There's good design, then there's well different...

Running through odds and ends that load up on the desk and mail. This was hilarious, but a real product. Just don't know what the appropriate application would be. Maybe a movie themed media room. Otherwise not a clue.

It is normal that I stash away unique products for "someday I'll need that" thought. It's really not ugly or ill made, well it is just different. Please thank OOOMs

Cheers

Mirror, Mirror...TV?

I love multitasking items. Pantel has this uber cool tv where you can watch both your favorite things, television and yourself. Mirror TV- the image above is of a TV. When off it is a mirror, on television and it is waterproof.  They also have a very cool line of weatherproof TV's for outdoors. I really need these indoors, yes I have spilt drinks onto tv screens. No alcohol, just water from tripping in the room. I know what you were thinking. Like I said, I guess you can tell I'm catching up on a week worth of mail.

In the land of Os, a pursuit of elegance...

Os Gẽmeos, there's one for you. Slipped through the cracks.

I was meandering through my twitter posts when I came across a tweet by Lance Armstrong about a picture he was just texted. It was a graffiti painting by Os Gẽmeos in Havana. High end graffiti art and though they have been around for years, I missed it- totally. Have you ever had that happen, totally seemingly clueless to something that has impacted a culture. Pause, humble moment here.

Brazilian identical twins. Who dream of people with yellow faces, who can finish each other's illustrations. Whimsical, thought provoking with a hint of social commentary. Never trained, but picked up  admiration of the US hip hop scene. They have actually changed the landscape of Sao Paulo as their art is sprinkled through the city. Graffiti artists changing the world, who'd a thunk it. They are as much a part of Brazil as Carnival. But then they are part of Carnival

What I miss most in our new citysscapes is character. Neighborhoods are designed like video games. Click put a house here, click put a house there. HOA's rules removes the character that most people love in their neighborhoods and cities. I'm willing to sacrifice living next to a house with pink shutters if it will give the neighborhood some character. Okay maybe not pink shutters, how about salmon or teal. Once lived next to a house with checkerboard sky blue and white blocks on their garage. Did I say I grew in in the 70's drug era. 

Generica has become the norm, I'm hoping this blip in our economy pushes people to be more creative. Maybe allowing people more freedom in how they live. 

I am always amazed that people love the quaint neighborhoods of yesteryear. Painted ladies of San Francisco, the artist lofts of NYC. Yet when we build, even so called "custom" homes all I see is a sea of brown. 

Which is why I am a big fan of Matthew May. Matt has given us a primer on making good choices.  Simple, elegant wise choices. I do not know his opinions on brown neighborhoods.

He's written a great new book on " In Pursuit of Excellence".  In an interview with Guy Kawasaki, my favorite suggestion of his is that companies should have CTO's in addition to CEO's. Chief Taste Officer. To me what Matt really covers is the pursuit of elegance in design  across many medium. Simple elegance, means making good choices. This is an excellent resource for training your brain. The essence of good design.

 Os Gẽmeos gives art with simplicity even in their details. They choose the right details. That is the essence of design. They don't give a whole cityscape they choose images and make them part of the city.

In design, every element should  look to become part of whole, but bring to it it's own uniqueness.  I usually throw everything on the table and then start taking away. 

In school  a great lesson was learned from my old english prof Webby. 

In college he was given an assignment to write a research paper by one of the most respected professors on campus.  Webby worked weeks on it before the first draft was due. Prof called Webby in for his review, told him he needed to shorten it up.  So he hammered on it over the weekend with all nighters. Turned it in on Monday to the prof.  Friday, he was called in again, asked his prof if it worked this time. He said he made some great strides, but still needed to be condensed-get to the point. He actually repeated the same the next week and again marched into the professor's office with full vigor only to be shot down.

At this point Webby said he had had it. With several  months of work at stake,  he took the paper and slammed it back down on his professor's desk and told him he couldn't cut it down any more, he had shaved it to the bone.  His professor then retorted, " Well- now I'll read it".

