Pentawards

I attended the Pentawards ceremony last night at the Marriot Marquis in Times Square.                                                                                                                                         

The Pentawards is an award program for packaging design. We already knew we had won a Platinum Award, the best in the luxury packaging category, for our BANG bottle, but this was the actual ceremony where they hand out the awards. The reception featured a coffee service in the lobby. What, no bar? 

I had forgotten how cool the inside of the Marriot is with the elevators shooting up and down, and the lit hallways lining the atrium. After a coffee, the 200 or so winners filed into the conference room where awards were to be given. 

 

It wasn't the Oscars, but it was interesting. Lots of good work honored, and people had travelled far and wide to attend, 21 countries were represented. Afterwards they served drinks and food, and I hung out at a table full of Greeks. They were all feeling pretty bad about the economic situation back home, but happy to be recognized on the international stage by the Pentawards. From left to right below: Marina won an award and her husband Kostas is a TV star in Greece. Apparently he created quite a stir on the flight over. Andreas Kioroglou is also a designer, and his client Konstantinos Verdes, who makes a rubics-cube-like toy, wanted to know where to party in NYC. 

 The very trippy rug ...

And our Platinum award for the design of the Mark Jacobs BANG bottle ...

In addition to the award, we won a free booth at the Luxepack show in Shanghai in March 2012. Nice. Now we have to figure that one out.

Color Report: Chartreuse

Much of my color inspiration comes from John's garden. This chartreuse Kniphofia is having a second flush of blooms (because John is such an amazing dead header!) and it made me stop and contemplate its yellowish-green hue. Colors from nature are hard to incorporate into our lives, but Shirley's recent report on the colorful work of Luis Barragan made me realize that color can be a powerful tool. I'm growing bored of neutrals. Chartreuse bathroom anyone?

Wave Hill

First, I'd like to thank Shirley for her last two posts on Mexico. I am encouraging the HAD team to weigh in with interesting things they see and do, and it looks like Shirley had an amazing trip to Mexico. I am jealous that she got to see all of the Luis Barragán architecture - that is something that has been on my list for a long time.

I've had blogging fatigue for the last few weeks, but I'm officially back at it. Fortunately the Wave Hill Gardener's Party supplied some great material last Thursday night. Wave Hill is a beautiful old estate in Riverdale, just north of NYC on the Hudson River, that has been preserved as a public garden.  The Gardener's party is their annual fundraiser that starts with cocktails and a plant sale.

The sun was going down, but I managed to explore the green house and the trough garden (with a vodka and tonic in hand). Trough gardening is a beautiful old tradition whereby alpine miniature plants are grown in cement troughs. I love the intersection of the geometric troughs and the organic plant material. In the picture below you can see the party underway in the background.

Dinner in the tent features a very generous auction to benefit the garden. Heavy hitters bid on unique plant specimens and boat cruises to benefit the garden. The rest of us bask in the glow of the philanthropy. Adam Rose and Peter McQuillen were our hosts, and our very-fun table table included from left to right: Peter McQuillan, myself, Colleen McQuillen, Jeff Waeschle, John Holm, Adam Rose, Cathy Deutsch (a graduate of the Wave Hill intern program that was being honored), Matt and Carleigh Farley, and Joanne Guzman.

Mexico City: Food

Mexicans love to eat and drink, and they do it pretty well. I was surprised by the number of restaurants and food stands, way more than in New York City. Food is a big part of the culture and you see it everywhere. It's hard to walk by and not have a taste, especially when the smell and vibrant colors makes you hungry for more.

Making cotton candy on the streets

Flautas (taquitos) before you order

Flautas after

Candy stand (they love their sweets)

Poblanos for Chiles en Nogada (seasonal dish)

Tacos al Pastor

Churros in the making

$2 Torta

Mexico: Casa Luis Barragán

Harry recommended that I see Luis Barragán's work in Mexico. For those that don't know about Luis Barragán, he is considered the most important Mexican architect in the 20th century. His work was influenced by European modernism and often is quoted in reference to minimalist architecture.

So, I visited one of his important/personal works, Casa Luis Barragán. His house is really impressive and the tour was worthwhile. A must see when in Mexico City.

Facade

Entrance Hall

Vestibule

Vestibule

Living Room

Living Room

Guest Bedroom

Terrace

This was the house that he built for himself towards the third decade of his life. He was influenced by the rural landscapes, towns, haciendas, and the heritage of Mexico's religious colonial architecture. The house proposes a new relation between interior space and landscape architecture, where house and garden are seen as one.

Mexico: Pig Spotting

Harry Allen Design studio manager, Shirley Hong, went to Mexico City last week and spotted a few REALITY products. The store manager of Mob mentioned that the Mexican people love our little Cerdito!

Look froward to posts by Shirley this week. She ate and saw some amazing things!

R.I.P. Steuben

Steuben, the beloved U.S. glassmaker and Harry Allen Design client will be closing down it's 108-year-old factory and all of its retail stores. A sad day for glassmaking in the USA.

