10 Questions With… Jobe Corral Architects

Jomo Tariku, a Virginia-based designer and furniture maker, shares insights into his creative process, which draws heavily from his Ethiopian upbringing and African heritage. Born in Kenya and having traveled extensively across Africa during his youth due to his mother's work at Ethiopian Airlines, Tariku was exposed to a diverse collection of objects and furniture from an early age, collected by his diplomat father. His early experiences included working in a car shop in Addis Ababa between the ages of 14 and 16, where he constantly sketched and drew his surroundings while performing various tasks. This period, along with his later academic pursuit of an industrial design degree at the University of Kansas, laid the foundation for his distinctive approach to furniture design. Tariku's work is characterized by its exploration of objects and culture, often reinterpreting everyday African items and totemic figures into sleek, minimalist furniture. His designs incorporate bold colors like black ash and orange, paying homage to African craft and furniture-making traditions. Notable pieces, such as the Nyala chair, the Qwanta totem chair, the Meedo chair, and the Mukecha stool, have gained significant attention. His comb-shaped Mido chair (2021) was acquired by The Metropolitan Museum of Art, and other works are part of the collections at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Mint Museum, Denver Art Museum, and Baltimore Museum of Art. His work has also transcended the art and design world, with production designer Hannah Beachler featuring some of his pieces in "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever." Tariku recounts his journey into design, initially considering computer science before discovering his aptitude for art and design during his college years. His mentor at the University of Kansas encouraged his passion, which eventually led him to pursue furniture design for his industrial design thesis. He emphasizes that inspiration should not be limited to existing seating designs but can come from a wide array of African contexts, including hairstyles, the afro pick, landscapes, and headrests, allowing for truly unique and innovative designs. He discusses the transhistorical quality of his designs, which blend ancient influences with modern interpretations, creating pieces that defy chronology and symbolize collective and personal histories. He acknowledges the scarcity of historical data for many African objects, which were often made for utility without formal manufacturing structures. As a Western-educated industrial designer, Tariku interprets this past through his skills, ensuring that his pieces are titled to reference their inspirations, such as the Nyala chair's connection to antelopes or the Boraatii stool's link to Oromia headrests. The designer also considers the interactive relationship with users, exemplified by the Qwanta chair, which features an interchangeable backrest. This design was inspired by traditional African birch chairs and aims to involve users in creating their own totems, transforming the chair into a collaborative art piece. He explains his philosophy that his furniture serves both an artistic and functional purpose, akin to how common objects in Ethiopia were used for utility and then displayed as decorative elements. He views his pieces as sculptural, conceptual, and functional statements. Tariku elaborates on the sculptural aspect of his work, highlighting the balance between artistic form and ergonomic functionality. He strives for elegance, clean lines, and organic shapes that provide visual satisfaction and comfort. His creative process involves rigorous prototyping to ensure both aesthetic appeal and practicality. Regarding abstraction, he focuses on extracting the simplest geometric shapes from his inspirations, testing their endurance and researching thoroughly. He aims to make his designs recognizable to those familiar with the cultural references while also appealing to a broader audience. He discusses his material palette, which is currently limited to ash, American ash, and birch plywood, primarily due to cost and environmental considerations. He consciously avoids exotic African woods, prioritizing sustainable forestry practices in the U.S. He expresses interest in expanding into materials like plastics, metals, and carbon fiber when appropriate. Finally, Tariku speaks about his involvement with the Black Artists and Designers Guild (BADG), co-founded by Malene Barnett, which aims to promote and increase the visibility of Black designers from the diaspora and Africa. He believes that his work, and that of other Black designers, is crucial for challenging Western-centric design canons and pushing against misconceptions about African design, ultimately contributing to a more inclusive representation of global creative traditions. #JomoTariku #FurnitureDesign #AfricanDesign #Afrofuturism #IndustrialDesign #InteriorDesign #CulturalHeritage #BlackArtistsAndDesignersGuild #SculpturalFurniture

