David Stark Sketchbook

Coffee Talk: Daniel Murphy

 

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We LOVE paper at David Stark Design, and we have created everything from a 20-foot tall viewing platform upholstered in Post-it pads to galas built out of thousands and thousands of laser cut blooms, even an entire pop-up flower shop for west elm in which everything, even the actual store was made from paper.  Yes, it is safe to say we are no stranger to the medium.  Neither is artist, Daniel Murphy.  Daniel expertly crafts three-dimensional objects completely out of paper, and I marvel at his talents.  Daniel was nice enough to chat with me about his amazing art, and I am thrilled to share it with all of you!

 

This is a detail from a larger collection of 365 monarch butterflies (life-size).  Made from Strathmore paper and acrylic paint.  Photograph by F. Martin Ramin

David Stark: Tell me in a little about your background.  How did you get into doing what you do?

Daniel Murphy: I’m originally from New Jersey and have been living in NYC for about 11 years.  I studied Illustration at the School of Visual Arts (SVA) in Manhattan, where I had the opportunity to study with Andrew Ginzel, Charles LeDray and Thomas Woodruff.  While at SVA, I discovered paper sculpture as a three-dimensional method for creating art that came naturally to me. 

DS: How did you arrive at using paper as a medium?

DM: In my junior year at SVA, I began cutting up large drawings I was making, and re-arranging them as sculpted pieces.  That process quickly led me to a new approach of art making in which all of my work became three-dimensional and made entirely of paper.  Since then, I have continued creating bodies of fine art works made of cut paper, while also pursuing a career of set and installation design with my paper sculptures.  I regularly create paper environments and objects (of all scales) for editorial and commercial clients.

 

 

 

Oversized paper luxury handbags for The Wall Street Journal’s OFF DUTY cover.  The bags were roughly 26” wide by 16” tall (the scale for each is different).  They were made from cut paper, metallic foil papers and foamcore.  Photographs by F. Martin Ramin

 

This watch was from a series of 6 paper watches made for WSJ. Magazine.  The watches are roughly 2.5’ long.  They are made from cut paper, metallic foil papers and foamcore.  Photograph by Boyle + Gardner

DS: Sounds like you are a busy guy! Do you ever have a desire to make work out of something else BESIDES paper?  Is there anything in your mind that you just CAN’T convey in paper?

DM: No!  Well, maybe  . . .  While my work is made entirely out of paper, I do rely on other materials to make the final product.  For example, my flower pieces require a metal armature in order to stand up right.  Also, in a lot of my work, foam core is a vital material for supporting the object being created.  Learning how these, and other, materials work and operate has opened me to a world of what most sculptors rely on for materials (wire, clay and foam).  To me, paper is an endlessly vast material to work with, so I’ve never really felt limited by it, or felt the need to move on to another material besides paper.

I haven’t discovered an object or environment that cannot be re-created from paper; it just depends on how you look at it.  For my sculptures that are viewed in person (installed or on display), there are limitations.  For example, making round objects out of paper are nearly impossible to convey in person.  On a photo shoot where a set is being “flattened out” by the camera, a round object out of paper can be achieved more easily.

 

Paper Hermes Birkin bag.  Made from cut paper, metallic foil papers, white chalk, foamcore.  Photograph by Kevin Cremens

DS: Speaking of process, tell us a little bit about your process.

DM: It sort of depends on the project.  For most pieces, -- fine art and editorial, it usually begins with a lot of drawing and photo research.  Whenever possible, I love taking my own photo references.  After I’ve established what the piece is going to look like, I determine the dimensions and overall scale.  I usually begin with the base, or whatever is going to hold the object together.  For the paper handbags, I needed to create a foam core base of each bag to hold them together.  After the base is finished, I carefully cover the entire object with paper, down to the last detail.  The process usually involves a lot of templates, and very precise cutting.
 
DS: Where do you find your inspiration?

DM: I can find inspiration almost anywhere.  When I’m feeling stuck, I find that if I just let my mind wander, I’ll accidentally stumble upon something that inspires a new piece, or even body of work.  It can be the simplest thing.  I love standing at a major NYC newsstand and quickly flipping through a few dozen magazines, it’s like a jolt of creative force.

 

These wigs are from a series of paper wigs for J.Crew’s in-house showrooms.  These ponytails are created from a heavyweight Strathmore drawing paper, designed specifically for J.Crew’s mannequins.  Photograph by DSM

 

 

These cutout setups were from the Sept 2012 issue of WSJ. Magazine.  They were market-shopping pages for the Fall Fashion issue.  Photographs by F. Martin Ramin

 

DS: You clearly define a difference between your fine art work and your editorial work.  What is that mental difference for you?

DM: My fine art is a result of months of thinking, drawing and trial and error.  I’ve ditched entire bodies of work that just weren’t working out, and started from scratch on something new.  It’s a process of letting go, and coming back to ideas and experimentation.  My editorial and commercial work has a real immediacy about it.  Usually because there’s a tight deadline and the client has a specific sense of what the set or object should be.  While I also put a lot of time and thought into those works, there is usually a somewhat pre-determined end goal for those pieces.

 

 

 

Black paper flowers, made from black paper & wire.  Photograph by DSM

 

This apple peel is about 2.5 long and is made from Strathmore paper & acrylic paint. Photograph by F. Martin Ramin

 

From a larger series of objects made from black paper, this is a student’s microscope (to scale).   Made from black paper and foamcore. Photograph by F. Martin Ramin

DS:  What brand are you dying to collaborate with?

DM: Hermes.  I love the creative direction and feel that their products are beautiful and meticulously designed. 

DS: Agreed, I am also dying to collaborate with Hermes! If money and time were not an issue, what would your dream project be?

DM: I would really like to create entire room re-creations, at a huge scale, where everything is made from paper, down to the smallest detail.
 
DS: I want to see you do that too!  What artists inspire you?  Whose work do you admire?

DM: Tom Friedman, Robert Gober, Charles LeDray, Tara Donovan and Kara Walker are all contemporary artists whose work I really admire.

DS: What’s next for you?

DM: I’m working on a new body of fine art this year, and hope to show the work in late 2013.  In addition, I plan to continue creating paper objects/sets for editorial photo shoots and paper installations for luxury brand displays. 

DS: In other words, MORE!!!  Can’t wait to see.

 

The Process Is The Performance

 

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Not only does DIFFA’s annual Dining By Design event raise money to support direct care for people living with HIV/AIDS and preventive education for those at risk, but as an artist, it is one of my favorite creative opportunities each year.  Once again, we partnered with our longtime collaborator Benjamin Moore to create a striking “table” representing the magic of their world of color and paint for the gala dinner and exhibition, but instead of decorating, we painted a three dimensional “canvas” in which the guests could dine within.

 

 

The gang and I are really focused on process right now in the studio.  Instead of working towards a preconceived look of a finished space, we parked cameras to record a time-lapse of the many days of painting --  fearless, fun, exuberant painting, and we let the process of working -- the faith in the muck, if you will -- determine the outcome.  And the camera caught it all.

 

 

Time lapse fim by Gustavo Campos

We hung a plasma screen on the back wall of our dining room to show the continuous portrait of the many iterations of our “room,” and the reality is that we could have just kept on painting forever, finding new and ever-fresh results in the myriad of color combinations.  Stopping literally occurred when we had to pack the truck.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

All still photography by Susan Montagna

I am very proud of my whole team and their ability to blur the line between functional design and art making.  You guys keep me inspired.  Every day.

Cheers,

D.

Coffee Talk: Doug Johnston

 

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I became an instant fan of Doug Johnston’s work when I spotted it first at Partners & Spade in New York City a while back. From that day forward, I have been coveting Doug’s beautifully designed rope bags, baskets, and sculptural pieces and thought he would be a wonderful guy to chat with here. Luckily for all of us, Doug agreed!

 

Various rope works, 2010 - 2011. Image by Michael Popp.

 

David Stark:  Tell me a little about yourself?  What is your background?  How did you arrive at your particular form of art making?

Doug Johnston:  I grew up in Tulsa, Oklahoma and had a desire to become an architect from an early age. I studied architecture and studio art at Drury University in Springfield, Mo and moved backed to Tulsa after undergrad to play music, work in architecture offices, and work on my own creative endeavors on the side. All roads pointed me towards the Cranbrook Academy Art near Detroit, where I could pursue my creative ideas in the Architecture Department, but without the prescribed constraints of a conventional architectural program. For our thesis work, my friend Yu-Chih Hsiao and I began weaving "nest" pavilions out of polyethylene tubing and zip ties.

 

nests, 2007. Collaboration with Yu-Chih Hsiao. Image by Michael Popp.

 

I continued that type of study into knitting and sewing, and eventually came upon this coiling technique about 3 years ago. Over the years I have suffered from trying to actively pursue too many interests - music, photography, design, architecture, art. Once I chose to really narrow my focus, my world changed for the better and I'm still doing most of those things in some way or another. The coiled and stitched work was the convergence of many interests for me, and felt like a very natural progression at the time. I was working at an architectural metal shop and was tasked with having some 3-d prints made of some projects. Learning about 3-d printing allowed me to see the coiling in a new way - where my sewing machine was the printer for my ideas. That really opened up the formal and technical possibilities.

 

Image by Michael Popp.

 

Tripplehorn, 2011. Image by Michael Popp.

 

DS:  Speaking of process, tell us a little more about how it all comes together.

DJ:  I typically start with sketches when I get an idea, or need to start working on an idea. I almost always sketch with pen on grid paper. Sometimes I get ideas while I'm sewing but usually they are triggered by random things. For the past year I've been too busy to immediately jump into working on new ideas, so they tend to sit a while and I keep my sketches handy for when I do get a moment to work on something new. Sometimes I will make a test/prototype and photograph it and show it to others to get feedback. Then it either moves ahead getting refined or it sits on the shelf for a while, waiting to get more attention. This waiting can take a long time - I have one test piece I made 2 years ago that is fairly straightforward, but it just needed to wait because I was much too excited about it to make any clear judgments, and I knew it would require more skill to properly pull off. With the stitched rope pieces, the process of making is very immediate, and that is what I love about it. In a relatively short time you can sit down and bring an idea into physicality, so it’s very easy to get into a dialog with the work.

 

 

DS:  Do you struggle with the difference between art and craft? Design vs. fine art?

DJ:  I don't struggle with it in my creative process; while I'm working there are just ideas and things I want to try to bring into reality. In my studio and in my mind there is maybe more of a spectrum from design to art,and craft is more about how one makes decisions. I assume this is the case for many artists and designers. The struggle, however, comes in when things or images of them leave the studio. The world outside my studio tends to rely on the distinctions between art, design, and craft, and people want to know what they are bringing into their lives. There is a distinction between a gallery and a retail store, and my work might fit in either context, but people go to those places with different expectations. There seems to be a growing number of hybrid spaces, retail galleries or concept stores that are catering to non-mass-produced art/design objects and it is helping dissolve the difficulty of presenting "hybrid" work.

 

Image by Michael Popp.

 

two stools, 2012. Image by Michael Popp. Available through Matter.

 

Image by Michael Popp.

 

DS:  Where do you find your inspiration?

DJ:  Everywhere! But mostly the internet. When I was commuting to jobs, I had time to read and sketch on the train and that was a good source. Now when I get creatively dry, I can easily look at whatever interests me online and that gets me back on track pretty quickly. Going to galleries and museums also really helps, and I'm trying to do more of that this year.
 
DS:  What music do you listen to in your studio?

DJ:  Because the sewing machines can be loud, we mostly listen with headphones, so everyone chooses their own work soundtrack. But many hours are spent sewing so we have a lot of time to listen! Personally I listen to a lot of audiobooks, and I've found my favorite to be science, history, or fantasy fiction. I really enjoy Radiolab, as do some of the people who work with me and we like to discuss the various show topics. As far as music, recently I've been really into Glenn Phillips' Echoes album, and I am a huge fan of anything involving Zach Hill.

 

Image by Michael Popp.

 

 

DS:  If you were to collaborate with another artist, who would excite you?

DJ: I have several collaborations brewing right now with some great artists and designers that I'm very excited about. The most exciting collaborators are friends that I already have an easy line of communication with, and who have similar aspirations and aesthetic concerns, but complimentary approaches to the same problems.
 
DS:  Do you make your pieces with function in mind?

DJ:  Generally I start with a shape or form, and sometimes there is very general function in mind like a bag, basket, light, wearable, etc. Typically function is not my primary motivation, but for most of my work, I like there to be some utility, even if it’s not obvious.

 

Egyptian Bathroom, 2012.

 

Image by Michael Popp.

 

backpack, 2012.

 

DS:  If time or money were not an issue, what would your dream project be?

DJ: Probably something on a utopian scale - creating facilities for a whole self-sustaining creative community. I have done a lot of reading on American utopian communities like the Shakers, Oneida Community, Owenites, Fourierists, etc. and I've fantasied about creating a contemporary version of something along those lines focused on art, design, and science. It would include housing, gallery and performance space, individual studio/lab spaces and communal manufacturing/shop/laboratory areas, a store and other facilities to support whatever we wanted/needed. The lesson that can be learned from history is that these kinds of things have a very low success rate, so, like most utopias, it's probably best as a dream.
 
DS:  Well if the dream ever becomes a reality I would love to live there!  You take custom orders, has anyone come to you with a crazy idea that you actually ended up making?  Or was so crazy that you turned them down?

DJ:  So far nothing super crazy has popped up, but I would love to work on something enormous at some point. I have had to turn down some things due to scheduling or technical impossibilities, though. One interesting custom project that did get completed was a large mask that was part of a costume for my friend Ben Finer's film, Night and a Switchblade. It was based on the masks worn by Komuso, a type of Japanese Buddhist Monk, and was incorporated into an amazing witch's costume by Bevan Dunbar. It was one of the more technically specific and tricky objects I've made, but was a lot of fun. I can't wait to see it in action in the film.

 

Scene from Night and A Switchblade. Image courtesy of Ben Finer.

