We interview people who start things, who follow their dreams, who live life passionately and on their own terms. Then we type the interviews and post them here. The conversations are incredibly inspiring to us – we hope you find the same.

piet_houtenbos
June 13, 2009
Piet Houtenbos
Piet’s conceptual sensibility leads to objects that are hard to forget, such as the Grenade Oil Lamp. Based in Long Island City (where all the studios we’ve seen have superior views, sigh!) he took some time out to discuss his inspiration and process with us. Grenade Oil Lamp by Piet Houtenbos Your grenade oil lamp really put [...]
Read More
June 8, 2009
Over the course of this interview, Matthew Fairbank coined the terms “academically roofied” and “wood nerds,” making him my new linguistic hero. On top of having a brilliant way with words, he also has a brilliant way with bandsaws, and wood, and metal, and lacquer. One of the reasons we started our blog was because it [...]
Read More
voos_furniture_1
June 4, 2009
I ended up at a party at VOOS the other night, on N 3rd St. in Williamsburg, and felt like I’d just walked into some strange alternate reality. This huge space that I’d never seen before was filled with designs by many, many of the people we’ve interviewed. Takeshi Miyakawa’s Fractal 23 cabinet was there. [...]
Read More
takeshi_miyakawa_1
June 3, 2009
It was a great honor to visit Takeshi’s studio last week and interview the master himself. His architectural background mixes with an interest in pure geometry, impeccable craft, and poetic concepts, leading to furniture that is completely fresh and absolutely unlike anything else. Rite of Spring cantilevered storage by Takeshi Miyakawa The Rite of Spring piece you [...]
Read More
paul_loebach_1
May 29, 2009
I was shocked when I discovered that Paul Loebach is based right here in Brooklyn – mainly because his work is so good. He’s exhibited near and far, from Brooklyn Designs to the Milan furniture fair. It’s incredibly inspiring to see American designers emerging that are worthy of international merit. And incredibly convenient when [...]
Read More
ethan_imboden
May 26, 2009
Ethan Imboden of Jimmyjane
Ethan started out as an engineer, re-routed as an industrial designer, and worked for top consultancies such as Ecco and Frog Design. Then he started designing vibrators. Which leads us to the story of Jimmyjane, his lifestyle company which makes life sexier and sex-products safer and more approachable. AMAZING. Enough of us – here it [...]
Read More
indisposed
May 13, 2009
InDisposed at Studio X
Way back in December we were approached by curators Dan Rubinstein and Jen Renzi to participate in their ICFF offsite show, InDisposed. At that point the show seemed so far in the future, but lo and behold, we set up tomorrow! The brief they put together is amazing. In their own words: As environmentalism has infiltrated contemporary [...]
Read More
re_build_4
May 12, 2009
RE/BUILD at Gallery 1889
Awesome show alert. Steven Urbatsch and Matthew Josephs run Material Process Systems. Their extensive shop focuses on architectural and furniture fabrication. During a slow period in the shop due to the recession, they dreamed up the idea for RE/BUILD. Fast forward a few months and the show is just about ready to open, May 15th at [...]
Read More
model_citizens_1
May 11, 2009
Need help navigating the myriad of events during Design Week? We’re here to help. This week we’ll be posting interviews with the organizers of several offsite events happening during ICFF. Model Citizens promises to be a truly exciting show. Held at Exit Art (475 10th Avenue @ 36th Street), right round the corner from the Javits [...]
Read More
flavor_paper_1
May 7, 2009
When we think cool wallpaper, we think Flavor Paper. They have funky prints, balls-to-the-wall colors, and even Scratch-N-Sniff wallpaper (below). We had no idea that they’re actually moving most of the company to Brooklyn. We met Jon Sherman, the company’s founder, in the Cobble Hill building that will be their new home, manufacturing facility, and [...]
Read More
eskayel_5
May 6, 2009
Shanan Campanaro of Eskayel is the third designer we interviewed in our series on local wallpaper companies. Also a fine artist, Shanan derives her patterns from pieces of her paintings. And unlike the other companies we’ve met, Shanan’s paper is digitally printed, which allows her the flexibility of custom-sizing one-offs that will exactly fit your [...]
Read More
grow_house_grow_1
May 5, 2009
Katie Deedy from Grow House Grow! will be showing at BKLYN DESIGNS this year for the first time. Her patterns make you do a double-take. Subtle, hidden elements emerge the longer you look. Her new line is to die for – literally – inspired by historical characters who met shocking and untimely deaths. Are you [...]
Read More