Lesson learned.  

If you want to expand on this concept read Matthew E. May's  new book and maybe check out a show or a streetscape by Os Gimeos. Get inspired, pursue elegance, pursue learning from the best.

Cheers

Alice

CTO of RED

When disruptions bring order...

Or- I knew that part 2 (for part one click here)

(Warning graphic photos-For those of you who wanted to know 

how the injury was coming along, almost perfect)

As you witness here from the effects of the "I knew better than to take the radiator cap off while hot moment" : Mistakes are disruptions, but there are other types of disruptions as well in the scheme of life. Weather, winning the lottery, bringing home a new baby; much of which are good disruptions on the face of things. I really think though that disruptions are what you make of them. It is a choice to make them a have a positive effect. Much like Jonathan Singer from my previous post. A diagnosis of Parkinson's brought disruption, yet it gave order to his life in a new vein. Photography.

In nature, destruction like wildfires and volcanoes, though immediately disruptive are followed with a new flush of life. Stronger and more vibrant than before because the destruction left behind nutrients that were exhausted in its old life. 

With the devastation of Katrina, brought the opportunity to rebuild a city far better than before. Provide jobs and new opportunities for families. I wouldn't wish Katrina on anyone, but if it had to happen those affected need look forward at possibilities. So in effect Katrina brought order to government, to the economy, to the people of the affected region. Much still to be done. I applaud those affected and those 

who are rebuilding. Major kudos to

 Brad Pitt with his organization "Make it Right Foundation" for putting his time, energy and monies where his mouth is. There are others, but full feature on blog will come later.

What does this have to do with design. I read a book recently by Jean-Marie Dru of TBWA/CHIAT.  The agency behind the Mac Ads. Actually he wrote several books all on the idea that to hit your mark you have to use disruption to create order.

I knew that...

Sometimes the disruption is unplanned, sometimes you have to create it.

Like I mentioned in the previous post, I get a lot of work from others mistakes (disruptions) they just don't know how to bring order and that's where I fit in.

Then there are times I create the disruption to bring order. Easiest and simplist way is just to ask, why? When you are in a room full of people whether architects, clients or professionals and they are going over their proposal-when they give you details ask why.

If you get a stare-it usually means no one has every asked them that before. It disrupts their thought pattern. If they answer quickly in defense, assure them you meant no harm, just interest. This is vital information in the design process. Some have taken this approach thinking I didn't know my job. Just the opposite. Sometimes I already know the answer, I just want to hear their views and to see if they have thought the issue through. You will be surprised at how many times I get, "well, that is the way it has always been done".  Not a good answer in design.

To the other extreme there are those who over analyze. I still ask why, then they give me a dissertation on their research. Uhh, TMI as my kids say. Design is a process of elimination. You start with a cacophony of input, get to the point.  As you see here, I can ramble with the best of them.

The point is this for good design:

1. Start with fresh facts, everything that you can come up with. Basically brainstorming without constraints on the project at hand.

2. Determine the "question". What is the main thing you are trying to achieve?

3. Sift data of 1 with questions of 2.

4. Outline the plan. (Mind  you,  outline, not detail)

5. Go out and have fun-no alcohol or illegal activity-. Prefer physical activity, but will accept mental exercises with exceptions. Much like a museum show, or artistic endeavor not related to the project. Still physical activity is the best followed by a period of relaxation. 

(Here's part of our crew out with me biking on the beach-they are easily distrupted)

6. Review the plan, tweak and detail.

Number 5 disrupts the process, but will bring order in the end. It keeps you from getting in the proverbial rut.  This is just a snapshot of what I do and try to teach people. Most of the time clients don't realize what I am doing, even if they are professionals. Number 5 can also be adapted in many other ways, the main thing is to disrupt the normal process to enable fresh thinking. It makes a difference in a static, cold design or one that just draws you in. 

Disruption is good if you choose to see it that way, but really you knew that right.