DS:  What a small world!  I know Ben Finer and am very much looking forward to his film! So what’s next for you?

DJ:  This year is going to be really great! In May there will be a show of my lighting pieces at Mondo Cane in Tribeca and that's my biggest focus at the moment. There are some larger installation/display and furniture-scale projects on the horizon, and the collaborations are really exciting, too. We also have nylon rope pieces and several new bag designs coming out in the next few weeks!

DS: We can’t wait to see it ALL!

 

Image by Michael Popp.

 

5-hump coiled pendant light, 2012

Sculpture + Chemistry

 

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As we continue a look into our Team within the world of David Stark Design and Production, I have a special treat for you all today ... a guest post from our fabulous Studio Production Manager, Alfonso Nieto. Alfonso works hand-in-hand with our design team to make our drawings come alive. From constructing a 16-foot tall pencil to a 10-foot metal laptop sculpture, there is nothing too challenging for this producer extraordinaire. Today, Alfonso gives us a look at one of his other passions, creating art out of resin.  Hereee’s Alfonso . . .

 

I have always felt an attraction to transparencies and solid transparent volumetric objects, like ice and glass. While I was in Art School back in Chile in the early 90's, I was using resin and fiberglass as a sculpting medium and was fascinated with the material left in the mixing pots.

Polyester resin is an unsaturated, thermosetting styrene based compound. It is a clear viscous liquid that can be died with pigments or mixed with "fillers" to add color or change it’s viscosity and strength. It's also thermosetting: When mixed with the right amount of a catalyst, it goes thru an exothermic reaction, releasing heat before turning in to a hard, solid mass, and is commonly used to reinforce composite fibers like fiberglass, carbon fiber and Kevlar to make things like helmets, boats, furniture, and many other industrial applications.

It has also been used by many artists as a medium to produce art pieces. Here are some amazing examples, including some of my own work.

 

“Key chain”. Random objects in resin, 1995. (Alfonso Nieto)

 

Curtain finials, resin and pigments, 1998 (Alfonso Nieto)

 

“Turtle shell” wall sconce. Resin and pigments. 2003 (Alfonso Nieto)

 

Nucleo has filtered disused names and experiences, re‐worked old pieces of furniture such as consoles, desks, bedside tables and fireplace chairs. The furniture is both ancient and contemporary, revived and restored into new life. The cubes, 5×5 cm are cast in epoxy resin and grouped together create the objects. They are assembled by hand, giving balance between body and space, where individual fragments develop its own intensity – capable of capturing light and gaze – which goes beyond their function in the context of composition.

 

 

 

 

As part of his Invasion Toys show, Tan‐Ki created thirty‐nine 8” KiClear Invasion figures -- impressive! Each features his 8” clear figure with wondrous colorful inserted objects including toys (check out the Devilrobots inspired one above), colored bits + more. Tan‐Ki’s work exposes yet another facet of the awesome world of art toys. Be sure to check out his blog to see all thirty-nine.

 

 

 

 

Light Box by Studio Jo Meesters. While it looks like a cabinet, the Light Box is actually a floor lamp. Remember, never judge a book by its cover! Light Box is a series of lamps made in the tradition of furniture making. The lamp which is made out of wood has a pattern of 8000 holes reinforced with transparant resin.

 

 

Turkish artist, Kerem Ozan Bayraktar, practices a full range of artistic endeavors. Outside of fine paintings, the artist has also produced a range of moving pictures and objects. The objects, focused here, are a set named “Ice Cubes.” The series finds Bayraktar suspending a series of objects in resin … giving the appearance of frozen goods. My personal favorite is “Skadi” (2008), a bicycle shown below.

 

 

 

Ronit Judelman is a psychologist turned artist. Baby Doll, as an installation, is an army of transparent resin dolls in which plastic hand-grenades are encapsulated. Aggression, impending doom and tension are implied by the use of the undetonated hand-grenades, which deliver a specific anti-military message. The soft, the cuddly and the vital is stiff and still. An object of love is "pregnant" with death and destruction. Persecuting and persecuted, Baby Doll alludes to child suicide bombers as well as to Invisible Children, a name given to child soldiers in Africa.

 

 

 

This amazing Japanese artist, Riusuke Fukahori, paints realistic 3D fish inside real objects over resin. The amount of detail, light and shadow and the resin application over real objects creates an amazing realism in this new reading of figurative art.

 

 

 

 

 

Coffee Talk: Ghislaine Viñas

 

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A couple of weeks ago, I went to a really fun party that Interior Design magazine threw at one of the most wild homes I had ever been to, located in downtown New York City. The multi-level apartment is a collaboration between my very talented friend, Ghislaine Viñas' firm and David Hotson Architects. The place is a bright, happy, zany, playground of fun - just like Ghislaine herself. They even incorporated a slide (literally) that you could ride from the top floor to the ground floor in case you weren't feeling like steps. Why not, right?!

Ghislaine was nice enough to chat with me about her work, and I am happy to share . . .

 

 

 

Photos above via Interior Design magazine

 

David Stark: What is your background? When did you move to the United States?

Ghislaine Viñas: I moved to the United Sates when I was 18.  I was born in the Netherlands and moved to South Africa with my family when I was five.  My father was a civil engineer, and he was sent to South Africa to help engineer a harbor there.  I completed all my schooling in South Africa, and I moved back to the Netherlands after matriculating.  I lived in the Netherlands for about a year until my South African boyfriend convinced me to join him in the United States  (I did and he broke up with me two weeks after I arrived).  So I guess I followed my heart ... (and ended up with a broken one).  But I survived, and I ended up studying Interior Architecture in Philadelphia, and then I moved to NYC as soon as I graduated.   PS ... I moved to NY because of another boy ... tells a lot about me doesn't it?!

DS: What? That you like love? I don’t blame you. (Wink!) How does your background inform your design sensibility?

GV: My mom had a big influence on my design sense growing up. She has a super modern aesthetic, and we grew up in homes with very contemporary interiors. She always spoke her mind when it came to aesthetics both in fashion and design, and I suppose I heard it. Without knowing it, at an early age, I had a pretty strong idea of what I liked and did not like. On a cultural level, growing up in a Dutch family in South Africa just taught me to be observant. I identify with Dutch culture because our parents raised us that way at home but I went to South African schools and had amazing South African friends growing up and was deeply embedded in South African culture. I'm so grateful for this exposure to these different cultures . . . and then moving to the United States was such a fantastic opportunity for me. I married a Venezuelan man so my husband brings yet another cultural element  to our family. I think as a designer my exposure to these cultures has allowed me to be open minded - not really deeply rooted in anything or stuck in my ways but having the freedom to do whatever my heart tells me.

 

 

DS: You seem to have an awful lot of fun what bought you to interior design in the first place?

GV: Yes I like fun ... I'm glad it shows in my work. I love what I do and I have a fantastic team in my office that is a huge part of what we accomplish both creatively and practically. We laugh a lot in the office and in meetings with our clients. It’s not brain surgery - nobody's life is on the line when I work - so it should be fun!

 

 

DS: I agree and feel the same in my design land. How did you get your start?

GV: At ten, I pushed my shoes out of the bottom of my closet and turned it into a Barbie apartment. I furnished it with my Barbie furniture and cut out magazine pictures which I stuck onto the walls with tape. I knew art was important even then. Another one of my favorite weekend pastimes was going to open houses with my Mom. Seeing other people's homes was always fascinating to me. So when it came time for me to decide what I wanted to do, interior design was a very obvious and natural choice.

The one drawback and insecurity I had was in high school when I was not accepted into the art program because my work was not strong enough. This was devastating for me, definitely set me back, and made me feel very insecure. I questioned my ability as a creative person. I did not realize that drawing and painting are just two single expressions of creativity and there are lots of others.

I did end up majoring in speech and drama and I think this came in pretty handy in my life actually. Today I see myself as a designer and a curator. I love bringing things together in a very specific way and often this involves humor or twists or a "tongue in cheek" approach. To me that just makes things lively and interesting. I don't think about it too hard but really sort of just let ideas come together. I love hearing about client's interests or history and then I start putting that information into a design story or into an aesthetic. It’s very intuitive.

 

 

 

DS: If you were not a designer, who would you hire to design your home?

If I were not a designer, I would ask Jaime Hayon and Faye Toogood to collaborate on the design of my home. Wow I can't believe I just came up with that - that would be amazing!!!! And actually I don't really like designing for myself because I can never make up my mind - I am my own worst client.

DS: Where do you find your inspiration?

GV: I am inspired by artists and creators of all kinds. For the last three years, I have been lucky enough to attend TED, and it always leaves me very inspired and eager to tackle new ideas -- it’s like a trampoline and lets me jump so much higher than I ever could on my own. I am inspired by my husband Jaime Viñas and his incredible talent and stability. I am inspired by my two amazing girls Mia Soleil and Saskia Luna - they are natural creators and I love watching them work and hearing their ideas. I am inspired by New York City and all the incredibly creative people I am surrounded by. I am inspired by nature - a bright red bug on a grey rock or a chartreuse leaf next to a purple flower. I am constantly online looking at all kinds of random inspiration.  Inspiration is everywhere.

 

 

DS: Who is your dream client?

GV: A dream client is a client who calls me up and says “we want to hire you because we love your work." To feel that somebody wants to work with ME and not anybody else because they get what I am doing makes me so incredibly happy. Once we are on the same boat, the collaborative process is natural and fun and it allows for a fantastic voyage. I like clients who bring new ideas and challenges to the table, and I appreciate clients who make me work hard. I'm totally ok with a client not liking an idea or wanting to see more ideas just as long as we are thinking and dreaming along the same lines. I'm only as good as my clients so I cherish the good ones and don't take them for granted.

 

 

DS: If time and money were not an issue what would your dream project be?

GV: My dream project ... I have always wanted to design a small privately owned beach resort or a boutique hotel of some sort in a tropical setting. I love the ocean - it just makes me so happy, and I would just come up with the perfect aesthetic for it. Happy, relaxed, fun with maybe a little something cheeky and very luxurious ... but luxurious in a relaxed way not in an over processed way. When can I start????

DS: What artists do you admire?

GV: Oh there are way too many. My friend Paige West has had a huge influence on me as far as art goes. I've watched her fill the walls of interiors I have designed and its always astounding to see which pieces she selects. She is truly gifted. I love seeing unexpected pieces in interiors. I love Hendrik Kerstens work and I admire Nick Cave but really the list is too long, and there are too many artists who I love.

 

 

 

DS: What's next for Ghislaine?

GV: No idea! What's been lovely about my career thus far is that it has sort of just naturally evolved in a very organic way. I've worked with amazingly talented, exiting people and clients, and I've had so much fun in my career. I don't know what is next for me. We are working on some fantastic residential projects now, but I love how I can be sitting in my office working on something and the phone rings and that’s the next thing. I'm hoping that someone calls me today to tell me they love my work and want us to design a beach resort on a tropical island somewhere ... that would be nice. We are doing some product design in the office but it seems to be put on the back burner too often as we meet deadlines on our design projects. I am working on a very exciting new project with a new partner, but it’s not something I can reveal yet. I've always got to keep things fun and exciting and I'm always open to new fun ventures and opportunities - it’s really why I enjoy this gig so much.

DS: Me too. We’ll be watching out for all of your new developments. You are truly exciting, pal.

 

It Starts with a Needle and Thread

 

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As we continue a look into our Team within the world of David Stark Design and Production, our next guest blogger, Heather Rook, is our talented Finance and Operations Manager. It's not all numbers and logistics for the math guru who has been toiling away at her own embroidery projects. Below, she articulates her creative inspiration with a look at some of Brooklyn’s most innovative embroidery and needlecraft artists.

Thanks, Heather!

D.

 

 

I’ve recently taken an interest in embroidery and needlework art - the intricacy of the technique and the texture of the work is so intriguing. There are some incredibly creative artists that are using this traditional medium to create innovative and inspiring pieces. Here are a few of my recent favorites!

Iviva Olenick is a Brooklyn-based artist who focuses on narrative embroidery. Her recent work incorporates Twitter “poetry”, as she embroiders 140-character thoughts both from herself and from her audience. Many of these poems are collected at @EmbroideryPoems and @IvivaOlenick.

 

Mauve sky for morning run. #skybleedingintoBrooklyn. Embroidery and watercolor on fabric. 2.25″ x 4.5″. 2013.

 

Restless Leg Syndrome. @SpencerMadsen. 2013. Embroidery on fabric. Text by Spencer Madsen, appropriated from poetry reading (Sorry House).

 

Iviva’s use of audience interaction began with The Brooklyn Love Exchange, a collection of pieces illustrating tales of romance in Brooklyn. Iviva collected love stories from across the borough and interpreted them into delicate yet powerful vignettes, using the active thread drawings to evoke the emotions of each story.

 

Iviva Olenick, Williamsburg Hug, 2011. Part of the Brooklyn Love Exchange, sponsored by the Greater NY Arts Development Fund of the NYC Department of Cultural Affairs, administered by the Brooklyn Arts Council (BAC).

 

Iviva Olenick, Cyclone (also Coney Island, where dreams come true). 2011. Part of the Brooklyn Love Exchange. Embroidery and watercolor on fabric. 8.75” x 6".

 

 

Iviva Olenick, Brooklyn Love Map. Embroidery on antique textile. 42x42". 2011. Part of the BAC-sponsored Brooklyn Love Exchange.

 

Iviva’s work can be seen in person at several places around Brooklyn at several places, including my favorite place for beer floats, 61 Local.

Another inspiring fiber artist is Joetta Maue, who creates beautifully textured snapshots of daily life with embroidery on re-appropriated materials. In the works below, the linens are such important elements - they bring each scene to life and almost bring an animation to the needlework.

 

 

Joetta Maue, in bed… , hand embroidered, appliquéd, and painted re-appropriated linen, 30” x 30”.

 

 

Joetta Maue, waking with you, hand embroidered, appliquéd, and painted re-appropriated linen, and queen size bed, 60” x 80” x 15”.