This article features an interview with Andrea Schumacher, a prominent interior designer, who was named the city's top interior designer in 5280's Top Of The Town 2017. Schumacher's portfolio includes both private homes and commercial projects, such as Fluff Bar and Lime restaurant in downtown, and Mateo restaurant in Boulder. Her design aesthetic is characterized by glamour, color, boldness, and an innovative approach that often challenges conventional design norms. Schumacher elaborates on her creative process, highlighting that her creativity is sparked by art and fashion, with runway images being a particular source of inspiration. She shared her Pinterest pages for fashion and color, demonstrating her keen eye for visual aesthetics. When it comes to inspiring her designs, Schumacher emphasizes the importance of understanding her clients' lifestyles, personal preferences, favorite colors, and travel experiences. This client-centric approach allows her to create truly personalized and curated spaces. Her background as a Hollywood set designer has influenced her residential work, though she notes the distinction between creating a set and designing a living space. While set design is highly creative, residential design focuses on providing a backdrop for the real lives of the inhabitants. Schumacher observes that the heightened awareness of design, fueled by blogs, reality TV, and social media, has positively influenced the appreciation for good design, leading more people to seek it out. However, she cautions that TV shows, which condense the design process, can create unrealistic client expectations, emphasizing that truly curated homes require time and patience, as handcrafted products are often worth the wait. Regarding design trends, Schumacher adopts a balanced perspective. She acknowledges and observes trends but primarily focuses on the client's vision. She advises incorporating trendy items into easily changeable elements, like pillows or accessories, to maintain timelessness in core designs. Her love for patterns is evident, and she encourages bold applications, even on ceilings or fireplaces, to bring freshness to spaces. Current design obsessions include all things luxurious, such as wrapping a fireplace in fur, and incorporating shades of pink, which she refers to as "blush," into living rooms. She also expresses enthusiasm for trends in lighting, citing pieces by Avram Rusu Studio, and finds inspiration in Paris Flea Market finds, like amethyst and brass-and-Murano-glass Sputnik chandeliers. For a quick decorating trick, Schumacher suggests adding a touch of black to every room, whether through an accessory or a painted chair, to create a significant impact. When asked about a dream project in Colorado, she envisions designing a boutique hotel in Aspen, combining mountain living with global luxury elements to create a "mountain-modern with a travel vibe" aesthetic. Looking ahead, her firm is working on model units and a sales office for the St. Paul Collection in Cherry Creek North, signaling continued innovation and influence in the interior design landscape. Andrea Schumacher Interiors is located at 2406 W. 32nd Ave., Ste. D. #AndreaSchumacher #InteriorDesign #DenverDesign #DesignTrends #LuxuryInteriors #ResidentialDesign #CommercialDesign #CreativeProcess #DecoratingTips

This article showcases ten architectural and design projects developed by students at My ArchiSchool as part of a Dezeen school show. My ArchiSchool, based in Hong Kong, provides architectural education and digital design skills to young people aged six to eighteen, preparing them for future careers in architecture and urban planning. The curriculum ranges from beginner levels to advanced stages, covering 3D modeling, writing, and portfolio development, culminating in an exhibition of student work for the most comprehensive packages. Among the featured projects, Albus Oscar Chung's "The Rage" is a painting inspired by childhood dreams, depicting a landscape with large trees to symbolize the importance of harmony among all living forms. Abigail Shih's "Escape" project, part of her book "Runaway to the Forest," addresses the impact of pollution and advocates for sustainable design, integrating buildings with natural environments like woodlands. Quinten Fan's "Designing a Green Resort" proposes a mountain-based eco-resort with simple geometric structures and transparent glass walls, allowing guests to experience panoramic views while ensuring easy transport and assembly of components in remote areas. The resort features tent-like buildings centered around a communal courtyard. Sean Lee's "Designing my Animal Hotel" envisions a hotel surrounded by wildlife, designed to facilitate learning about animals while providing protection for guests within a tall, reinforced structure. The hotel includes an observation deck, guest accommodations, and a ground floor for management and as a physical buffer. Aidan Chan's "Designing my Futuristic House" presents a modular, pyramidal structure designed for desert environments, built to withstand extreme weather and unstable foundations through a roof's hanging system. Terrance Sun's "Designing my Future House" combines a mobile home with a food truck, reflecting his passion for travel and community engagement through food sharing, aiming to contribute to global food security. Chua Chung Hei's "Designing my Future House" conceptualizes a forest dwelling inspired by lightweight tents, featuring a self-supporting, curved structure that minimizes environmental impact by avoiding deep foundation construction. The design incorporates indirect lighting to prevent disturbance to forest animals. Valerie Zhang's "Designing my Winter Resort" draws inspiration from snowflakes, creating a warm, cozy atmosphere with wooden structures and locally sourced timber to offer guests dramatic views of nature and promote environmental friendliness