Details that Matter
Architecture can become furniture and furniture can become architecture.
We have used the design of furniture and lighting as a laboratory for the exploration of form, materials and fabrication technologies. In lighting, the pieces involve glass as a vehicle for diffusing, reflecting and refracting light. There is a magic that transpires when glass is struck by light, it is almost as if the glass surface becomes light itself. In the furniture, the juxtaposition of burnished metal and luminous wood forms the basis for each piece.
Sustainable strategies are part of these explorations. LED technology has been used for light fixtures, consuming only 6-10 watts for a typical lamp. FSC certified hardwoods, bamboo, recycled steel and glass are used in furniture and lighting pieces.
CNC 5-axis milling technology and computer-driven waterjet cutting are extensively involved in all the pieces, achieving a level of craft that would not be possible with hand labor. Typically, our CAD drawings are used as direct drivers for these sophisticated industrial milling and cutting machines. Glass work includes hand-blown glass as well as fused glass, combining various glass textures at kiln temperatures of 1800 degrees.
These fabrications, all considered to be prototypes for further production, allow the architectural intent relating to an entire building to also enter the realm of the tactile and immediate. We explore the close touch of a hand as it might grip burnished metal, the smooth softness of dark wood or brush across the silky surface of textured glass.