Joetta’s work has recently been on view at the Self/Fabricated show at The Art Complex Museum and the Three Women Sewing show at P339 in Williamsburg. Joetta also curates exhibits featuring local fiber artists. Her latest curated exhibit is Down to Sleep, which opens March 1st at the Essex Art Center in Lawrence, MA.

Sarah Greaves is a mixed media artist based in Manchester. She uses embroidery to create graffiti on everyday objects, translating the traditional practice of hand sewing to unexpected (and some unbelievable!) locations. The embroidered words almost vandalize the objects force the viewer to think outside the hoop.

 

 

Sarah Greaves, Plug Hole, embroidery on metal.

 

 

Sarah Greaves, The End, embroidery on door

 

Sarah’s work was most recently on view at the Armenian Institute’s event Salon Mashup – Displacement + Regeneration at the Shorditch Town Hall in London.

These are just a few of the many, many inspiring embroidery and needlecraft fiber artists out there. The numbers are growing quickly- maybe you’ll be the next to pick up a needle and give it a try?

Heather

 

Sometimes It’s How You Look At It

 

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Each day I count my lucky stars that I am surrounded by the most talented, lovely people I could ever dream of! To give you a better sense of how it all works in the world of David Stark Design and Production, we have launched a TEAM tab on our website so you, too, can get to know my all-star line-up!

To celebrate this launch, I have invited my gang to write guest blog posts on topics that fascinate them.   First up is Benjamin Bryant, an amazing member of our Design team who works tirelessly to create the most innovative events, is totally passionate about all things art, design, culture, and music -- essentially EVERYTHING.  And that passion is contagious!

Below, Ben gives us a sneak peek at one of his other talents, photography. Not surprisingly, his eye is extraordinarily sharp there too.
 
D.

 

I’m endlessly looking for the next form of inspiration. It’s a bit like trying to run in a dream but you can’t quite get your feet off the floor. I know it’s there. I feel it but not until my mind is right; not until I’m searching do I pull that inspiration from the world around me and bring it to life. This hidden beauty is prolific. It wasn’t until I slowed down and saw these playgrounds empty. Only then did the spaces really stand out to me. From the outside, my mind can travel through each path and my imagination starts to wander. The rhythm of shape and color is carried throughout each space - a straight line with a zigzag, a swoop then a bonk to the right.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Yes, there are mundane objects and spaces all around us, but for me that’s exactly where beauty lies. I don’t find any huge cultural importance in these playgrounds – I don’t hold them as high design. I love that they are a unified language that we all can find a relationship with and we know so well. There are only so many things in the world like that and this is just one of those things.

Ben

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Color Study: Copper

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You might remember a post I did a little while back called THE OTHER SIDE OF WHITE where the artist Helen Quinn and the photographer Burcu Avsar collaborated on a series of stunning photographs in which black and white was  their glorious hero.

The two artists are back, studying copper and an amazing array of patinas in this new series of photographs.  I am delighted to share their work today.

Enjoy,

D.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Coffee Talk: Kelly Behun

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The work of the interior designer is so much harder than that of the event designer.  Why?  Our clients go on a fun, creative journey with us when we plan and design their events, BUT they only need to commit to the look and feel of their party worlds for five or six hours tops.  When interior designers create worlds for their clients to LIVE in, they need to last for years and years – physically and emotionally, and thus, it’s harder for clients to commit to experimentation and fantasy for their spaces. 

One of the many reasons why I so admire the work of Kelly Behun and her Studio is because experimentation is at the heart of what she does and her spaces straddle the line between decoration and art installation.  The Studio creates the interiors of some of the most chic clientele ever -- art-making is key, out-of-the-box thinking is her trademark, and not only that, she is as lovely as it gets.  On first glance, the interiors are super elegant, but when you look closer, amazing and experimental details jump out – a side table, for instance, accompanies a modern icon of a chair while a waterfall “pour” of black and white streams over the side of the table into a puddle, creating an optical illusion of viscosity.

 

Resin 'Pour Table', hand poured by Alex P White for Kelly Behun Studio

Photo by Daniel Kukla

I first met Kelly years ago when she was one of the chairs of New Yorkers for Children’s Fall Gala, and we immediately clicked.  Birds of a creative feather, I was honored to recently get to chatting . . .

David Stark:  How did you get started in the design world?

Kelly Behun: It was a circuitous path, I got a degree in economics and then after graduating had some detours into fashion and graphic design, all great experiences but I never felt like I was truly where I should be.  I’d always find myself daydreaming about how I might rearrange things, move that chair over here, toss that sofa please, and ohhh that shade of green is not doing us any favors is it? I must have thought it was some form of OCD, until I realized it was more like a calling.  So while I always knew I loved interior design it was not exactly a straight line getting there.

DS:  Your recent show at the R20th Century was really special.  Was it a very different process for you to design individual pieces of furniture and art pieces rather than a whole interior?

KB:  I have been designing custom pieces for clients for many years; what was different this time was the fantasy aspect of getting to make things on your own terms without some of the usual constraints.  Our goal with the gallery installation was to create a total environment; one where you felt transported which is more or less what I try to do with people’s homes.  While it was great getting to create things completely on my own terms, there is something to be said for the collaborative process.  What I value when working with clients is that you don’t necessarily get to have everything your way; there are boundaries, existing conditions and differing points of view that on the surface can seem limiting, but in fact can push you to be more creative, to do wonderful and unexpected things.

 

3D model for R20th Century installation.

 

R20th Century installation; Gaze Mirror & After Gordon table by Kelly Behun Studio, alongside Wendell Castle lamp

Photos above by Sherry Griffin

 

DS:  Did you design those pieces with a particular space in mind?  In other words, was there a design muse of a space? 

KB:  To be honest I always think of whether I’d want it in my own home. That is the ultimate litmus test for me.

 

 

R20th Century Installation; table of hand-cut mosaic base with macassar ebony top and wallpaper by Kelly Behun Studio

Photos above by Sherry Griffin

 

DS:  One of the pieces that I just adore and think about often is that grand, grand hanging plant holder that you created.  I am often looking for half spheres that are that size (48 inches in diameter!) or larger and can’t find them.  How did that piece come about for you?

KB:  I have always had a soft spot for macramé, I have a collection of wacky books from the 70’s showing the most insane lampshades and tablecloths and chairs all in more or less the trippy surroundings you’d expect.  I wanted to do something incorporating the traditional art of macramé knotting but using a different language, updating it and playing with scale.  I grew up with a groovy plant hanger in my bedroom with a spider fern in a dome planter that I thought was the definition of cool -- that was the starting point.  So for the show we did a massive 13-foot long planter with a 4-foot wide Lucite dome planter and very thick 1” diameter cotton rope that was dyed black, and instead of wood beads we had accents of black leather.  It was one of my favorite pieces in the collection.

 

R20th Century installation; 'After Sally' macrame plant hanger, hand knotted by Sally England for Kelly Behun Studio

Photos above by Sherry Griffin

 

DS:  What is your dream project?

KB:  Doing the interiors of Casa Malaparte in Capri would be a dream, for me it is one of the most beautiful houses, such a perfect distillation of a pure idea.  I’d love to take a stab at Antti Lovag’s Villa Gaudet or Paul Rudolph’s Milam residence in Sarasota.  Oh and a riad in Marrakesh would be nice.

 

Casa Malaparte

 

Antti Lovag, Villa Gaudet, interior

 
DS:  I play this game a lot with myself:  If you were not a designer and were going to HIRE someone to design your home and world, who would that be and why?

KB:  Antoni Gaudi, if he were still alive.  Or you David, I’d love to live in a David Stark world, can we make that happen? 

DS:  BLUSHING!!!!  And honored . . . ok . . . Who or what are your inspirations?

KB:  I am inspired by so many things, by movies, by art, by New York, by travel, my children, but lately most of all by the little old ladies I see who are still getting their hair done every week and putting on perfume and lipstick.  If you get up every day still caring, and wanting to be a part of life, and wanting to create beauty in whatever way you can, that’s inspiring.

 

Photo by Gentl + Hyers

 

DS:  If you can design a space and furniture for anyone in the world, who would that be?

KB:  The Obamas.  While they’re still on Pennsylvania Avenue.

 

 

Photos above by Daniel Kukla

 

DS:  What is next for you?

KB:  I am working on a line that is a bit more mid-priced, with an eye towards doing something mass market as well.  And I will always want to continue working with interesting clients, I love the process of getting to know people and how they live, it is such a personal thing and I am always honored to be invited into a person’s world in that way, I take the whole process very seriously.  It may seem like a collection of chairs and rugs and fabrics, but the way it is put together is everything.   In a way your home is like a film set, and the movie is your life….so why not make it a beautiful one?

DS:  I second that.  Absolutely.

Coffee Talk: Nathan Vincent

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A bunch of years ago, there were two shows back to back at the Museum of Arts and Design that really wowed me.  RADICAL LACE AND SUBVERSIVE KNITTING was a two part exhibition in which contemporary artists used “fiber in unexpected and unorthodox ways.”  Growing up in a household in which knitting was passed down from generation to generation (my mother often talks of the knit dresses her grandmother used to make for her dolls), it has always been a craft that I have admired and often brought into our own work at the studio.  Last February, for instance, in our pop-up shop WOOD SHOP, our ambush of NOLITA's Haus Interior, we created a series of crocheted pillows of iconic tools from the wood worker's atelier.  The below paint can and brush were my favorites.

 

 

When we were creating WOOD SHOP, we kept running into the art of Nathan Vincent, and his work was very inspiring to us.  I knew at first sight that we were birds of a feather.  Not only am I interested in art that is made from repurposed materials, but one of the goals in our studio is to conceptually embed meaning into the material we work with.  Nathan so beautifully explores handicraft while asking questions of gender:  What is women's work? What is work for men?

Recently, Nathan was kind enough to share a chat with me, and boy, is he articulate:

 

Be Good for Goodness Sake, 2012
Installation roughly 8' x 12' x 8'
Photo by Kevin Ornelas

David Stark:  Where did you grow up and when did you learn to crochet? Who taught you?

Nathan Vincent:  I grew up all over the midwest.  My dad was a pastor, so we moved from church to church as he got bored of the politics at each location.  I lived in Michigan, Oklahoma, Michigan again, Kansas, and a bit of time in California.  I knew that my mother could crochet because of the afghans we had around the house, but I never saw her doing it.  I asked her to teach me at one point, and after some nagging, she finally broke down and showed me.  I made about 10 granny squares and then quit.  After that I taught myself to knit and made a scarf and some mittens, and then put it all away until I was in college.
 
DS:  What intrigues you about your medium?

NV:  Crochet allows me to make something out of nothing in a fairly simple way- one stitch at a time.  I like the process of turning a material into an object you'd never imagine.  Origami really impressed me when I was a kid- taking a flat sheet of paper and developing it into a 3 dimensional object was fascinating, and I think my obsession with crochet sort of grew out of that. 

DS:  Do you find that your medium sometimes does not work for the ideas you  have?  Or do you only come up with ideas that work with your medium?

NV:  I work more conceptually than that, really.  The whole crochet project started because I picked up a hook at my friend's house in college.  I played around with it and realized it could be sculptural, not just flat and functional.  When I discovered this it became clear that people thought crocheting was really for women, and I started pushing that misconception with my work.  I started to talk about tasks and activities and objects that were seen as gendered and tried to make work that would bring these ideas of gender permissions to the viewer’s mind.  From there the artistic concepts have grown beyond the binary masculine/feminine dichotomy; and the objects and installations I make now are more driven by ideas of power and control and where we fit within those structures.  So, the short answer to your question is that the medium started out dictating the process, and now it bends to meet the concept I am working on.

 

 

 

 

Locker Room, 2012
Installation roughly 12' x 19'
Crocheted and knit yarn, foam, wood, wire
Photo by Stephen Miller

DS:  What do you see as the difference between design, art, and craft?  Where do you see yourself within that world?

NV:  Ahh, the million dollar question.  There are differences between all of these, but in my humble opinion the most important factor is intent.  If you want to make a hat for your granddaughter, you are most likely into craft.  If you are setting out to create an object that will function in a certain way and maybe make life better or easier, you are probably working in design. If you are intending to express a certain idea, get people thinking, ask questions, or push boundaries, you are most likely making art.  Obviously there are overlaps and times when none of these "restrictions" make sense, but that's generally how I see it.  I find all three pursuits equally important, and they all have their place in society, I just happen to identify with the artist side of things.

DS:  Which artists inspire you?

NV:  You know, I used to try to keep a list of favorite artists, but the world is full of amazing people doing amazing things so it's hard to pin it down to a few people.  I think I'm most interested in artists who point out the strangeness of the world, and who do it in a surprising manner. 

DS:  What is your home like?

NV:  A mess.  Well, at least at the moment.  I'm preparing for a large exhibition in February, and there is yarn everywhere.  My partner is a saint and lets me turn the entire apartment into an art studio when I'm in frantic making mode.  When I'm not under a pile of yarn, we try to keep things tidy, because we both like light open spaces.

 

Dynamite, 2012
Crocheted yarn, wood
Size variable - each bundle of dynamite is roughly 8" long, plunger is roughly 12" x 14"
(This piece will be shown as an installation with about 100-150 bundles displayed in different ways.)
Photo by Caroline Voagen Nelson

DS:  You have been a resident artist at the Museum of Arts and Design for a little while now.  What is that experience like?  Have you seen a shift in your work because of that?

NV:  My residency just ended in December, and I'm a bit sad about that because it was one of the most amazing experiences I have had as an artist.  The residency program there is an open studio, which means you work in the space, and visitors from the museum come in and watch you make and discuss the artwork with you.  I found it incredibly helpful as it forced me to think about my art and explain it from all different angles.  The instant feedback, which is lacking with most artist's solitary studio life is invaluable.  I got to see how people reacted to the work, what they understood and what they didn't, what sparked interest, and most importantly, how my artwork could be better.  My work really did evolve during this process.  You know how I mentioned that my work used to be about gender roles and opened up to be about our roles in society and power structures?  That evolution came about while working at the Museum of Arts and Design. 