by reducing transportation of materials. Vivian Tam's "Designing a Green Airport" applies the 15-minute city concept to an airport layout, separating arrival and departure halls with a landscaped waiting area and a glass roof system with shading devices to control natural light and heat. David Ma's "Designing my Winter Resort" utilizes parametric design to create a resort on a snowy, mountainous site. The design features an undulating roof supported by a triangular truss system made of steel and timber, designed to withstand fluctuating temperatures and echo the organic forms of mountains. These projects collectively demonstrate the students' innovative approaches to architectural challenges, their engagement with environmental and social issues, and their development of practical design skills through My ArchiSchool's programs. #MyArchiSchool #ArchitecturalDesign #StudentProjects #SustainableArchitecture #EcoResort #DesertArchitecture #GreenAirport #MobileHome #ForestDwelling #WinterResort

This blog post showcases ten architectural and design projects by students from My ArchiSchool, featured as part of Dezeen's School Shows. My ArchiSchool, based in Hong Kong, provides architectural education and digital design training for young individuals aged six to 18, aiming to develop their 3D modelling skills for future careers in architecture and urban planning. The program offers both in-person and online courses, ranging from beginner levels to advanced, covering various tools, interfaces, and outputs. Students learn to build and manipulate 3D digital models of cities using platforms like Dassault Systèmes' 3DExperience. The most comprehensive package includes an exhibition of student work after an eight-month study period. Among the featured projects is Alanna Mak's "Designing My Butterfly House," which features a facade system inspired by butterfly wing patterns and an open-plan structure designed as a breeding ground for local butterfly species. The architecture reflects the motion of butterfly wings and incorporates a vibrant color scheme. Oscar Chung's "Designing My Raindrop Tower" is a Natural History Museum inspired by rainforest botanical species, with a tower and rooftop shaped like tree branches and leaves. It is envisioned as a community space offering scenic views of snowy mountains and exhibits that evoke an indoor forest environment. Abigail Shih's "Designing My Natural History Museum" presents a tent-like glass structure for a café within a Natural History Museum, emphasizing community and cultural significance. The design draws inspiration from camping experiences, with exhibits displayed within the glass structure to create an engaging visitor journey. Na Kyung (Arlene) Lee's "Designing My Butterfly House" is inspired by the movement of 'dancing' butterflies, with its skeleton-like structure stretched across a river to create a natural habitat for raising young butterflies, including a central breeding ground for caterpillars. Annecy Hui's "Designing My Boathouse" features a twin-boathouse for a family, dividing private living space from communal areas. The design's form is inspired by mountains, utilizing a laminated timber structure to demonstrate sustainable building materials. Antonia Villet's "Designing My Teahouse" is a vibrant teahouse located in Hong Kong, aiming to establish architecture as 'living art' by surrounding city dwellers with diverse aesthetics. The design process involved reviewing various facade color schemes and experimenting with different building materials for transparency and texture. Heidi Liang's "Redefining Residential Tower for Big Families" addresses Hong Kong's housing challenges by proposing experimental options for city living, focusing on the importance of community wellbeing. Her project includes a mid-rise tower designed for extended families, combining small, fragmented spaces into shared, spacious areas like a communal dining floor. This design aims to increase space efficiency and encourage family interaction. Natalie Lau's "Designing My Natural History Museum" features an open exhibition area with a curved facade that blends into the local environment. A simple, earth-toned color scheme highlights the earth's materiality and history, while living room settings throughout the museum facilitate family time. Serafina Luk's "Designing My Church" incorporates nature by placing the altar on an open side of the church, leading to a woodland path. The church's wooden structure advocates for the use of natural materials to connect people with nature. Finally, Alice Ippolito's "Designing My Exhibition Area" tackles the challenge of designing a spacious digital exhibition within a small area. She proposed an LED display wall against an existing partition and carefully articulated lighting to highlight exhibits and reduce glare on glass panels, ensuring a flexible design through on-site measurements of headroom and electrical systems. #MyArchiSchool #ArchitecturalDesign #StudentProjects #DigitalDesign #ButterflyHouse #NaturalHistoryMuseum #TeahouseDesign #ResidentialTower #SustainableArchitecture #ExhibitionDesign

