what is new in the world of design and fashion. Plaid was arrayed in many shop windows, so it was among the many subjects we critically analyzed that …

ANDREA: A Plant-based Air Purifier
The ANDREA air filter, previously just a concept known as the Bel-Air, is now available for purchase! French designer Mathieu Lehanneur conceived of ANDREA as a home air filter that natually purifies air using nature's best technology: plants. With insights from Harvard professor David Edward, the…

School is So Interesting!
We had my daughter's class potluck last week and I always enjoy meeting the parents of our local public school PS234 in TriBeCa. Not only is it just fun chatting with parents I already know, but its always fun meeting new people. It's such an interesting cast of characters that make …

Modern vs. Postmodern
This week we're thinking in two directions. We're reading some of Robert Venturi and Charles Jencks' writings on Postmodernism, and discussing where they felt modern architecture had gone astray. And we've looked at some important Postmodern buildings, most of which seemed amusingly dated to t…

Alcove sofa
The Alcove Sofa by the freakishly talented Bouroullec Brothers is in my opinion a brilliant piece of design. I like that there are zippers in the corner so you can fold down the back and the sides. Available through Vitra.

Skram Stools
As my clients well know, I am not a vey "woody" designer. I love wood floors. I love a touch of wood in a piece of furniture combined with white lacquer or even a wooden table with colored legs. A full on wood interior, however, not so much. I think wood looks great on trees …

The Great Wall and the Anantara Spa
“Fresh air makes me throw up. I can't handle it. I'd rather be around three Denobili cigars blowing in my face all night.” -Frank Sinatra Travel to Beijing is a long anticipated task, which makes the distance worth its torture. It is the capital of China and a heroic ancient …

ECO: the Eco-Friendly Countertop
Does the world, or your library, need another countertop material? Actually, yes when one as terrific as ECO comes along. I first saw it installed in a green showhouse and was wowed by its looks – an almost pure white polished surface – just one of 10 colorways. But looks, as we k…

OFFI Spaecframe Builders Kit
As a kid, I would have gone gaga over this OFFI Spaceframe Builder's Kit, which is on sale right now (half off!) via Design Public. The building block system is made from recycled soda bottles to form rigid felt-ish building modules. They can be combined in any number of ways to create space ships…

A Bigger and Better Noguchi
“My effort was to find a way to link that ritual of rocks which comes down to us through the Japanese from the dawn of history to our modern time and needs.” -Isamu Noguchi First, the disclaimer: as one of the preeminent artists and designers of the 20th-century, Isamu Noguchi has…

Show & Tell Time
Show & Tell time—finally. First, let’s talk about the front door lighting. Joan and I are in disagreement about which to use. My vote goes for the ones from Remains Lighting. Although not antique, they do have some age and therefore some patina. I think the scale and shape are pe…