I knew that....(warning graphic photos)

What on earth am I doing inside on this beautiful Saturday. Working for a couple of hours. Then heading out to the Whitewater Park to get some biking in. Last week, I tried, but my dear son decided to take the radiator cap off his car while hot. Well, you know.  Doing well now, fortunately missed his face by a hair. He hurt his pride more.  I started to give him the lecture on car safety. He just shook his and said what we all do in similar circumstances and said... I knew that.

(Safety warning: don't do this-ouch and have to admit I did photoshop the color to make it look less painful online. Didn't want to really gross anyone out)

We all make mistakes that we knew better. Like the time I dyed my hands purple while screen printing because after I was done I realized I forgot to put on liquid glove. Stayed that way for three days. 

A good portion of my work is fixing these type of errors for clients. Moments when they knew better, but okayed something stupid on their house. One client was having his dream home built on the lake. First major error; the whole reason it was their dream house was they finally would get that pool they wanted. Yet, their builder forgot to tell them that since they backed up to the lake, they had a bigger setback.  Now, they couldn't have their dream pool, until they called me. I was able to design the project with the pool on the side of the house, giving it an ornamental fountain look. We were granted the variance-first ever of that type for a very high end community. Yea, right.

Until, while siting the pool and the client mentioned that he fired the builder, took over himself. I said uh-ooh. He said he was real happy with the pace things were going now, they just finished the upper terrace. So proud he was, until I mentioned that the spiral staircase was missing, now there was no way to exit the rear of the house to reach the pool. This on a 2m dollar home.  So, I designed a minimally invasive  yet attractive correction which wrapped to the side.

Mistakes keep me working. I would rather not come in after, but it is what it is sometimes people just have to learn their lesson.  The smartest fellow I met was a successful physician, a specialist. He hired me to be his ghost designer of sorts. The request he made preserved his ego, while letting me have the freedom to keep his project sharp.  Basically, he said: " Alice, I am a really good doctor, don't have time for learning this house stuff can you  give me weekly lessons on what's being done so I can take credit for it with my friends".  Now that's honesty. We came to a mutual agreement and everyone was happy.

In fact you might have seen some of my work, just not realized who made it happen. I am called in by other firms to fix glitches or when they have design blocks.  Yes, even the best have an off day, I fill in holes for the pros as well the general public on an as needed basis.  Sometimes a client is very creative, but doesn't know how to make their dream happen. We are the first stop. Before architect, before builder. Sometimes the client thinks something is wrong and just wants a second opinion. We work in total confidentiality.

I have no ego at this stage in my career, I do have confidence in abilities. It serves no one not to find a way to make it happen.  I am very tired of seeing people spend money for bad design. The new era of design, will be more, should be more collaborative and integrative. I love putting the right team together, seeing the talent. That to me is when magic happens. This is the era of creativity, where the right brainers take over-stay tuned and I'll betcha you'll say "I knew that"...

Part 2-when disruptions bring order

Legos, the new duct tape...

Credit: Venti Eventi - Bocchignano/Rom 2007

Thanks to Platform 21 who inspired this unique repair.

 I often think architecture goes to to extreme, dull to overly designed, often without a sense of humor. Today,  I was surprised when someone sent me this. After investigation this was part of a project for people to get creative with repairs. There were specific guidelines put on " platform 21' repair manifesto from the Netherlands. One of which was for product designers, to design the products to be repaired.  Such wisdom, this frustrates me to no end. I will never advise a client to use a product that cannot be repaired unless they  get a "deal" where it is less expensive to replace it than fix it. Never in a position where it is a safety issue, or foundational to the construction of the project. "Deals" should only be used in the superficial areas of construction.

This project was called dispatchwork. What I like about this it changes the way people think, it broadens the mind and opens it to new possibilities in design. It is the "far" right brained side of design.  The area which is true creativity, where inventions happen, where people solve the great ills that affect us. Sometimes it is just for the sake of saving money and not wasting something that has just had a off day.