Lisa Davis, an interior designer known for her work on a Back Bay Mansion featured in Boston Home magazine, shares insights into her career, design philosophy, and a new virtual design program. Davis transitioned into interior design after a career in fashion/retail merchandising, taking courses at RISD in color theory, drafting, and architectural history. She highlights the Boston Design Center as an invaluable resource for its comprehensive offerings, from fabrics to floor coverings. Other favorite vendors include Donghia for modern furnishings, Schumacher for transitional fabrics and wall coverings, and Stark Carpet and Steven King for diverse floor coverings. Davis considers color an indispensable design element, emphasizing its individual impact and using clients' preferred colors as a starting point for projects. Her designs are deeply inspired by travel, which provides visual experiences that build her design consciousness. She recounts a recent trip to Iceland, noting the raw, dark, and textured beauty of the landscape and the ethereal quality of its light as influential. Davis describes her personal aesthetic as a blend of old and new, worn and fresh, and smooth and textured, with a subtle and classic use of textures and patterns. She advises against mixing too many animal prints in one room, stating "only one species per room." She introduces her 'Design by Post' virtual interior design service, aimed at making interior design more accessible. This program allows clients to provide dimensions and design concepts virtually, enabling Davis to assist with floor plans, color schemes, furniture and fabric selections, window treatment designs, and floor and wall coverings. Clients can also order trade-only fabric samples through her. Davis acknowledges the guarded nature of designers when it comes to sharing sources but reveals her go-to custom work specialists. These include Franks Custom Draperies for soft treatments, PHD (Paperhanging and Design) with Greg Kahler for wall covering installations, Partners in Design for re-upholstery and custom upholstery, Art Applications for custom builds and painting, and Boston Binding for carpeting installation and area rug binding. For DIY decorators, Davis advocates for a mindful approach: "choose well, not often." She encourages investing in quality and craftsmanship over time, accumulating a collection of lasting pieces rather than frequently replacing low-quality items. Her preferred projects are those that start from the initial structural elements, like floors, kitchens, and bathrooms, and extend to the final decorative details, such as window treatment trim. This allows her to fully engage her design skills across all aspects of a space, including color, paint, wallpaper, living space planning, electronics placement, lighting control, furniture, upholstery, and accessories. Currently, Davis is working on an office space on Boylston Street, where budget limitations have spurred creative solutions. She expresses impressive satisfaction with the versatility and appearance of IKEA cabinetry, specifically recommending their Besta wall units for various spaces like offices, media rooms, wardrobes, and dressing rooms. This project demonstrates her ability to deliver high-quality design even with cost constraints, leveraging accessible options effectively. #InteriorDesign #LisaDavis #DesignPhilosophy #VirtualDesign #CustomWork #HomeDecor #BostonDesign #DIYDesign #TravelInspiration

Interior designers, while passionate about transforming homes into dream spaces, often encounter client requests that go against their professional judgment or current design sensibilities. This article highlights twelve common design choices and client behaviors that frequently displease designers, along with their preferred alternatives. One significant pet peeve is the accent wall. While once popular as a budget-friendly way to add visual interest, designers like Maggie Dillon now find them to look unfinished. A more modern and impactful alternative is to wallpaper the ceiling, which creates a unique focal point and adds character. Ceiling fans, particularly outside of bedrooms, are another point of contention. Avery Cox, a Texas-based designer, acknowledges their functionality in hot climates but prefers the aesthetic of beautiful light fixtures. For necessary living room fans, she recommends choosing from the more aesthetically pleasing options available. Engineered quartz countertops, despite their widespread use, are becoming dated in the eyes of many designers. Cox notes increasing awareness of their flaws and potential health issues for fabricators. She advocates for natural alternatives like butcher block, concrete, tile, and natural stone, emphasizing the importance of patina and a lived-in feel over pristine, manmade surfaces. Similarly, outdated wood tones like the red oak cabinetry of the 1970s and '90s, and mosaic tile strips in showers, are disliked by designers such as Sarah Latham. Latham believes there are more creative and beautiful tile options available today. Matching furniture sets, a common inclination for many clients, are seen as lacking personality and resembling 'discount store' aesthetics by E. Norton. She suggests combining complementary pieces within the same color palette to achieve a more cohesive and personalized look. Extending dining tables, while functional, are not favored by Denise Morrison due to their potential to compromise the aesthetic and spatial balance of a dining area. Morrison recommends curved or oval tables for flexibility, as they allow for extra seating without disrupting the design. Faux luxury items, such as oversized chandeliers in builder-grade homes or porcelain slabs mimicking marble, are another point of frustration for Olga Doykhen. She argues these items often cheapen the overall aesthetic. Her advice