 

Gas Mask (black)
2012
8" x 10" x 18"
Crocheted yarn and mannequin head
Photo by Caroline Voagen Nelson

 

Gas Mask (olive)
2012
9" x 10" x 20"
Crocheted yarn and mannequin head
Photo by Caroline Voagen Nelson

 

Gas Mask (red)
2012
7" x 10.5" x 17.5"
Crocheted yarn and mannequin head
Photo by Caroline Voagen Nelson

DS:  If money and time were not an issue, what would your dream project be?

NV:  You know, about 8-10 months ago I would have had an answer for you.  I would have told you that I'd quit my job and have a solo exhibition.  But now, having quit my job and with an exhibition set to open in February, I realize I can do whatever I set my mind to and I try to view the world as a limitless place.  Why be held back by ideas of money or time limitations?  These limitations really don't exist- they are just ways of procrastinating.   If you truly want to make something, you can find a way.  And that's the way I'm approaching life.  My next step is to look into grants and foundations and other residency programs as ways to achieve my upcoming goals.

DS:  What’s next for Nathan?

NV:  I've got my exhibition opening up at Mighty Tanaka gallery in DUMBO (Opens February 15th in Brooklyn, NY) and several shows throughout the country this year.  In addition to that, I'll be working on a travelling piece that will "live" in different locations around the world.  It will have a video element to it, which will allow it to record its surroundings and then project them back inside the piece.  As it travels, it's vocabulary will build and expand, the way our own vocabulary of experiences builds as we go throughout life.  Another piece I hope to build revolves around a play place for adults- maybe one of those large ball pits you are banned from by the time you are 12.  A place for adults to be frivolous and fancy free- no kids allowed! HA!
 
DS: Count me in!

Coffee Talk: Migguel Anggelo

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I am fascinated and inspired by real artists, real artists who are not driven by money, ladder climbing, or trends, but are focused on their unique visions regardless of what the world thinks.  These people create simply because they HAVE to.  Migguel Anggelo is such an artist.  Yes, I am close to him, but I am still blown away by his vision – so free of what is going on in the pop music world, so free of commercial intentions.  I was honored to help bring his show to life recently at the New World Center in Miami and thought it would be fun to share a little of his inspiring background.

 

 

David Stark:  How did you get involved in music and performing and when?

Migguel Anggelo:  Since I was an infant, I’ve been obsessed with music.  My father, a chef, was constantly singing and listening to music while tending to his own craft in the kitchen while my mother, a ballet dancer, always danced around the house to Spanish boleros or classical music.  At age 13, I saw an ad for an audition for a big, musical production of Pinocchio (this was the Broadway version that Sandy Duncan was in) being produced in Venezuela, where I am from, and I asked my parents if I could try out.  I had only hoped that I would be in the chorus.  You can imagine my shock when I was chosen to play Pinocchio himself! 

DS:  After performing in many productions in Venezuela since, you moved to Germany and studied Opera.  What brought you to Opera?

MA:  Yes, that’s correct. I went to Germany when I was 22.  My grandfather was from Germany, and not only did I need a break from the grind of the theater in Caracas, but I wanted to see where he was from.  I traveled around and fell in love with Cologne and stayed.  When I ran out of money, I started singing on the street, collecting change from passersby.  One day the director of an opera academy spotted me and asked me to audition.  For the next four years, I studied opera at the Conservatory of Music in Cologne. 

Opera is a fascinating fantasy world, and I love all aspects of the genre:  The elaborate stage sets, the intense emotion, the orchestras and, of course, the incredible vocal abilities of the singers.  When I would watch them sing effortlessly in high registers, I would tell myself that I needed to do that. It was a personal challenge.

 

 

Migguel Anggelo opens STRINGS + STORIES at the New World Center with Handel’s LASCIA CH’IO PIANGA.

 

DS:  Who are some of the performers that have influenced you?

MA:  So many, but if I had to name some, I would say Barbra Streisand, Julie Andrews, Liza Minnelli, Luciano Pavarotti, Freddie Mercury, Luis Miguel, Ginamaria Hidalgo and Mecano.

DS:  Your recent show at the New World Center in November was sold out – congratulations!  What did you enjoy most about the show?

MA:  The audience. The theater is an intimate space, and I found it very rewarding to hear applause from people who may have been hearing my music for the first time. They moved me, and I hope I moved them. 

DS:  Your music is very poetic and varied.  I think about your song, THE LOVE OF THE CELLO, in which an old cello falls in love with a harp or ONE DAY WITH THE PENTAGON LADY about a homeless woman you knew from Miami – what inspires your songs?

MA:  I find the most powerful force in life is LOVE so that’s often an inspiration. Writing about a cello falling in love with a harp is basically about the love between two mismatched beings – PERCEIVABLY mismatched. The Pentagon Lady was a wandering homeless woman who I met in Miami. She claimed to have been working at the Pentagon and had periodic phone conversations with The White House. The stories of her “reality” were so fantastical yet so REAL, I had to write about them.

 

 

 

DS:  You are working on a new CD, called The BLUE HOUSE.  Tell us about it?

MA:  THE BLUE HOUSE is my humble tribute to Frida Kahlo. The CD is named after the song of the same title.  I previewed it at the New World Center for the first time, and the piece is a tiny play where I become the fabled Mexican painter.  The CD is full of poetry and different sonic ideas.  You will hear about love, fantasy, politics, struggle -- the ingredients of life.

 

 

Becoming Frida, LA CASA AZUL

DS:  Where is your dream to perform?

MA:  The energy of the audience can make any theater magical. That being said, I would love to perform at the Coliseum in Rome, Machu Picchu in Peru, or on the Brooklyn Bridge.

DS:  If money or time were not an issue, what would be your biggest artistic dream?

MA:  Singing and acting in a Baz Luhrmann movie.  Frankly, I would be very happy to be able to sing and create until my last breath.

DS:  We would benefit from that too.  (Wink!)

Coffee Talk: Jessie Hemmons of Ishknits

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I recently had the pleasure of both meeting and working with an artist that I admire quite a bit.  Ishknits aka Jessie Hemmons is a yarn bomber from Philadelphia who joined the fun for the recent 50th Anniversary Gala we designed and produced for the U.S. State Department’s Art In Embassies program at the National Portrait Gallery in Washington D.C.  Among the many installations that we created, as well as those composed by various other visual and performing artists, Ishknits fashioned a spectacular knit globe that was 10 feet in diameter, simply gorgeous, and she completed it during the event, chatting with curious guests as she knit.

 

Photo by Heidi Ehalt

Ishknits (Jessie Hemmons) and Dustin Campbell at the Art in Embassies 50th Anniversary Gala

Photo by Heidi Ehalt

 

Recently I had the chance to sit down with Jessie and ask her a whole bunch of things that have been on my mind since meeting her.  She was kind enough to indulge me . . .

David Stark:  How did you get involved in Knit Bombing in the first place?

Jessie Hemmons:  I had been knitting fashionable wears, like hats and scarves for about two years before I saw photos online of artists who had knit around outdoor objects, like trees and street signs.  When I saw photos of their work I fell in love with them because I have always loved graffiti and street art; most importantly the non-institutionalized expression of art.  With knit bombing (or yarnbombing), I was skeptical about the resilience of the yarn and how the projects would hold up in the rain and snow.  But I began to see photos of more and more projects and started to realize that they must withstand weathering well enough to continue making work.  Once this clicked, I put out my first yarnbomb the next day.  Now three years later I don't think that I have gone a day without working on a project.

 

Photo by Conrad Benner  

 

Photo by Conrad Benner

 

Photo by Damon Landry

 

DS:  Where did the name Ishnknit come from?

JH:  Ishknits was adopted from the name of my accessories line.  The name referenced the phrase "that new ish".  I believed it was fitting for my artwork.

 

Photo by Conrad Benner

 

Photo by Conrad Benner

 

Photo by Conrad Benner

 

DS:  What's been one of the most challenging projects you have ever done?

JH:  The most challenging project that I have done to date is when I covered the facade of the Perelman Building at the Philadelphia Museum of Art.  The curator had commissioned layered swags, these loosely gathered knitted pieces that resembled very large, brightly colored window valances.  Initially, the pieces looked as though they would be easy to fabricate, but I quickly learned that to have them gather in a fitting and attractive way, I had to create oddly shaped pieces.  Also I had to create 14 pieces that averaged 10'x6' in a few weeks’ time.  But it was an amazing experience, and I am still in awe of having the opportunity to show at the Philadelphia Museum of Art at such a young age, especially as a street artist.

 

Photo by Conrad Benner

 

Photo by Conrad Benner

 

Photo by Conrad Benner

 

Photo by Conrad Benner

 

DS:  What is the dream project that you have not done yet?

JH:  When I think about some of my favorite things to look at, I tend to gravitate toward structures that are deteriorating or in a state of disrepair.  And I always tend find a relationship between the structural environment and the socio-cultural state of the neighborhood.  And then I think about the empathic and nurturing nature of knitting and handcrafted objects.  And this makes me want to cover these crumbling structures in knitting, to reflect my hope for the neighborhood and those within it.  My dream would be to cover an entire abandoned home in brightly colored knitting with the help of youth or individuals with an invested interest in the area.

 

Photo by Damon Landry

 

Photo by Damon Landry

 

Photo by Damon Landry

 

DS:  Which artists/designers do you admire?
 
JH:  Magda Sayeg is said to be the "mother of yarn bombing" and so of course she is on my list.  Sarah Applebaum has also been an inspiration, especially her use of color.  Street artists like Banksy, Sheppard Fairey, J.R., Swoon.  I especially like Hanksy, as he has brought some much needed humor to the genre.  Knitting designers Wenlan Chia and Lindsay Degen are fantastic.  I could go on and on.

 

Photo by Nick Cuda

 

Photo by Conrad Benner

 

Photo by Conrad Benner

 

DS:  Where do you find your inspiration?

JH:  I find a lot of my design inspiration from fashion (it is knitting!) while my concepts are inspired mostly by those around me.  I create my projects for the audience.  I want individuals that would not classify themselves as "art seekers" to be able to see and find a personal connection to the work.

 

Photo by Conrad Benner

 

Photo by Conrad Benner

 

Photo by Conrad Benner

 

Photo by Conrad Benner

 

DS:  In the recent piece you created for Art In Embassies 50th Anniversary Gala, how long did it take you to make the piece? 

JH:  The 10 ft tall globe took approximately 250 hours to complete by hand. Phew.

DS:  What's next?

JH:  I am continuing to develop a commercial art career, and am always looking for opportunities.  In the immediate future I hope to relocate and bring my work to a different city, and see what inspiration I can find from my new city.

 

 

DS:  What city?

JH:  San Francisco!

DS:  Oh, rats!  I was hoping you were going to say New York!

JH:  I would love New York, but I am looking to skip winter for a little while. 

DS:  As a fellow winter hater, I understand that 300 percent.(wink!)

Keep your eyes on Ishknits!  I know I will. 

xo,

D

Quick Pick Me Up: Breuckelen Berber

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I have been really digging the amazing rugs from Breuckelen Berber and have lots of carpet fantasies for the new apartment I am renovating. Check out these amazing works of art! One is cooler, and more fabulous then the next, right?!

D.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Strings + Stories at the New World Center

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If you are in Miami or are going to be in Miami on November 8th, I hope you will come to see Migguel Anggelo’s show at the New World Center.  Migguel is an incredibly talented singer, songwriter, actor, and dancer. Backed by a string ensemble, he is going to be performing original songs from his first album release DONDE ESTARA MATISSE as well as interpretations of pop and opera classics.

There’s a lot of buzz in Miami about the show already.  In fact, Migguel is number 7 on the ever chic magazine CULTURED’s list of what’s hot in their Fall issue!  Click here to page 32 of the CULTURED 25!

The Frank Gehry designed Symphony Hall is stunning and the show will be a GREAT treat!  For tickets and more information, click here.

D.

Happy Birthday, Marco!

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It’s never a dull day at David Stark Design and Production. One of our designers, Jennifer Whitney, brought in a hand-made piñata to celebrate a very special birthday, for a very special guy; our longtime Production Master, Marco Mendez, also known as “El Diablo”. There is never a single production problem that he can't solve.

Happy Birthday, Marco!

As you can see below, our staff is always thinking re-use. From piñata raiders to mad hatters.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I'm On A Boat!

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It is with great pleasure that I hand the reigns over to Dani today, who blogs about our recent journey on the Hudson River.  Heeeere’s Dani:

D.

For our annual summer staff outings, we always toast the successful season of Spring events just passed and have a pep-rally (of sorts) for a busy Fall events season. This year, the David Stark Design crew hopped aboard the historic Clearwater for a day of sailing. The Clearwater is a 106-foot cargo vessel modeled after Dutch cargo sloops of the 18th century. In 1966, folk music legend and environmental activist Pete Seeger, in despair over the pollution of his beloved Hudson River, announced plans to “build a boat to save the river.” The boat was commissioned to help restore the Hudson River to the national treasure it is. The sloop is a nationally-recognized symbol of environmental awareness and a floating classroom to inspire tomorrow’s environmental leaders. Forty-four years after its first sail, the Clearwater has accomplished numerous feats in river restoration, including educating over 500,000 school children on the importance of preserving and protecting the environment.
 
As guests of the infamous vessel, we not only learned about the Clearwater and the Hudson, but we had a little fun doing it! Ahoy matey!

 

 

 

Safety first. The lovely Juan shows us how to put on our life jackets in case of an emergency.

 

Getting motivated to raise the sail!

 

3,000 pounds of sail lying in wait.

 

 

Time to raise it!

 

 

 

 

Look who wore their nautical stripes!  Looking good, gang!

 

 

Whew! Sail is up.

 

Time to tack into the wind!

 

Steering the sloop with an iron, er, wooden fist.

 

Finally time to relax and listen to little other than sails flapping in the wind.

 

Guest Blogger: Dani Calkins

 

 

 

Is that Jersey?

 

 

Thankfully, we didn't have to open that chest.