A recent client was disgusted with her fountain. Leaked, lopsided, off color. So instead of buying a new one, I encouraged her to let me restain it with acid, as well as building an overflow pool for a basin. The fountain turned out wonderfully. See...

Can you believe this thing, with the wire hanging out was for a 3m house. Inexcusable. But, with a few hundred dollars we transformed it to a fountain worthy of the property.

So happy endings, I encourage you all to take another look yourself no matter what the broken item is, to see if a repair would take it to a new level. Expand your parameters and exercise both sides of the brain.

There's architecture in them thar' hills......

A little southern slang to get started today. I've talked mostly about the structural part of design, not the organic. The landscape. April is Landscape Architecture Month and Landscape Architecture Magazine is moving to an online format, this month's issue is free. 

I am not a landscape architect, but I design landscapes and have done for years almost since birth. Grandmum was a gardener in the french tradition, well she was french so that just makes sense.

Every plant had a purpose and a story. I would sit and stare into the throat of a flower as she told me what each part meant and how important pollen was for growing plants. She was the original green gardener. No pesticides, believed in companion plantings and I never saw her water unless it was seedlings or transplants getting started. She seem to think it was best to let them adapt to their habitat, and let the strong ones survive.

What many people ignore in landscapes is that it still needs to be designed no matter how big or how small to be most effective visually and functionally. Good landscape design will take in consideration the maintenance needed to keep it that way, aesthetics, proper habitat. Most gardens need basics in composition that has nothing initially to do with the plants.

Once you decide the main purpose for your landscape: 

Entertaining, Sports,Gardening.

Take in consideration those whom will use it:

Yourself, family, kids, guests, pets and wild animals.

Then the needs can be broken down like this:

• Height-variation in elevation either natural or constructed
  
• Movement- think swings, plants that sway in the wind
  
• Dirt-someplace to dig and disturb for pets, for kids and for adults. 
  
• Shelter-a structure either organic or built. A place not just to keep you out of weather, but also a place to escape.
  
• Fire- a place to warm and gather, also sometimes lighting.
  
• Water-pools, waterfeatures, ponds, fountains, something to play in, something to listen to.
• Elements- Wood, Stone, Iron
  
  
• Direction- Always give people markers of where to travel, there is peace visually when given the way to go.
• Architectural elements

These are the compressed elements of design for landscapes.

People often wonder why I don't go into the plant issue first. Because without design you can't determine what kind of plants you can use. The above list will create spaces with specific micro climates, lighting and soil composition. Then you can get down to the nitty gritty of plants.

Frederic Law Olmstead was the master of modern day landscape design, yet he based his work on the classic european estates he viewed while traveling through Europe. Olmstead is my "idol",  we share a quirky vision of the world and innate stubborness.   A great work on Olmstead is the book "A Clearing in the Distance".

FLO's  work is sprinkled across the United States, my favorite and his, was his final project. The Biltmore in Asheville. On a bad day, I trek to Biltmore,  just meandering it's grounds lifts the spirit-that is the hallmark of excellent landscape design. Cudos to the Cecil family for their painstaking care of Olmstead's creation for patriarch George Vanderbilt. Current caretakers not only have kept the initial intent, but their adaptations of FLO's concepts as the estate has grown into a high end resort and major tourist attraction has been spot on. So much so that thought the topography stays the same, each season brings with it new surprises in blooming plant displays. My favorite is the when the watergarden is in it's full glory.

Olmstead was not a Landscape Architect, he coined the phrase. Then Harvard decided he had a point and formalized a degree program.

At heart, what I love about Olmstead was that to him beauty should be within everyone's grasp and all that was needed was good design. He felt it could change the world.

I'm having a blue moment...

I've just gotten back from much life travels and have been catching up on blogs and twitters. Twittering, that just doesn't sound right does it. Better yet, can I tweet you :-) I remember the first time I said I needed to Google some software, I thought my husband would laugh his, well you know. Google is now part of everyone's lexicon.