is to embrace 'slow decorating,' investing in high-quality pieces that age gracefully and develop a rich patina over time. The overreliance on trends is also criticized. While trends can be inspiring, designing an entire home based on fleeting viral trends can result in a generic, impersonal space that quickly becomes outdated. Doykhen suggests incorporating trendy elements as accents rather than foundational design choices, prioritizing personal reflection over algorithmic influence. All-white kitchens, though considered timeless by some, are viewed by Doykhen as sterile and lacking depth. She advises balancing light hues with warm tones, such as creamy whites, natural stone with movement, unlacquered metals, and varied cabinetry, to create a more inviting atmosphere. Finally, client behaviors such as requesting discounts and using prefab window treatments are highlighted. Darla Bankston May addresses discount requests by emphasizing the long-term value of investment pieces and offering alternative solutions like phased payment plans. Gabriela Eisenhart of Silo Studios expresses her dissatisfaction with premade drapery and shades, advocating for custom window treatments or at least custom hardware to elevate the space. Steph Schlegelmilch of Studio Seva dislikes retail store area rugs due to poor quality and ill-fitting sizes, recommending unique hand-knotted wool rugs or custom rugs fabricated from broadloom carpet as superior alternatives. #InteriorDesign #ClientPetPeeves #HomeDecorTrends #DesignTips #HomeRenovation #AccentWalls #KitchenDesign #FurnitureSelection #WindowTreatments

Daniel Boddam, an Australian architect and designer, leads his eponymous studio in Sydney, focusing on creating spaces and furniture that inspire human engagement and connection with nature, while celebrating artisanal craftsmanship. His design philosophy is rooted in simplicity and the belief that design can foster a sense of calm and well-being. Boddam integrates a modern perspective with materials, colors, and textures inspired by the Australian landscape, aiming to articulate a unique Australian voice with global appeal. His latest furniture collection draws inspiration from the raw Australian environment. The 'Wave' sofa and chair, for instance, feature undulating forms reminiscent of ocean waves, emphasizing organic shapes and lyrical simplicity. The 'Portsea' side tables highlight elemental forms and quality craftsmanship, using materials like Calacatta marble and Travertine to add tactile dimension to circular and triangulated designs. These pieces, along with his 'Coast,' 'Geo,' and 'Monument' collections, are designed for enduring elegance, combining luxurious materials, revered artisanship, and timeless design. The material palette includes organic elements such as timber, travertine, stone, and marble, paired with neutral tones like sand, grey, and white, all reflecting natural inspirations. Boddam's design process begins with hand sketches, which are then translated into 3D models and integrated into architectural projects to visualize their spatial relationships. Boddam discussed two recent interior projects. For Carthona House, he aimed to create a breathable, light-filled, and well-crafted addition to an existing Federation-style home. His approach involved 'complement by contrast,' balancing the traditional qualities of the original facade with a striking blackened silhouette for the extension, and integrating indoor/outdoor living while maintaining privacy. Lindfield House, in contrast, offers a calm and refined atmosphere tailored to the clients' personalities, driven by considered simplicity and mid-century influences, achieved through layered materials and textures to create a luxurious and minimal interior. His early life was immersed in design, with both parents being architects. One of his first design memories involves playing inside Charles Rennie Mackintosh's Willow Chair, which left a lasting impression of craftsmanship. His curiosity about design persisted from childhood, eventually leading him to study architecture at the University of Sydney. Boddam finds inspiration in the simplicity and elegance of designers like Christian Liaigre, Vincent Van Duysen, and Joseph Dirand, admiring their craftsmanship and timelessness. Boddam splits his time between his primary residence in Byron Bay and an apartment in Bondi, Sydney. His Byron Bay home, built in the late 1990s, backs onto a natural reserve and was designed as a barefoot sanctuary to reconnect with nature, reflecting the spirit of the local landscape and an elevated expression of coastal living. For inspiration, he often turns to nature, taking walks along the coastline to clear his mind. He maintains a daily ritual of sketching concepts in the mornings, treating each design as a research project to build a narrative around a concept. Upcoming projects for 2021 include a recently completed Sydney harborside project—a contemporary interpretation of a Californian bungalow featuring an art collection—and the continued development of new furniture pieces using quality Australian materials. His dream projects involve collaborating with like-minded clients in inspiring locations, with a focus on quality craftsmanship and artisanal celebration, such as designing a stand-alone home in North America or a one-off eco-friendly villa. #DanielBoddam #AustralianDesign #InteriorDesign #FurnitureDesign #CoastalLiving #ArchitecturalProjects #MaterialPalette #ArtisanalCraftsmanship