 

Learning the skill and art of nautical knots.

 

 

 

It was a beautiful day for a sail. The threat of rain never materialized and being overcast, it never got too hot on board!  A big thanks to the captain and the entire crew of the Clearwater for making our day so special.

Dani.

Coffee Talk: Raina Kattelson

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I have always been fascinated with the legion of creative folks that call themselves stylists and often think that if I came back and did it all over again, maybe I would be one too!  Creating a world for a photo shoot is not that dissimilar from the worlds we create for events, and I see so many parallels in our universes. 

I met Raina Kattelson a couple of years back when we did a photo shoot together for Issue 4 of RUE Magazine [see page 204].   It was a really beautiful story, shot by William Brinson, and the photos situated our David Stark for west elm summer collection within the context of an afternoon “tea” at Matisse or Picasso’s studio.  We all packed into William’s small studio, and created this entire stage set of magic together – theater for the camera!

Since then, I have had the pleasure of getting to know Raina more, I enjoy her blog www.astylistslife.com tremendously, and she was kind enough to sit down with me and answer some questions . . .

All photography by John Gruen, unless otherwise noted.

 

Photo by William Brinson

 

David Stark:  Did you always know that you wanted to be a stylist?  How did you start?

Raina Kattelson:  At 21 I started my own high end kids clothing line, very japanese/european inspired and sold it across the country to dept. stores and boutiques.  It was in Bendel's in the "Street of Shops"  when Bendel's was run by Geraldine Stutz and they really promoted young designers.  After a few years I needed an influx of cash plus someone who could really handle the business side of things and had trouble finding the right fit so I closed the business.  At that time I started thinking about the aspects of fashion that I was drawn to and realized it was more about making the image happen.  I started cold calling stylist's whose work I admired and asking of they needed an assistant.  I learned the business that way and eventually built up my portfolo and started getting jobs on my own.  In the last few years I have moved away from fashion and more towards prop and interior styling which I love.

DS:  What is your background?  What did you study in school?

RK:  I always loved magazines and changing around my room, sewing clothes etc. I didn't know that styling as a job existed.  I went to F.I.T and Parsons where my major was fashion design but I kept taking display and interior design classes as well.  At the time it seemed unfocused but in retrospect it all helped me do what I do today.

 

 

 

 

DS:  If you had to site 3 of your all times favorite projects, what would they be and why?

RK:  The books I styled for Matthew Patrick Smyth and Thom Filicia were great- both of them are such talented people and such wicked senses of humor.  I love collaborative projects with super talented people, so the shoot you and I did was pretty great in that way -- you were such a calm presence despite the constraints we were up against.  You were able to adjust so easily to the obstacles we encountered.

 

Photo by Eric Piasecki

DS:  Your world is so interconnected with the photographers that you work with.  Who are some that inspire you?

RK:  I just shot with Eric Piasecki -- he is a master with light.  We had bad weather one day and were shooting in almost dark, yet the pictures came out looking like the sun was out. He makes beautiful pictures and makes it look effortless.  William Brinson is another light master and so easy to work with.  Lately I've been looking at a lot of food photographers and find Chris Court's work inspiring.  Bernice Abbot, Bill Brandt, Imogen Cunnigham, Lee Friedlander, Andre Kertesz- that whole generation of photographers was amazing.  My father, Sy Kattelson is a renowned photographer and continually inspires me.

 

 

 

DS:  What is the dream project that you have not done yet?

RK:  An Anthropologie catalog would be pretty cool.  Living Etc, Elle- both UK and US magazines would be top of my list as well. Anything involving travel to far off lands. 

DS:  Have you ever had a styling disaster?

RK:  I've been pretty lucky and not had anything major.  Props not showing up, weather problems, models booked to shoot fur and showing up refusing to wear fur, but all par for the course.  Nothing horribly disastrous.

 

 

 

 

DS:  If you only had three resources that you had to get everything you need for a shoot in NYC, what would they be?  Money is not an issue (ha!), procurement is not an issue (double ha!), it’s simply about what you love!

RK:  Can I nab a few pieces from the Museum of Natural History, The Met.  How about Simon Doonan's prop warehouse at Barney's.

DS:  What’s next for you?

RK:  I'm finishing up styling a garden book and I have a cookbook for Chelsea Market I'm about to start styling,  I've been doing much more food prop styling and really enjoying that.   I'm headed to London with Modenus for London Design Week in September with some of my favorite bloggers- that should be great fun.  I'm also working on a couple of interesting projects that are still hush.....

 

 

 

DS:  Mmmmmm . . . interest officially piqued!

D.

Love Letter: Ignacio Iturria

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The other day we were walking around the Wynwood section of Miami, and we walked into the Ascaso Gallery, a gallery I was unfamiliar with and didn’t expect anything special from.  To my delight, the paintings of Ignacio Iturria (an artist I was also unfamiliar with) jumped off the wall to me.  Their seemingly everyday scenes punctuated with tiny moments of surprise and magic really made an impression on me.  Upon further examination, Iturria is apparently one of the most important painters from Uruguay, who lived in Spain for quite some time and paints about his childhood memories.  He’s not a trendy artist.  Just a really GREAT one! 

A big thank you to my new friends at Ascaso Gallery who were kind enough to provide me with the below photos.  I’m going to go back again and spend more time with the paintings live.  If you can, check them out too!

D.

 

Ignacio Iturria, Rosas de noviembre, 2012. 80 x 70 cm. 31.4 x 27.5 in.

 

Ignacio Iturria, Frangelico, 2012. Oil on canvas. 80 x 70 cm. 31.4 x 27.5 in.

 

Ignacio Iturria. El taxi, 2012. Oil on canvas. 80 x 70 cm. 31.4 x 27.5 in.

 

Ignacio Iturria. La vespa, 2012 Oil on canvas. 80 x 60 cm. 31.4 In.

 

 

Go Brooklyn!

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It’s my pleasure to give the reigns over to Dani Calkins, our Special Projects Coordinator who reports on our company service day.  I am sad that I was not able to be there and join in the fun, so I need to live vicariously through this post too!

D.

Dani Calkins:  On any given day, you can do, see, and experience an array of different activities in Brooklyn Bridge Park -- from Zumba to book readings; there is something for everyone. With a maintenance crew of only 5 people, the 85-arce park relies heavily on volunteers.  Last Wednesday, the DSI Crew stepped out of the office and into the park to help out a community we all love!

 

 

We were greeted by the park’s wonderful Volunteer Coordinator, Sarah, who gave us a tour of the Park.  Sarah not only highlighted the parks amazing views, but also the numerous environmentally friendly features it offers.  For instance, the park’s benches were created by reusing Longleaf pine from cold storage warehouses that were once housed on the piers. The park also has a storm water management system that stores over 100,000 gallons of water for the park’s irrigation needs.

After our very informative tour, we were tasked with installing metal edging along several plant beds to keep unwanted debris away from the plantings. As always, the DSI team was quick to jump into action.  Not unlike one of our event installations, everyone assumed their designated roles! We had the Project Management team taking phone calls and checking their emails . . .

 

 

The studio team doing the heavy lifting . . .

 

 

And the design team working in style. And the best part, we have the pictures to prove it all!

 

 

 

Now in all seriousness, in true DSI fashion we all came together to get the job done. It was a great day, and we are all convinced that the DSI crew is the best volunteer group the park has ever seen!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you are interested in learning more about Brooklyn Bridge Park and how you too can get involved visit:

http://www.brooklynbridgepark.org/support/volunteer

Dani

Coffee Talk: Jane Schulak on Shell Mania

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Recently I was at my friend Jane's home and she showed me an incredible tea service set made from shells that I now covet.  I was simply blown away.  The delicacy and intricacy of the constructions are kind of mind blowing, and I always marvel at Jane’s eye and world of beauty.

 

 

 

Photos above by Jane Schulak

 

I had already known that my pal was a big shell lover, but the more we talked, the more I thought it would be fun for her to share with us more of her world (shell) view.  Jane was nice enough to open some of her favorite books, drawers, rooms, and mind  . . .

 

 

David Stark:  When did shells first become magical to you?

Jane Schulak:  I remember exactly when not only "shell magic," but also "shell obsession" became a permanent part of my insatiable appetite. There arose in me a need to dive deep into how, when, and where shells fit into the decorative arts puzzle. Both times I was in a garden of a very special friend...can't think of a better, more meaningful place in the world to become a full-fledged "shell addict"! After those experiences, there simply was no turning back; the beauty and the poetry of shells had found a serious spot in my soul.

 

David Hicks' garden. Photo by Jane Schulak

 

A small room in a 16th century garden folly in Normandy where my friend was slowly affixing mussel shells in the most wonderful patterns as she collected them.

 

Photo by Jane Schulak

 

DS:  What is the allure of shells for you? Why do you think it has held such allure for designers and artisans over so much time?

JS:  I am totally fascinated by the relationship between natural history and design. For hundreds of years, artists, designers, and collectors have felt the need to explore and interpret the innate visual poetry and mystery that shells so respectfully own.

 

It was very fashionable to build a cabinet of curiosity for yourself, and it still is!!!

 

From "Cabinets de Curosités" by Christine Davenne. Photo by Christine Fleurent

 

 

From "The Still Lifes of Adriaen Coorte: 1683-1707" by Quentin Buvelot

 

Photo by Jane Schulak

 

Shell figures were commissioned by the most important collectors all over Europe such as The Medici.

 

By Janine Janet

 

Photo by Gregory Saldana

By Thomas Boog, photo by Gregory Saldana

 

DS:  What are some of the most inspiring shell art/ decor/ installation/room/object/garden moments for you?

JS:  There are so many inspiring shell moments that stand out in my mind. Personally, I think nothing is more ravishing than to have a room totally encrusted in shells, such enchantment, wonder, beauty, and total luxury!

Photos below of a Shell Thatched Cottage at the Château de Rambouillet, built for Queen Marie-Antoinette.

 

 

Photos courtesy of Andrew Hopkins Art

 

Janine Janet was a master at taking the humblest of materials and making serious visual poetry.  Her inspiration came from The Medici shell statuettes and the Rambouillet Pavilion. She was a set designer, as well as, a decorator, and a completely inspired artist.

 

By Janine Janet, photo by Roland Beafre

 

Probably one of the most inspiring garden moments in my life, was seeing the Tsarskie Selo bridge at St. Petersburg the Palace, built in the 1700's by Peter the Great. To me, there is nothing more blow-your-mind beautiful than the Chinese bridge with those urns overflowing so graciously with coral branches like the hair of medusa.

 

Photo by Jane Schulak

 

DS:  Do you love the beach?

JS:  Well ... what do you think? I have a really hard time controlling myself and the need to be dressed in shells or eat off of them.

 

2011 Prada, photo by Gregory Saldana

 

DS:  If time and money were not an issue, what would be your fantasy shell installation?

JS:  That's an easy one ... I already have a plan! I can't think of anything more delicious than being able to wake up every morning in the Palais Royal in Paris to a pied-a-terrre totally encrusted in shells! I think I'll take my inspiration directly from the grotto Margate!!!!

 

 

 

 

From the June 2004 issue of The World of Interiors, photos by Bill Batten

From Fireflies to Fluorescence!

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I had the great pleasure of seeing the incredible Yayoi Kusama retrospective at the Tate Modern earlier in the year in London, and I can’t wait to see it at the Whitney now that it has come to New York.  The show is eye-popping, filled with fluorescence as I am sure that her new special collaboration with Louis Vuitton will be.  And it’s funny when something becomes the zeitgeist, right?  The sun, and the stars, and the moon all line up at the same time, and everyone collectively loves fluorescence!

“Reporting” on this trend, our amazing Corrie Hogg takes the reins . . . Here’s Corrie:

Corrie Hogg:  Just last week around the lunch table the design department was talking about the presence of fluorescent colors in design and fashion as a trend over the past year or so. By coincidence, the next day I was visiting the American Museum of Natural History, Creatures of Light exhibition where I learned all about bioluminescence… fireflies, glowworms, flashlight fish! As part of the exhibit they also explained fluorescent color and the science behind it. I was fascinated! I learned -  it is actually glowing on a molecular level, meaning more light in the spectrum is being absorbed and then emitted from the electrons!!! Whoa! Here is a more in depth explanation from DayGlo.

So today, I just had to revisit some pics of a couple of my favorite events over the past few months where we have utilized the magic of the fluorescent’s photon!

A stunning Bar Mitzvah where the table décor was carefully placed fluorescent plexi osculating down the table like sound waves.

 

 

And of course, this giant NEXT sculpture, where our team skillfully wielded fluorescent flagging tape! More pics here.

 

 

I also wanted to share some fluorescent goods I covet! Perhaps, if I welcome these into my life, I can become a light emitting electron as well.

I’ve got to find a place for these in our collection! Flou Vases from the French company, La tête au cube!

 

 

These super sweet NIKE kicks are great too!

 

 

How about one of these from the Cambridge Satchel Company?

 

 

My future craft project must have…. These neon threads I found at Purl Soho!! I am on the lookout for the perfect fluorescent textile to make my own pouf! Holler at me if you’ve found one.

 

 

I can’t help but love these artists as well. I think it is a little gutsy to go fluorescent, and I have to admire them!

I totally dig this work by, Que Houxo.

 

 

These giant paper sculptures by Paula Arntzen were painted with Fluorescent ink. LOVE!!

 

 

If you are like me and want to make something yourself, check out this how to from Meg Allan Cole. So simple but so good!

 

 

Polka Dots Madness 12 by Yayoi Kusama.

 

 

By the same artist, this piece, Fireflies on the Water is currently on view at the Whitney. I am so looking forward to seeing this myself. From the science of the bioluminescence at the Creatures of Light exhibition last weekend to Kusama’s interpretation this weekend! All I need is to get some of those NIKES to wear to the show!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Quick Pick Me Up: Sylvie Saint-Andre Perrin

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My friend Jane has an extensive collection of the work of French ceramicist Sylvie Saint-Andre Perrin.  The kaleidoscope of color options are simply astounding, but I just  love the combinations below.  You?

