[Life] Hinterlands Film

Posting may be slow this month, I've taken a short hiatus from my design projects to play a roll in a new Sean Stiegemeier short film called 'Hinterlands'. Right now I'm posting from the small stormy town of Vík on the southern coast of Iceland where there is a crazy wind/ice storm raging outside our hotel. We will be shooting in some unbelievable locations from Iceland to Scotland to Chernobyl over the next month, so check back for updates on our journey.

You can find some more background info about the film on the Kickstarter website here: Hinterlands Kickstarter Page.

Also, we set up a Facebook page where we will post updates, photos, and behind the scenes footage as shooting progresses. You can find/like that page here, to follow our adventures: Hinterlands Facebook Page.

Life is an adventure.

[Portfolio] Cargo Portfolio

I created a new site to host my portfolio on Cargo Collective. Click on the cush logo above to check it.

[Inspiration Examination] Less is More

Dieter Rams! The living pioneer of quality and innovation, designed these electronics and the shelving systems back in the 60's. He rules because he comes from the less-is-more school of thought, and a lot of his designs from the past are still relevant and awesome by today's design standards. There are some real nugs of wisdom in Dieter Rams' ten principles of good design:

Good design:

• Is innovative - The possibilities for innovation are not, by any means, exhausted. Technological development is always offering new opportunities for innovative design. But innovative design always develops in tandem with innovative technology, and can never be an end in itself.


• Makes a product useful - A product is bought to be used. It has to satisfy certain criteria, not only functional, but also psychological and aesthetic. Good design emphasizes the usefulness of a product whilst disregarding anything that could possibly detract from it.


• Is aesthetic - The aesthetic quality of a product is integral to its usefulness because products are used every day and have an effect on people and their well-being. Only well-executed objects can be beautiful.


• Makes a product understandable - It clarifies the product’s structure. Better still, it can make the product clearly express its function by making use of the user's intuition. At best, it is self-explanatory.


• Is unobtrusive - Products fulfilling a purpose are like tools. They are neither decorative objects nor works of art. Their design should therefore be both neutral and restrained, to leave room for the user's self-expression.


• Is honest - It does not make a product more innovative, powerful or valuable than it really is. It does not attempt to manipulate the consumer with promises that cannot be kept.


• Is long-lasting - It avoids being fashionable and therefore never appears antiquated. Unlike fashionable design, it lasts many years – even in today's throwaway society.


• Is thorough down to the last detail - Nothing must be arbitrary or left to chance. Care and accuracy in the design process show respect towards the consumer.


• Is environmentally friendly - Design makes an important contribution to the preservation of the environment. It conserves resources and minimizes physical and visual pollution throughout the lifecycle of the product.


• Is as little design as possible - Less, but better – because it concentrates on the essential aspects, and the products are not burdened with non-essentials. Back to purity, back to simplicity.

[Inspiration Examination] Whimsical Vine Tree

Make 2012 about natural quality and substance. Dig deeper then surface level aesthetic, create new forms of thoughtful expression. Like the feelings provoked from this room. The standard space becomes whimsical through an imaginative use of nature. Suddenly you're swimming through watery green light, looking up to the surface from the bottom of a pond.  (I really dislike those rocking chairs but whatev). We're still all looking up at that skylight and thinking ooo000ooohh!

[Video] Icelandic Rainbow Road in Denmark

"Your Rainbow Panorama" is a magic pedestrian race track inspired by Mario Kart's Rainbow Road and designed by Icelandic Artist Olafur Eliasson on top of the ARoS Aarhus Kunstmuseum in Aarhus, Denmark.

[Architecture] From Warehouse to Warehome

Man, there are so many awesome old warehouses in this city. This "Inverted Warehouse Townhouse" in TriBeCa was the work of Dean / Wolf Architects. They took a 10,500sf warehouse and created a pretty sweet loft out of it. I don't love every design choice they made, but I do like the liberal use of glass and steel to bring light into the huge, otherwise dark space. Here is an excerpt from the architect's website about the project:

"The Inverted Warehouse Townhouse is an addition and renovation of a Tribeca loft building. Conceived as an excavation of dissipating energy, three double story volumes are voided from the center of the building. Into this space are hung self structuring corten steel panels which are layered, shingle-style. The layering of the shingles allows for frameless burgundy wall art glass to float down through the walls. The downward dissipation culuminates in the double story book shelves which hang into the children's playroom. Countering the downward hanging of spaces is a courtyard layer of silicone glazed glass which delicately lifts to the skyline.

The main entry is onto the fifth floor where two sequences separate public and private routes: the upward route joins the public spaces while the downward route travels to bedrooms, playrooms, and study."

The huge glass atrium allows daylight to penetrate deep into the living spaces of the warehome. (Dog!) (did I say penetrate?)

Skylights on the floor of the atrium allow light to travel still further, helping to lighten up the dark warehouse vibe.

Huge walls of glass open up and blur the boundaries of indoor and outdoor space.

That handrail is pretty ugly. Not feelin' it.

But I like the long vertical pieces of steel here.

One of the greatest accomplishments of this warehome project, in my opinion, is how the architect created visible distinguished spaces from floor to floor. Where before, this view from the stairs would be of a huge empty warehouse floor below, it now looks more like a home with rooms and partitioned spaces with visual interest that makes you want to explore and see more.

[Model] 80's Purple winter 2011/2012

Some new stuff up at 80sPurple.com

[Model] COA Fall/09

[Interior] Thanksgiving with the Cushinghams.

A thanksgiving photo from our family living room, with a peek into the decorating style of my lovely mother Maryly. She knows how to make a sweet home. I love coming to visit my parents, they keep it so clean and nice. This room especially, is flooded with light and peace and good vibes. One of these days we will have to feature the rest of the house.

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday! Now we begin a long weekend of hard work on the new loft project in downtown LA. Soon I will be updating with photos, and video of the progress.

[Architecture] A Grown Up's Tree House

Notice how the pattern of the corrugated siding repeats the pattern of the cactus. Love the juxtaposition of the clean modern wall of glass on top of the rusty metal siding, I think it gives balance. Sparks interest in both old and new; modern and rustic. I like to imagine an underground lair hidden deep beneath this structure. With an elevator that comes up to the living quarters above ground. Batman's getaway.