 Yet I have found a flaw in Google. Mind you I would love to own a piece of that company. They are geniuses in current technology. An area I am not in the least savvy on, but admire their approach to artificial intelligence. Simplifying a complicated process and making it mass market friendly. I even like saying the word, "google". You know to go ogle. Look at something with envy. How many companies envy this behemoth of a search engine.

Yet there is that flaw, and I am sure it will be addressed as they are smart ones there. Their top designer, Doug Bowman, just resigned to head off for other pastures leaving a really frank report on why. Without blaming, he was  respectful of Google's stance. He understood their constraints were not ones he could work within. Google's left brain is not balanced with it's right.

It was all summed up in a blue moment, 41  shades of blue.  There was an instance when  a designer chose a shade of blue, but  conflict when a product manager chose a different shade. The Vice President of Search Product and User Experience decided to settle things by choosing a color in the middle then getting data on 41 shades of blue and find which color people hit on the most. 

While every good designer knows that you have to understand the market you are trying to reach. Which is their job to know what appeals to a prospective client. Researching 41 shades of blue is overkill. There are too many variables in the test. In the Carolinas, you test people from Duke and they will hate that sky blue of UNC, but love that dark navy of their alma mater. Psychology affects choices.

A good designer also knows sometimes their job is to create the atmosphere where people are compelled to use their product just by the ambiance of the whole package. I think of Starbucks.

No way in college would I have thought to pay four dollars for a coffee. Yet, I migrate to Starbucks  on a regular basis. Why, because I was sucked in with the rest of you. I don't even like coffee. I like the atmosphere of people talking and working. The offerings that are custom made. The opportunity to meet a business associate in a non-work setting is appealing, breaking up the drearydom of offices or worksites. I don't think Starbucks did a market test on 41 colors of brown. They looked at the whole package, the integrated design and how the whole picture came together. That would be the ultimate in micromanaging.

Having said that, I am a colormaniac. I notice the slightest incremental difference and it is one of the areas I am called in to consult on quite a bit. My ability with color is a natural affinity as a singer would have to perfect pitch.  There are issues with the methodology Google is using to choose colors. Perfect blue cannot be found simply by presenting a color swatch.

Because color is affected by light, unless you take the two into consideration together, well it will skew your results. In your own home watch the color shift of your walls as lighting changes during the hours of a day. If it is a computer, lighting the screen will be crucial in the effect. Try going to your local Best Buy and look at the same picture on several different manufacturer screens. The colors are all slightly different. Televisions are the same as well. So, testing 41 different colors of blue is a waste of time/dollars. Also, placing a blue next to different colors will trick the eye into making that color view in a different shade. Look at blue next to white, red, green, yellow and orange. (A great technical reference on this is Color Index) Pairings make a huge difference.  Add to that the psychology. Color design involves the whole package.

So, I will forgive Google, for its faux pas in overuse of their left brained mentality. I certainly couldn't have written the program for a search engine and I'm sure they can find fault with my use of internet technology. The only difference being I've never tried to tell a techie how to do their business. 

Okay, let me have my smug moment.

Cheers.  

It's a MRAZ kinda day...

Music plays a big part of my design work. I have to focus the brain from all distraction and put on the ipod music to create by. Singer/Songwriters folk types are a fave, but let me have some Flo Rida too. Jason Mraz is my current go to guy, been getting some good work while he's singing away on my ipod. Love the Beauty in Ugly inspired by the show Ugly Betty. Sort of what a designer does, I would like to say it a little different as we give order to chaos, but I often find beauty in ugly as well.

I figured it out a bit ago, math and music go together it seems. Pattern, rhythm, balance. Design is math based as well. Pattern, rhythm, balance. Both are affected by empathy with the client/subject.  I can't design near as well for myself as I can when you give me problem and whom it is meant to affect.