D.

 

 

 

One Day With The Pentagon Lady

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I love to surround myself with creative people who choose to live creative lives.  Recently three people very important to me finished a short film, a video for the song “Un Dia con La Dama Del Pentagono” written and performed by Migguel Anggelo.  Dando Valle, a Spanish director and photographer living in Miami created this elegant film and Violeta Stamenic stars in it.  It was entirely shot in Miami and the song and the film are about a homeless woman that used to “live” on Lincoln Road.  She claimed to have formerly worked at the Pentagon and was constantly “calling” the Pentagon on payphones or imaginary phones.

 

 

 

 

I am very proud of my talented friends and their accomplishment.  Not because they are MY pals, but because they created something so, so beautiful:  Art.  The song and Miguel’s voice are stunning, Violeta walks the line between beauty and tragedy so amazingly, and the film itself is gorgeous, and a little scary. You can totally feel the white haze that the Pentagon Lady “lives” within, the cinematography is lush, and there are glimmers of happiness within the isolation and fear.

I keep thinking about it.  And watching it again and again.  BRAVO, guys.

xo

D.

The Other Side of White: Helen Quinn and Burcu Avsar

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You might remember a couple of posts in the near past where I shared the talents of my buddy Helen Quinn – one showcasing her art, stop action films, and photo-styling and the other, premiering the gorgeous film she created for the singer Migguel Anggelo and his song “Donde Estara Matisse.”  Recently, Helen shared with me the fruits of a stunning and recent collaboration between herself and the dynamo photographer Burcu Avsar.  I think the work they are doing is so beautiful, and I am both honored to share it here and give the reigns over to Helen . . .

 

 

Helen Quinn:  When the amazingly talented photographer Burcu Avsar approached me this spring about doing a “test” (a photo shoot for our portfolios, not for a specific client) I jumped at the chance. We talked over Skype and in New York coffee shops and decided we would do a series of color studies. We began with Indigo Blue, followed by Cochineal (the Mexican bug that when ground up makes a vibrant pink) and we just finished shooting Black & White. All the tests can be seen at Burcu’s website under “color studies” or Helen’s under “tear sheets” and we hope to continue the series over the summer.

For the Black & White story, Burcu and I were captivated by the chapter “The Whiteness of the Whale” from Moby Dick by Herman Melville, 1851. In it, Ishmael explains why the color white is so terrifying to him. He lists examples of how white can be pure and beautiful with pearls, marble, wool, “kings and queens drawn by milk-white steeds”, the Iroquois’s fascinating mid-winter sacrifice of a sacred white dog, etc. But his true feeling is that the color white is terrifying. He says, “there yet lurks an elusive something in the innermost idea of this hue, which strikes more of panic to the soul than that redness which affrights in blood.” Ishmael thinks that anything already horrible in nature is even more eerie and ghostly if it is white, like a white shark, a white tiger, a polar bear or of course, a giant white whale.

 

 

 

 

 

So for our take on white, Burcu and I wanted to go to the dark side and include black and tarnish for contrast. We used charcoal, worm-eaten wood as a surface and I painted several backgrounds with ink and gouache. Burcu suggested that I make a paper mache rock. I agreed whole heartedly and had a great time wrestling with that challenge, which included a trip to Kremer Pigments to buy mica powder, plaster, small stones and gray pigment. Burcu went to Chinatown and bought the crazy five pound octopus and the beautiful silver fish. We borrowed antique jewelry from a trusting friend, dyed cheese cloth, and amassed our tarnished silver and bake ware. Sculptor Melissa McGill’s porcelain figurines were included in the broken plate image as they truly have a ghostly quality to them. We wanted to create a 19th century, eerie, Nantucket, buried treasure kind of feeling by adding the cotton, lantern, and nautical antiques.

 

 

 

 

 

Seeing white as a scary color, steering away from its possible sweetness and preciousness, and trying to understand it as more of a void or absence was a great challenge. The color GREEN is our next challenge. We will see what we come up with…

 

Design Is Not Taught: Calling All Interns

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We’re excited to announce something fun! 

We have teamed up with Apartment Therapy for the very first intern contest.  Why?  Of course, it is great for our company and we have a terrific track record of hiring full time employees that first excel as interns with us, but now having had the chance to work with students as a teacher in design programs on the college and graduate level and even thinking back to when I was a student at the Rhode Island School of Design, it becomes more and more apparent to me, that many of the design careers that are really out there are careers you don’t “major” in at school.  I majored in Painting.  I never had any idea that there was even a genre of design work in the world of events.

Thus, an opportunity like this gives a budding designer an awesome opportunity to gain real working experience, find out if it is a design path they dig in the first place, and be surrounded by an awful lot of creative people in the process.  Frankly, people ask me constantly, “How can I break into the event world?”  This contest is a great way!

 

 

There are some fun perks for the winner beyond the actual internship that make this more exciting than “just another” internship: Press exposure on the Apartment Therapy site and designing the Apartment Therapy holiday party are pretty awesome entrees to the field.

Thus, we are excited to call all budding designers to enter, and we can’t wait to see your portfolios.  Remember . . . part of the fun is that you can’t go to school for "Event Design," so here’s a cool way to learn about a facet of the design world that is simply not taught. Not yet, anyway. 

We’re real nice too.  (wink!)

Xo

D.

P.S.  A big thank you to our friends at Apartment Therapy for recognizing that design is something that happens by doing.  We are thrilled to partner with them on this opportunity!

 

 

Coffee Talk with Jane Schulak: Isabelle de Borchgrave

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My friend Jane and I share a love of paper and the hand-made.  You might remember a little chat I had with her here about a party she threw in Paris at the Museum of Decorative Arts that was simply magical.  Recently we got to talking about another shared admiration:  The Belgian artist Isabelle de Borchgrave.  I first learned of Isabelle stateside when she launched a line of paper goods at Target, but when I looked under the hood of this friendly priced line of napkins and party goods, I learned more about the elaborate balls Isabelle is famous for in Europe, dressing all of the women in exquisite paper gowns, and filling ballrooms with stunning paper décor -- shamanism at its finest.

Jane was kind enough to give me a little more insight into this amazing artist, too, from her point of view ... as a personal friend of Isabelle's.

 

Photo by Andreas von Einsiedel

 

Photo by Andreas von Einsiedel

 

Photo by Andreas von Einsiedel

 

David Stark: How did you first hear of Isabelle? How long have you known her? Where did you first meet?

Jane Schulak:  About 7 years ago a mutual friend invited me to accompany her to see Isabelle's studio in Brussels. Needless to say finding oneself in Isabelle's "Magic Kingdom of Paper" is an experience that is truly beyond beautiful. From the first moment I entered I knew that I had met the most gifted, lovely, and inspired artist. For me it was serious love at first site, and fortunately the beginning of a wonderful friendship.

 

Photo by Jane Schulak

 

Photo by Jane Schulak

 

DS: What draws you to her work?

JS:  I feel like Isabelle has invented and translated a medium that never existed before. She has an exceptional ability to make paper look and feel like an old piece of lace or a rare piece of silk taffeta. Basically she can transform any textile imaginable into a paper anything and the difference is barely discernible. Often once the object or dress is complete Isabelle then paints a design onto the paper with the most delicate hand. It is amazing to see the range of things that come out of her studio, all with the same intention. She is a master of subtle disguise, and the things that she makes are even more beautiful because they aren't what they are supposed to be. Everything in Isabelle's world is always a unique surprise!

 

Photo by Eric Herchaft

 

Photo by Andreas von Einsiedel

 

Photo by Andreas von Einsiedel

 

Photo by Alain Speltdoorn

 

Photo by Andreas von Einsiedel

 

DS: Does she only work in paper?

JS:  Although Isabelle is most known for her paper costumes and a myriad of paper objects, paper is not her only way of expressing herself. She paints, sculpts in bronze, and even creates tiles and dishes. Often using the same design elements that you find in her paper constructions, always with a deep connection to the history of textile design.

 

Photo by CidB

 

 

Photo by CidB

 

Photo by Andreas von Einsiedel

 

Photo by Andreas von Einsiedel

 

DS:  What is her studio like?

JS:  Since I have known Isabelle she has had two studios. The first studio, which was my original foray into the "Magic Kingdom of Paper", was in this wonderful, cozy, layered, series of rooms. Where you found yourself literally on top of the work, overwhelmed by the beauty, color, and energy that was covering every inch of the space. Recently Isabelle has moved her studio into an old building in which she has totally renovated. The new studio is quite large, white, filled with light, and simply staggeringly beautiful not only in it's architecture but also as a laboratory of design. I think the most special thing of all is to be able to stand on the balcony looking down on 300 years of history being recreated and reinterpreted in paper.

 

Photo by Jean-Pierre Gabriel

 

Photo by Jean-Pierre Gabriel

 

Photo by Jean-Pierre Gabriel

 

Photo by Jean-Pierre Gabriel

 

Photo by Jean-Pierre Gabriel

 

DS:  What is the most fabulous thing you have seen Isabelle create?

JS:  Definitely the most fabulous thing I have seen was Isabelle's work in the Medici Palace in Florence and the Fortuny Palace in Venice. She recreated and re-imagined every single object in various rooms including the curtains, the dishes, even the furniture totally in paper. As well as the family members dressed in the proper clothing, complete with jewelry and shoes, and not to forget their animals, all life size. For me this was a paper miracle!

 

Photo by Jean-Pierre Gabriel

 

Photo by Philippe Leclercq

 

Photo by Philippe Leclercq

 

DS:  What is your fantasy project with Isabelle?

JS:  That's easy...! Can't think of anything more wonderful than throwing my own "Paper Ball" complete with paper costumes for all. Totally imagined by Isabelle de Borchgrave, the paper stylist extraordinaire!

DS:  When you throw that ball, I better be invited!  (wink!)

Xo

D.

 

Photo by Andreas von Einsiedel

 

Photo courtesy of the Legion of Honor, San Francisco, CA

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Fool’s Fete

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Each year, we look forward to kicking off the spring gala season with New Yorkers For Children’s A Fool’s Fête, definitely one of New York City’s most glamorous evenings!  So often, we wrack our brains to come up with a conceptual decor idea that relates to a foundation’s mission, but sometimes the goal is to just be  . . . BEAUTIFUL.

An Indian inspired fantasy of blazing color and hypnotic pattern filled the ballroom of the Mandarin Oriental Hotel last year, and since surprise is the name of our game, we swung the pendulum to the other extreme this year by creating a palette cleanse of pure whites, a sea of glimmering candlelight and a vast canopy of delicate but arresting cherry blossoms.  This party didn’t need tons of small bouquets.  Rather, the branches became the glorious new architecture of the space; dramatic in repetition.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Photography by Susan Montagna

 

Happy Spring, Gang!  May you have many nights of sparkle too, and a big thank you to our pals at New Yorkers.  It’s our honor to be there with you on so many special nights, doing so much good for foster children.
 
XO
 
D

 

 

 

 

Quick Pick Me Up: The Masks of Studio Bertjan Pot

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I was rooting around the internet last night and checked out Design Milk’s Friday Five with Stephen Burks. Thank you, guys.  I am totally inspired by one of Burk’s cool call outs:  the rope masks created by Studio Bertjan Pot of the Netherlands.  The Dutch are always makin’ cool stuff, and I am familiar and like much of the studio’s furniture and lighting, but I did not know of these beauties . . .

 

 

 

 

 

 

All photography courtesy of Studio Bertjan Pot

 

A whole wall of them would be perfect, right?  Sign me up!  (wink!)

Xo

D.

Quick Pick Me Up: Choi Jeong-Hwa

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In honor of Earth Day this Sunday, April 22nd 2012, we’d like to shine the creative light on Choi Jeong-Hwa’s public installation from 2009 “Doors”.  Since we often gravitate toward materials otherwise destined for the rubbish bin in our own installations, we are wildly attracted to this work too.

 

 

 

 

Images via www.choijeonghwa.com

While the concept is pretty simple: a building façade of 1,000 found doors; there is an interesting story behind how he got there. In art school, the Korean artist entered a painting contest, painted what he thought the judges would gravitate to and won the Grand Prize of a trip to Europe. On his return, he burned those paintings, “decided against becoming an artist and decided instead to be an ordinary person who thinks like an artist.” He found beauty in garbage piles and construction sites, leading to a host of installations comprised of found stuff.

I love Choi Jeong Hwa’s creative premise:  Art is in the mind more so than skilled hands.

D.

Quick Pick Me Up : The Paris Home of Benoit Jamin and Isabel Puech

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My head has been focused on the prospect of moving to a new apartment, and I have been looking through a ton of my old interiors books for inspiration.  Last night, I came across the home of the incredible French accessories designers Jamin Puech, and remembered how much I fell in love with the giant pen that leans against the wall in their library years ago.

 

 

By chance and right after seeing their home in that same book for the first time years ago, I started finding giant pens when I would go to antique stores.  I was dying for one, still am, actually, but I never had (and still don’t!) have a ceiling high enough to host one.  Ahhh  . . . to dream . . .

Xo

D.

P.S.  I found the above photograph by Matthiew Soudet in Maison Décor.

New Chapters

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It’s always bittersweet when an important part of the team decides to move across the country. Case in point, Jason Neufeld, one of the fabulous members of our Design Team is moving to Los Angeles with his newlywed wife to start their next life chapter.

 

Captain Jason at the Philadelphia Flower Show in an installation we designed for Smith & Hawken for Target.

 

We thought it would be fun to take a look back at just few of the many projects on which Jason has left his brilliant mark over the past four years.

 

Photo by KT Merry Photography

Photo by KT Merry Photography

 

Photo by KT Merry Photography

 

 

 

Photo by Gustavo Campos

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Unless other wise noted, all photogarphy by Susan Montagna.

 

We know you will knock ‘em dead on the West Coast, Jason. We will miss you tons, good friend. Thank you for your brilliance, commitment, and spirit.

xo

D.