"Steuben Glass Factory and Store to Close"
by Patrick Mcgeehan

A Penny Saved

Our new coin jar for Steuben featured in David Report.

Barney Brown

When I stumbled upon these pics they brightened a very rainy Monday.                                         

                 

I met up with my friend Tanja Solci in LA a few weeks ago. She has a great eye, and I was happy she could meet my friend Edward James (aka Barney) Brown. One of the first things we did was join Barney at a show he was having at Ed's Coffee Shop on Robertson.

At 88, and despite more than a few ailments, he is still painting. I love his easy style. He started his career in the commercial arts doing illustration work for a company called "Timely Service," and spent many years working as an art restorer, and now he just speaks with his paintbrushes. When I visited a few days later he was capturing the sunflowers outside his window . 

I bought a few of his paintings - a blue elephant for my niece and a tall sunflower diptych that will go into my bedroom here in the City. Barney provides a lesson for all artists: if one immerses oneself in one's craft it will provide joy forever. He is a source of inspiration for everyone around him. Check out more of his work here:

http://www.edwardjamesbrown.com/Artist.html

Robert Lewis

I was in LA last week, and spent some time with lighting designer, Robert Lewis.                                     

                                                                     

Robert and I go way back. He lived in NY for many years and we shared a studio for a short time. In 2001 we worked together on a lighting project for Ikea (for which I designed the Kila lamp). He is thriving in LA, working on a variety of projects. I brought Tanja Solci, a friend in from Milano, with me to visit Robert's home/studio in West Hollywood. She took all of these pictures. 

Robert works in many mediums, and makes much of what he designs. I have always admired his work with Mica. One of his Mica boxes hangs in my living room in Bedford, but he takes Mica to a whole new level with this soccer ball shape ...

... and this asymetrical construction.

His home and workspace are a feast for the eyes.

He says his work is "not pretty," but I find it beautiful on many levels. He promised me this raw little bulb construction.

His web site is being developed as we speak, look for it in a few weeks at: www.robertlewisstudio.com

My Design Life: What can I Say It's a Gift

See Harry's interview with Lisa Roberts of "My Design Life" tonight on Ovation at 8pm!

Also Seen at the Corning Museum of Glass

Waffle making went great last week, and I had time to wander around the Corning Museum of Glass. They have a very impressive collection. Some of the highlights were Frantisek Vizner's minimal forms - they almost look like plastic.

Robert Rauschenberg's glass tire - very REALITY. Apparently he dreamt about it. 

Karen Lamont's dress. Karen made a slumped tray for my Living Systems furniture line back in the early nineties when she worked at Urban Glass in Brooklyn. She has gone on to have an amazing career making these hauntingly beautiful life-size glass installations.

Finally, a crave item for me is this Tom Patti glass block. I'm not sure how they are made, or why he makes them, or why they are so expensive (of course the Museum pieces are not for sale, but I have seen others at Heller Gallery in NYC), but to me they are amazing. So much energy and life contained in a block of glass.

Project Waffles 4

Yesterday we made glass waffles:

The process was pretty simple by glass-making standards. In fact, it worked so well, that it was sort of anti-climactic. We cracked a few of the "molds" - someone commented on how waffle irons were just not made to withstand 2000 degrees - and we had some sticking problems this morning. When the mold gets too hot the glass sticks, but these are all issues that can be worked out in production. The waffle maker that worked best in the end was a cheap, modern two-part model.  Some of the vintage models had more interesting patterns, but everyone agreed that the grid pattern was the most recognizably waffle-y.

The result was beautiful. Here are the pieces we made yesterday:

I certainly did not need such a talented team of glassblowers to bang these glass waffles out. Special thanks must be made to Eric Meek and his team of very professional glassblowers, and to Rob Cassetti and Steve Gibbs for inviting me up to Corning in the first place.

Project Waffle 3

I Arrived Corning, NY yesterday morning by way of the Corning corporate jet!                           

                                                                                                                               

Most of my waffle irons have arrived. I went to check out the glassblowing stage where we will be making waffles tomorrow:

I did some sampling with master glassblower, Eric Meek, with whom I am working on this project. We have to wait a day to see the results, but we basically proved that one can cast glass in waffle irons.

I then roamed around the Corning Glass complex.  The complex houses Corning Inc., Steuben Glass, and The Corning Museum of Glass, which has an amazing collection of historic glass objects. The Museum is thriving - tourists poured in all day. Corning has invested in some amazing architecture over the years. This is the main building designed by Harrison and Abramowitz in 1954. It is an all glass, modernist gem: 

The industrial Steuben Building, attached to the Museum, features a huge Robertson Ventilator on the top. 

The original Museum building was designed Gunnar Birkerts, an Eero Saarinen disciple. This building also features a glass facade and a reflective baffle that diffuses the light entering the galleries.

I then wandered into town for lunch, bought a large vintage Griswold waffle iron at an antique store, and wandered into the Pure Design store where to my surprise I found a bunch of REALITY products!