Worst clients of all: Alice, do whatever you want, I trust you. That gives me nothing to work off of, to grow from. So, I then observe, listen. enquire.

If I had a client playing a Mraz song, then I would know a bit more: be subtle, have an attention to detail. Mraz is a worsdsmith with a decidedly upbeat message even on songs that could break the heart. I do have an oh so distant connection to him, he's  from Virginia and so am I. He's from Mechanicsville, been there. He attended  school there; while at that time I was a consultant to the state department of education for the Commonwealth of Virginia for trade and industrial education. 

Now that might seem non-artsy, but at the time the arts fell under trades. The governor appointed me as a liason to the schools helping keep them connected to the marketplace, ensuring the skills they were being taught were relevant for their "trade" and to earning a living. Why? Because I opened my mouth and told him the students I was getting as interns had no street knowledge of the industry. 

All Michaelangelos in making. So, he volunteered me. 

Great guy. 

Hence, I still have it in me to to share knowledge, which is why I am doing this in the first place. Ignorance is not bliss, it is a death sentence in the marketplace.

So, for now,  Jason Mraz's inspiration has gotten me through another day. Tomorrow is looking like Styx, hmmm maybe a bit of "Renegade".  Just have to wait and see....

Cheers

March Inspiration

I'll be listing in the inspiration links people who do design right-by my definition at least. Then it is my blog. &rew well he's just the best artist friend from South Africa I've ever had, unfortunately my only friend from South Africa-but will welcome more. Very talented, innovative; he even created the invitations for my son's wedding. (check out the beach monogram below) &rew is actually a bit embarrassed by the company he keeps on this list, a budding genius I'll say.

James Dyson of course, well there is a mind I would like to pick, the only one on the list I haven't talked with personally, but on my wish list. Are you listening, Mr. Dyson? Check out the Dyson Award, closing date June 15, 2009.

Richard Rhodes is just a "stone" cut above. Ewww, bad pun, but it works. If anyone knows stone, it is Richard. I first met him during a discussion on the Three Gorges River in China. I being just one in a crowd in that first meeting, fascinated that he saw fit to save masses of stonework that we can all benefit. His company has innovated how stone can be used and reclaimed. Cudos to them for being tapped for the new Ralph Lauren Boutique (another design favorite) in Greenwich. I will hopefully be posting some renderings of that here. They are going with classic limestone for the facade.


Richard Cameron of Ariel is well, an architect with a respect for the past and a vision for the future. The most humble architect I have had the pleasure to meet. What I appreciate is his graciousness in sharing his love for his art and encouraging others to respect the classic history of architecture. Beside the fact his renderings make me want to give up my pencils and concede. I want to hang his renderings on my wall.


Manolo Blahnik, what can I say I love shoes, yet this gentlemen takes them to a new level. He is an architect. His structures hold a weight a hundred times it own, its wearer can be raised a good five inches with a heal barely a quarter inch contact with a surface. His structure must enable its habitant to move while standing erect and believe it or not they are wonderful to wear. I just wish I worked in an industry that let me wear them, instead my footwear designer is the low key, but equal genius of Frye- 100 years and still the best boot design out there.

The Blue Talon in Williamsburg is a quirky addition, not that they are quirky, it is a fantastic restaurant. A gem we found while traveling south from DC. Now, my family was highly involved in the hospitality industry and I am no stranger to restaurants, this was a find. Every plate a work of art and delicious, and please order the hot chocolate-pure magic. Reminded me of the movie Chocolat. That's enough to list it here, but when I went to google it for a friend visiting that area I found out that it had burnt down and been rebuilt. They posted the plans and everything. Now how many people do that. Their team pulled off a great job and I believe it is the vision of the owners. Now, the quirky part, the fire happened the day after we visited the first time. No, we didn't have anything to do with it.

I've got a tagline on my company e-mail that just says Designer Genius (for our firm at least), but, I back that up with the caveat that I'm really just inspired by genius. Like those geniuses I list here. Cheers.