 

Special Delivery

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I’m a little back-logged in sharing what we have been up to since there’s been a whole lot going on, but at the end of February, we had the great pleasure of spending time in Toronto with our buddies from Target and a whole slew of new Canadian friends.  Target will be opening stores in Canada in the near future, but as a sneak peek and to share the very chic Jason Wu for Target collection, we sent a very special delivery: a one day, pop-up fantasy where Canadians had the ability to shop the line and immerse themselves in Target magic.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We found a very modern, glass structure in a fun shopping area of the city and then turned it into a stylized Parisian Beaux Arts Building, inside and out.  We covered all of the glass from floor to ceiling with drawings of the “architecture,” and in the interior, we re-did the place top to bottom in luminescent pale, pale grays and icy blues, tons of trompe l'oeil as well as real moldings and fixtures that blur the line between real and fantasy.  To reinforce the idea of this “special delivery,”  an influx of packages and mail of all sorts were sent from Target to the Canadian “people,”  all stamped with Target love.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Glowing Target red, we created a library that floated within this “house,”  a lounge that played double duty as a mini museum, showcasing examples of Target designer partnerships over the years.  From Liberty of London to the recent Missoni phenomenon, back to the earlier days where even the likes of Philippe Starck and Michael Graves created iconic product lines, it was great fun to see examples of these products all together and to create zany riffs on a real library.  The books on the shelves, for instance were trompe l'oeil and each represented a designer collaboration.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jason was there and so lovely to work with, and the response from the community was fantastic.  We opened the doors at noon and by the end of the day, as expected, we were sold out.  The proceeds of the day were donated to the United Way, and everyone had a super time – including us.  A huge thank you to Target and to all of our partners in bringing this fantastic day to life.  And honestly, BRAVO to Jason.  What a huge talent and great spirit he is.

 

Photography by Susan Montagna

 

Cheers,

 

D.

Quick Pick Me Up: Roy Lichtenstein

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Yesterday was a beautiful spring day in New York City, and I was on an inspiration trip with our Design Team when we all fell over (backwards) in love with Roy Lichtenstein’s Landscapes in the Chinese Style exhibition at the Gagosian Gallery’s Chelsea location. While most of the public recognizes his super-sized comic book prints from the 1960’s, he spent 30 years exploring styles and motifs that he is not commonly associated with. These serene, ethereal pieces were inspired by the monochromatic prints of Edgar Degas which Lichtenstein discovered at a 1994 exhibition at The Met. Lichtenstein was able to re-interpret the concept with his well-established, instantly recognizable use of carefully stylized “Ben-Day dots”. His intention with the meticulously stenciled dots, was to “mimic printing, block contours, rendered in hard vivid color, with all traces of the hand removed.” As you can see in the images below, he accomplished that with great success.

What I find most interesting is that these landscapes are from 1996; the year before Roy left us. Its really inspiring to observe the constant evolution and reinvention that a true artist cannot escape. Right up until the very end.

You are missed, Roy Lichtenstein.

D.

 

 

 

 

WOOD SHOP On Sale For One More Week Only

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WOOD SHOP, our ambush of Haus Interior closed this past Sunday after a month of good times, but as a special bonus, the collection is on sale for 20 percent off the original prices online only. The numbers on the site already reflect the discounted price, and it's a good time to stock up on gifts. www.hausinterior.com

Oh . . . and if you live in NYC and would rather pick up your gifties, call in the order to avoid the shipping! We WOOD be happy to get your items bagged for you to pick on up. (212) 741-0455

xo

D.

P.S. Tell your friends.

Behind the Scenes: Installing A Store In Just One Day!

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We get so focused on showing the polished photos of an event, a pop-up store, or even a product that we often forget that the process images are just as fascinating as the end result.  I am happy to share the documentation of the creation of WOOD SHOP at Haus Interior, our month-long concept store ambush.  We’re going to start showing much more of our “process” going forward for all kinds of other projects too!

 

 

The gals at Haus emptied out the shop of their usual product the evening before we arrived, and at 7:00 AM on a Wednesday, February 1rst, we pulled up with our truck.  And then we went to work . . .

 

 

 

 

 

The above stop motion film was shot over 17 hours, the exact length of time it took us to set up the shop.  The space is only 400 square feet, but it still takes a little village to make it all happen!  Did you notice when we all sat down to eat dinner?  (wink)

I can’t help but share more photos from the set up day below.  They are very romantic to me – VERY downtown New York art shots, the kind of photos that made me PINE for New York when I was a wee one.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A big thank you to Gustavo Campos for so beautifully capturing the journey.  To us, that is as important as the reaching the finish line.

D.

Go Giants (And Everyone Else!)

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While installing and opening WOOD SHOP, we have also been designing and producing a myriad of other fun events.  Now that the Giants have won the Super Bowl and everyone has sports on the brain, it seems only appropriate to share with you a very special Bar Mitzvah that we recently created for a young sports lover.

 

 

The party took place at the IAC building on the West Side Highway of New York, and we capitalized on  the modern setting and its giant video wall as the prefect background for a décor entirely made out of sporting equipment.

 

 

 

The man of the hour provided us with thousands of baseball cards from his collection that we fashioned into a super cool backdrop at the entrance of the party.

 

 

 

 

The grand bar in cocktails was fashioned from hundreds of baseballs and bats, a fabulous focal point to the room and a highlight of the family’s spirit of giving – All of the bats and balls were donated to a charitable foundation after this evening of festivities.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The dining room hosted a mixture of round and rectangular tables with the eye-popping “stop-action” illusion of balls in mid-play.  Oversized tennis rackets, baseball bats, catcher’s gloves, lacrosse sticks, ping pong paddles, even basketballs hitting a backboard and swooshing right through a hoop created centerpieces that at once enhanced the tables and turned the whole room into a fun and radical art installation.

Photography by Susie Montagna

 

“Sports” is probably the A #1 theme for 13 year old guys, and it is always great fun to find NEW ways to interpret a thematic direction.  A big thank you goes out to our client for pushing us to reach higher heights.  We enjoyed slam-dunking TOGETHER.

D.

 

 

A Dude’s Valentine’s Day

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WOOD SHOP at Haus Interior opened its doors to the public today at 11:00am, and we are THRILLED to share it with you all after working on it for so long.

 

 

 

There are many surprises in store, and since Valentine’s Day is almost upon us, we have created a capsule collection of items specifically geared towards the holiday of amour.  Instead of saccharine sweet cupids, though, it was fun to imagine what kind of Valentine’s gift to give to a  . . . DUDE!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Photography by Susan Montagna

 

And by the way, all the items are equally good for a dude-ette or yourself!  Each of us is our own best Valentine, right?!  (wink)

Xo

D.

5 Days and Counting: WOOD SHOP to Open!

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While we are waiting until Friday to open the actual doors of WOOD SHOP at Haus Interior, the product is now available and up on the Haus Interior website.  Being that it is a February ambush, I can’t help but think about Valentine’s Day.  We’ve got some fun stuff for the occassion.

One of my favorites is the PINING FOR YOU poster/card.  For the last several years, we have sent out holiday cards to our clients and friends that are printed on newsprint and fold out to become posters. They have become such a hit with our gang that they often become framed art works.  Thus, creating a special WOOD SHOP edition was one of the first items we thought about for the collection.

 

 

I’ve already framed mine.

Cheers,

D.

P.S.  We are so honored that the WOOD SHOP collection was featured on Design*Sponge today!  Check it out.

P.P.S.  The store information remains below! For more information click here.

 

We Chose The Mark: WOOD SHOP!

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We received responses all over the map when we asked you guys to guess which logo we chose for WOOD SHOP, our upcoming one month, surprise ambush of the New York City Flagship of Haus Interior – thank you!  We’re happy to report that we chose the version below.

 

 

We’ll keep you updated on WOOD SHOP news in the coming days, but in the meantime, we would love to invite you all to come visit us there.  The store is open to the public from February 3rd to the 27th and the collection will be online at www.hausinterior.com at the same time.

For more information click here.

Be there or be T-squared!

D.

Making The Mark: Wood Shop

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While we just announced WOOD SHOP, our upcoming store ambush of Haus Interior only the other day, it actually has been a year in the making.   On the road to designing and producing all of the products that fill the store as well as the shop décor and the fixtures, every detail down to “the mark” or in layman’s terms, the logo, was a focus for us to get right.  To create our graphic identity, we turned to our long time close friend and collaborator, Karen Hsu of Omnivore for her genius.  Karen created a bunch of directions for us to choose from.  Check them out below and let us know which one YOU would choose.  Very soon, we’ll let you know if you picked the same direction. 

Cheers,

D.

 

Option 1

 

Option 2

 

Option 3

 

Option 4

 

Option 5

 

Wood Shop is Takin’ Over!

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We have a little surprise for February.  Do you know the very cool store Haus Interior in the Nolita hood of Manhattan? On February 3rd, I and my buddies at David Stark Design will execute a surprise ambush of its chic, little quarters, transforming it into our very own high concept store:  WOOD SHOP.  WOOD SHOP will be open from the 3rd through the 27th (in store AND online!) and will be filled to the brim with a limited edition of hand-made items for the home, art pieces, vintage finds, valentines and other cool surprises all inspired by the iconic wood workers studio and made by US!
 
We can’t wait to share the many goodies (over 74 different items) we have been working on for about a year, and over the next couple of weeks, we’ll reveal sneak peeks of the collection.  Here’s the first . . .

 

SmartPly Cake and Canvas Dropcloth Runner

 

Various Vintage Charm Pendant Necklaces

Photography by Susan Montagna

 

It’s been great fun collaborating with the owner of Haus, the fabulous designer, and my friend Nina Freudenberger on this project!  Nina, a huge THANK YOU to you for noodling this little plan.
 
A big thank you to Manhattan Magazine as well.  Their January/February issue is one of the first to report on our little ambush.  Check it out here. We're on page 34!
 
More fun stuff to come.  We can’t wait for your feedback.
 
Cheers,
 
D.

 

TODO (All)

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One of the things about going to the Rhode Island School of Design is that you are surrounded by -- and then for the rest of your life inspired by your friends and classmates.  Case in point, my buddy Rick Rodgers is a brilliant film-maker, and he and his company Mechanizedmules make some of the most beautiful and interesting films around.  As a friend, I am so proud of him as his films break through important festivals like Tribeca and Sundance with such amazing reaction. 

Here is a short film he created recently, a music “video” created for the song TODO by the performer Migguel Anggelo.  The cinematography and imagery are stunning, and take note of the ballet action at the end by Migguel.  HOT.

Enjoy!

D.

 

 

NRDC Gala: What Are You A Part Of?

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A couple of weeks ago we had the pleasure of re-inventing the NRDC’s annual Forces For Nature Gala at the Museum of Natural History, and it could not have been a more fitting location to raise awareness and funds for the incredible work that this organization does FOR ALL OF US.  What does the NRDC do?  They revive the world’s oceans, defend endangered wildlife, they ensure safe and sufficient water, among many, many other important things to protect our natural world.

It was really important to us to make this a crackling cool evening (not an earthy/crunchy one) and with the innovative leaders of the NRDC, partnered with the evening’s honorees Wendy and Eric Schmidt and Arianna Huffington, all at the forefront of digital technology, we created an evening about interconnectedness.  We asked the question, “What are you a part of?”

 

 

 

 

The evening started in the Rotunda of the museum for cocktails.  A wall of dry erase boards (which were donated to schools after the gala) became an interactive installation where the guests responded to the evening’s question at hand.

 

 

 

 

Dinner and the program followed in the Hall of Ocean Life, and as a focal point to the room, we created a giant, open newspaper, filled with headlines and stories heralding the news of NRDC current events.  Instead of printing all of the images of the “paper,” some were ever-changing projections that either punctuated moments of the presentation or provided incredible eye candy emphasizing why the world is so important to protect.

 

 

 

 

Each of the dining tables were dressed in cloths printed with a collage of news items concerning the environment, all culled from the Huffington Post, traditional newspapers, and other online sources. Thus, the “news” is the conceptual and physical background texture to the room and one of the things that connects us all.  The cloths were made into tote bags and given as gifts after the event.

 

 

 

 

 

 

On the dining tables, and befitting the Museum, we created gorgeous nature studies that utilized magnifying glasses and an array of bell jars holding both actual, natural jewels like berries, feathers, and succulents to invented nature – spiders created from recycled computer keys and webs from copper wire (also salvaged from computers), to name a few.  The bell jars and magnifiers were donated to schools after the event.

 

 

 

 

Photography by Susan Montagna

 

Designing for these kinds of evenings is a wonderful brain teaser.  We start with the question, “How can we infuse the meaning of the evening into the décor?”  That is a hard nut to crack, like the Sunday Times crossword puzzle, but when you do figure it out, it is such great fun!  A huge thank you to our friends at the NRDC.  We could not have been more honored to lead the charge on your important evening, and we thank you for the amazing work you do for us ALL.  We are honored “to be a part of” YOU.

D.

Love Letter: Paola Navone

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Recently I bought the Italian designer’s new book (which I highly recommend), and have been in love with what she does ever since.

 

 

To some degree, Paola and I have a similar aesthetic.  The common thread might be a graphic sense of humor and a comfort zone in an Alice in Wonderland shift in scale.  She creates spaces – living and exhibition, and an array of objects that are both stunningly beautiful and quirky clever, and I really love her sense of color.

Often I am inspired by designers whose work I learn from and appreciate, but I don’t necessarily want to live in their worlds.  In this case, I would be more than delighted to move right in.  Sign me up.

I hope you enjoy the eye candy below as much as I do.  The book makes a great holiday gift.  It’s on my list for many.

Ciao,

D.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Coffee Talk : Happy Menocal

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Recently we designed a wedding that our good friends Ann and Nicky of David Reinhard Events planned, and I fell head over heels in love with the client’s most charming, hand-painted save-the-date.  It was the first time I had seen the work of Happy Menocal, and the crest she made for that occasion is such a nice departure from the “vintage inspired” type and invites we have been seeing for social events that it made me want to reach out to her.

 

 

Since, I have been lucky enough to work with Happy a tiny bit on another project and to learn that not only is she amazingly talented, but she is also such a pleasure to collaborate with.  I am dying to find many more projects to work on together.  In the meantime, though, Happy was kind enough to chat with me . . .

 

David Stark:  What is your background?  How did you get into doing what you do?

Happy Menocal:  My first job was at a boutique advertising agency with a bunch of smart, funny people. I would draw storyboards for the commercials, among other things. I really learned to draw doing that, because I had to work quickly and depict all kinds of scenarios, often from crazy perspectives. The pace is exhilarating, you feel like you're in an emergency room, up at all hours working together to produce a :30 second paean to Bud Light Lime™. I love advertising; I never mute the commercials. I like being seduced into buying even the most improbable stuff. I know it's not a popular attitude, but advertising is an art and there are a lot of real artists doing it. Anyway, I made enough money drawing storyboards to quit my job and start taking other commissions as well.

DS:  What do you call your artistic career?

HM:  Saying I'm an artist feels a little funny to me, so I say I'm an illustrator which isn't quite accurate either, as I think it leads most people to imagine I do editorial illustration or children's books. Mostly I do custom watercolor commissions and some branding work. It's a great job.

DS:  I am particularly in love with your custom heraldry.  How did you get into making crests?

 

 

HM:  Thanks!  A friend asked me to design her wedding invitations and all the associated stationery. I wanted to come up with an emblem and a palette that could be used across all the various pieces, and I landed on the idea of creating a crest for the couple. There are so many kinds of partnerships now -- some people take their spouse's name, some don't -- and I thought making a family crest for a couple would be a smart, graphic way to signify a new family and communicate their deal. The crest became the foundation for a whole suite of graphic elements for my friends' wedding. I did menus, envelope liners, custom postage stamps -- the whole kit 'n kaboodle.  A few of the guests liked it, and commissions started rolling in.  I love it.  I think a personal crest ennobles people in a fun way, and makes them feel fancy and unique. I make them for families, individuals, even babies.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DS:  What is the dream project for you?

HM:  To design currency! Though, I think my work might lack the precision required for that. I would also love to design all the branding, menus, wallpaper, linen, server uniforms, etc for a restaurant. I love the theater of restaurants. I would love to make people want to eat and drink and get caught up in the right spirit. David Hockney's stage design drawings are very inspiring to me in that way. He has such an exuberant approach -- it's like a life-size form of animation.

DS:  If you could make a custom crest for anyone in the world, who would it be for?

HM:  Oprah. And not just for the obvious reason of wanting to foist my product on her for endorsement, but because she is such a mystery. I would love to sit down with her and knock back a couple of margaritas and learn her innermost Favorite Things. Oprah really has already the most perfect personal monogram: the simple 'O' is all power, enigma, at once open and closed. But I would like to do something more playful and elaborate for her.

 

 

 

 

DS:  What's next?

HM:  Early 2012 I'm launching a custom invitation & stationery service on my website. I especially love weddings. A sacred ceremony and a raging party, all about love. What's better than that? And weddings electrify the family, bringing out all of these interesting attitudes and expectations and desires. Because the 'Save the Date' card and beginning of the stationery package is one of the first conversations in wedding planning, I feel privileged that my work helps set the tone for such a special occasion. I feel like a vicarious guest as I learn about all the other details, how the couple met, what everybody's wearing, and what music will play. So I'm really excited to work on more weddings.

DS:   And I am really excited to work on them with YOU.

xo

D.

Takin’ a Walk in a Matisse Painting with Migguel Anggelo

 

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Since we produce big events from start to finish, they always include everything from sourcing the venue and creating invitations to imagineering the décor and corralling the right entertainment – even producing short films.  As a creative factory, our wheels are always turning, so it was great fun to step outside of an event context to produce a short video for the very talented singer, songwriter and performer Migguel Anggelo to coincide with the release of his new CD Donde Estara Matisse and it’s title track of the same name.

 

 

Karen Hsu of the graphics firm Omnivore created the cover art of Migguel Anggelo’s CD with Migguel frolicking on the beach then and now.

 

Migguel Anggelo grew up in Venezuela and from an early age was addicted to the stage, starring as a child in Pinocchio and later touring South America in major stage productions.  He studied ballet for 11 years as well as opera in Cologne, Germany, and his new CD is filled with an eclectic mix of songs that tell stories.  They are not typical pop “in love/out of love” ballads.  Rather, they are poetic and eccentric in the way that a Joni Mitchell or a Tom Waits song tells a metaphoric tale -- only . . . in Spanish.

 

 

 

The above video was lovingly created by Helen Quinn who I went to The Rhode Island School of Design with and who I have also blogged about in the past.  I fell in love with the stop/action animation pieces that Helen had previously done and thought who better to create the fantasy world of walking through a Matisse painting than she?!  We shot it all in our studio in Brooklyn.

Let us know what you think of the piece!  And share the video with all your buddies. 

xo

D.

 

ps - Just in case your Spanish is a little rusty, here is the song translation in English:

Where Is Matisse ?

Words and Music: Migguel Anggelo
 
Between the cactus garden of Versailles
Running with his friends Monet and Renoir
Under the releve of the Eiffel Tower widow
Later going to ballet lessons with Mister Degas.
 
Walking the streets of the Paris catacombs
Sharing a cigarette with his friend Rembrandt
Bringing apples to Cezanne at his home near Notre Dame
Where he is listening to the “happy” Mademoiselle Piaf.
 
Where is Matisse?
Talking to Gaugin, I think.
Matisse  . . .
With Rodin thinking about painting a canvas.
Where is Matisse?
Walking with Goya through the streets of Madrid
Matisse  . . .
Sipping coffee in the Prado with Dali.
 
Many times he goes to the Olympia to listen to Marceau,
Watching him smell a sunflower, given to him by Van Gogh.
He never went for his tequila in the battle of Puebla on Cinco de Mayo
because he was too busy playing the violin with the Angel of Caravaggio.
 
I wonder what Monk was seeing when he was screaming?
I’m sure it was because he saw the Venus of Botticelli.
Someone stole her Chanel dress and her Louboutins.
I’m 100 percent sure it was Farinelli.
 
Where is Matisse?
Talking with Gaugin, I think so.
Matisse  . . .
With Rodin thinking about painting a canvas.
Where is Matisse?
Flying with Chagall in the skies of Paris.
Matisse  . . .
Kissing Emilie at the Champs Elysees.

OMG : It Looks Just Like the Rendering : American Friends of the Israel Museum Gala

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Two weeks ago we were back at Cipriani 42nd Street for the American Friends of the Israel Museum’s gala and contemporary art was the artistic muse of the night.  If you have never been to the Museum, it is a truly phenomenal place that contains some of the finest examples of archeology AND art the world over.   The evening was called ART NEXT and a logo was created both as a lenticular hologram on the save-the-date and as a printed piece where the words’ perspective was rendered with a million lines going off into space.  THAT is what inspired us.

 

 

 

 

It’s always a riot to us when the actual installation looks just like our pitch drawing.  A giant NEXT of welded steel, created in the form of the logo, was suspended from the ceiling with radical swoops of florescent flagging tape (miles and miles of it!), dramatically shooting to points in the ceiling, 50 feet in the air.  You know, we can’t really TRY OUT an installation like this in advance, so our team has to be laser sharp in their planning, their research, their 3D computer studies, and their artistic passions.  I am always so PROUD of what they achieve.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Incidentally, we dropped ART from phrase because NEXT is such a great, positive metaphor on its own, and we echoed this word on the dining tables too.  We laser cut into florescent plexi-glass sculptures, creating an optical illusion of warped perspective.  This was not an occasion for elegant floral centerpieces.  Rather, these glowing pieces had a terrific relationship to the installation overhead.

 

 

 

 

Photography by Susan Montagna

 

Many thanks to our friends at the Israel Museum and their entire committee of visionaries.  It takes a special group to be able to take the leap from paper to reality, and we can’t thank you enough for believing in the NEW.  When a museum stands behind their mission in EVERYTHING that they do, it is something to really admire.  And I do.

D.

 

 

Building a Museum, One Line of Tape at a Time

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Collaborating with our friends at the Cooper Hewitt, National Design Museum on their National Design Awards is one of our favorite artistic challenges.  Not only is the gang at the Museum all about innovation but it is especially fun to play to a group of our peers – ALL of the guests are as design obsessed as we are.

This year, the event moved from Cipriani 42nd Street to Pier 60 at Chelsea Piers, and a new space created a new context for our thinking.  Since the Museum is now closed for expansion, we were challenged to bring the Museum to Pier 60.  How did we do it?  With tape.

 

 

In the center of our cocktail reception, we built a giant model of their fabulous building, the original Andrew Carnegie mansion on Fifth Avenue and 91rst Street.  This was essentially a three dimensional drawing created entirely out of colored tape so generously provided by 3M.

 

 

 

 

And then we had MORE fun with tape.  A free-standing wall presided in the other half of the reception space, inscribed with taped letters asking, “Design Is . . . ,” accompanied by a display of pens and rolls of brightly hued tape for the guests to draw and write with abandon.  And they did.

 

 

 

 

To spark conversation, we created 5 additional tape installations that said with a wink and a smile, “Design Is Everwhere.”

 

 

 

 

 

Once in the dining room, the tape world expanded to embrace the table number as our hero of the evening.  Exploring a variety of typography, scale shifts, and textures, that little necessity that HAS to be at every dinner and is generally not the focal point became ours in a big way, turning the dining room into a collage where the guests became part of the fun.  At each place setting, instead of standard place cards, we wrote each guest’s name directly on tape rolls with Sharpie markers.  You can imagine, after a couple of drinks, what kind of spontaneous “tape fun” occurred.

 

 

 

 

 

Photography by Susan Montagna.

 

A big thank you and congratulations to the Cooper Hewitt and to the winners and the nominees of the design awards.  Design really is everywhere, and I know that telling you guys this is like preaching to the choir, but it is IMPORTANT.  We can’t thank 3M enough for their support of the evening and for their commitment to design excellence, and personally, a warm, heartfelt thanks to the entire Cooper-Hewitt team who trust and allow our crazy schemes to grow and flourish.  We salute you.

Xo

D.

A Banquet Fit for a King (or the Metropolitan Opera!)

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Every Fall for the last bunch of years, we have designed the Metropolitan Opera's Gala Celebration to mark the opening of its Fall season.  It's both a huge honor and a huge responsibility to create something of the stature and enormity of the company's storied productions.  Within the same enormous tent used to house New York Fashion Week directly next to the Metropolitan Opera House, we create a seated dinner for 1,100 luminaries in entertainment, society, and business, and for me the artistic pressure is both exciting and daunting.

 

 

Daunting?!  Yes, because the space and expectation are BIG, and when your goal is to be a conceptual extension of the drama that just unfolded on the stage, you need to do it in a way that is smart.  We started by looking at the stage set and the story of ANNA BOLENA, this season's opening production.  The more we studied the production, the more we got specifically hooked on the costumes designed by Jenny Tiramani which, in turn, were inspired by the clothing in Holbein portraits of the actual historical characters that the opera was based on.

 

 

We took the shape of period arched windows and created our own "stained glass" designs, using interesting crops from those very same Holbein paintings.  The "windows" are an optical illusion, digitally printed on fabric and suspended everywhere within the draped tent.  Then we intermittently hung Restoration Hardware's large pillar candle chandeliers at varying heights to further create a sense of place.

 

 

The room was set for a royal banquet fit for Henry VIII with a grand, rectangular head table cutting through a sea of rounds.  Inspired by the Restoration Hardware chandeliers, we created table candelabras that elevated rings of glowing LED pillars from the retailer as well for a third of the tables.  At table level, gorgeous fruits taken directly from a Dutch still-life painting were interwoven with grape vine foliage.  For the other tables, we created plush bouquets of hydrangeas, dahlias, garden roses, and clustered fruits in antique garden urns.

 

 

 

 

You know, it's funny. People have gotten so used to some of the wacky, conceptual installations we do with paper and other recyclable materials, they forget our start really was with actual flowers.  They often ask, "Who does your flowers?"  With great pride, I am able to say, “WE DO!" But you know what?  It is so great to have an occasion where conceptually flowers are the RIGHT tool in the toolbox and not just default because it is a "dinner party."

 

All photos by Susan Montagna

 

A big thank you to all of our Dutch master forefathers, and to all of my buddies at the Metropolitan Opera who I respect so much for their innovative thinking and the constant challenge to be the best we can be as designers and partners.

 

D.

 

Launching A Star

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New Yorkers for Children always kicks off the Fall gala season with their very chic evening each September, and we have had the honor of collaborating with them for many years now.  It’s always been important for the evening to be glamorous, but in recent years, it has been critical to infuse beauty with meaning.  How do we do that, you might ask?

We look for metaphor.  When we sit down with the committee in the early spring for our first brainstorm, the goal is to find an overarching message.  We literally banter around the table, tossing out words and phrases that inspire, try to peg our words to images, and search for a statement that feels like a call to arms, that is proactive, rather than something that is merely a statement.   We look for a phrase that can both inspire AND encapsulate the meaning of what the evening is about.

Case in point, the gang at New Yorkers brilliantly provides the resources and support necessary for foster kids to make the dream of a college education a reality (and so much more!), so our evening’s theme, “Launch A Star,”  is both visually rich and conceptually strong.

We looked to books like THE LITTLE PRINCE and GOOD NIGHT MOON for visual inspiration as well as the romantic street scenes from the film CINEMA PARADISO and turned Cipriani 42nd Street into a moonlit garden with a million twinkling stars, strings of vintage glowing bulbs festooned above, a grand entry moment with clouds, stars and a symbolic ladder to climb up, up, and up, and plush gardens of the most perfect blooms everywhere.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

All photograhpy by Susie Montagna.

 

Our sincere congratulations to our friends at New Yorkers for Children for an amazing evening.  We LOVE our partnership with you and are honored to keep growing creatively each year TOGETHER.  For more photographs, check out our post on CasaSugar.

xo

D.