Tag Archives: architecture

Special Series on Designing for Disaster | 2 | Brian Ferrick | Multi-Purpose Staging Ideas for Your Home

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I’m Josh Cooperman and this is Convo By Design with a special series of episodes designed to help you manage the coronavirus disaster by providing you with actionable ideas and tips from world-class designers and architects to run your home more efficiently. We ALL have more going on at home now. You are not alone, as a matter of fact, I don’t think we’ve all been in more similar circumstances. While the stories of conference call disasters provide a little levity, I realized that our homes and resources are being taxed like never before. Our homes were not designed for this. I am talking with some of the best and brightest in design and architecture to get their strategies for making space more efficient.

This episode features Brian Ferrick of Meridith Baer Home. Meridith Baer Home specializes in the art of home staging. Staging a home is all about placement, space, light, and accommodation. It is about creating a feeling and making everything work to its full capabilities. Brian shares ideas about making your space more efficient and functional. This is always important, but never more so than right now if you are one of the millions who are sheltering in place. You still have to work, you still have to be mom, dad, teacher, babysitter, chef, you get the point. These ideas are going to make your life a little bit easier.

Thank you, Brian, for both your time and talent. For more about Meridith Baer Home, visit them online. Meridith Baer Home dot com. Thank you, Walker Zanger, for your partnership and support of Convo By Design. And thank you for listening, were it not for you, there would be no Convo By Design. We will get through this, together. And until we do, I will keep bringing you the ideas from incredibly talented creatives to make this a little bit better. If you have a question, ideas for a segment or you are a designer that wants to help, please email me at ConvoByDesign@Outlook.com. Take care of yourself and your loved ones.

You Need Some Inspiration, Find it Here | 263 | WESCOVER

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I’m Josh Cooperman and this is another episode of Convo By Design with an incredible digital resource for any creator, designer or artist who wants to get some new eyes on their work.

The resource is called WESCOVER, you can find them at WESCOVER dot com and you’re about to hear from Allison Murray, Content Director at WESCOVER. This is a digital portal for amazing creative work, they connect people, places and the work.

I spoke with Allison late in 2019 and while editing the piece, I was trying to find the best time on my editorial calendar to share this with you and then things sort of made the choice for me. 2020 stared off great in SoCal design… KBIS in January, Modernism Week in February and then coronavirus happened. The most amazing thing about creative endeavors is that they are an experience to be a part of and to share with others and when something like COVID-19 strikes, it makes the sharing part very difficult. There will most likely be many more canceled events in the spring and possibly summer months. The life’s blood of creative types is the export of work and import of inspiration. This is about connections and finding new sources of inspiration one artist, designer, architect, creator, or podcaster at a time. This is Allison Murray, Content Director of WESCOVER.

That is a wrap on this episode of Convo By Design. Thank you, Allison, for your time. Thank you, Walker Zanger, for your generous support of the show and thank you for listening and subscribing to the show. If you haven’t yet, it’s easy. You can find the show everywhere you find your favorite podcasts or ask Alexa. Say, “Hey Alexa, play Convo By Design podcast.”, and she will. Until next week, stay healthy and keep creating.

Lone Star House of Design | 1 | Tracy Martin Taylor from Eleven 11 Design

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I’m Josh Cooperman and this is Lone Star | House of Design, produced and distributed by the team that brings you Convo By Design with another story about design and architecture from the Great State of Texas.

This is the inaugural episode of Lone Star House of Design so I think I should probably back up a bit and explain where this came from for those new to the show. I’m Josh Cooperman, I host and publish Convo By Design, a podcast about all things design and architecture covering Southern California and a bit beyond. I have been hosting and publishing Convo By Design for seven years as of this recording with over 260 episodes of the podcast, 200 videos on the YouTube channel, over 50 live panels, and events produced and I have hosted well over 500 interviews with some of the most amazing and talented creators in the biz today. I am a design enthusiast with a background in broadcasting. I produced a design house here in Los Angeles in 2012, contributed editorial to some of California’s most forward-thinking home decor magazines and I produce panel conversations for design-focused events in California as well. All this being said, I produce Convo By Design and now Lone Star House of Design because I love the design and architecture space.

The creators you will hear from on Lone Star House of Design are taking Texas design to new heights through brave choices, incredible creativity, and brilliant business minds. You are going to hear about how they craft their creations as well as their design firms. this is how design is changing the landscape across the great State of Texas, this is Lone Star House of Design.

The first episode features an amazing designer and a really good friend. Tracy Martin Taylor is the principal designer behind Eleven 11 Design. She is also a former boss of mine when I lived in Dallas. Tracy is a creative mind like none I have met before. Her creativity is immense, her compassion, even greater and her skill as a business owner is why Tracy is so successful in this, her second career.

Tracy and I discuss our past which led to her design firm, the tough choices she made to get where she is and how the state of design is growing across the Metroplex and beyond.

Thank you, Tracy Martin Taylor, of Eleven 11 Design, that was fun and I truly appreciate the time. Please subscribe to the show so you catch every episode of Lone Star House of Design and Convo By Design, ask Alexa or Siri, say, “Hey Siri, Play Convo By Design” and she will. You can follow the show on the socials as well, @ConvoXDesign with an “X” on Instagram and check out the YouTube channel for videos from some of your favorite episodes. Thank you for listening and until next week, Keep creating.

@ConvoXDesign #LoneStarHOD #Eleven11Design

Mentorship Master Class | 262 | Timothy Corrigan, Michael Berman & Genevieve Trousdale

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The reason I love doing this podcast as much as I do is because of the amazing people I meet along the way. It’s as simple as that. In this episode of the show you are going to hear from three amazing designers and tremendous people; Michael Berman, Timothy Corrigan, and Genevieve Trousdale. The setting is WestEdge Design Fair and the top is mentorship. I have had the great fortune of interviewing each of them separately but I wanted them on stage so you could hear the story about the connection that binds the three of them together. This is a story about learning, teaching, sharing and collaborating. One of the greatest gifts that come from teaching is what the teacher learns from the student. This is story is very much about that.

That’s a wrap on this episode of Convo By Design. Thank you, Genevieve, Michael, and Timothy. Thank you WestEdge Design Fair for making a public forum possible. Thank you, Walker Zanger, for your support and most of all, thank you for listening. Were it not for you, there would be no Convo By Design. Until next week, keep creating.

Cutting Carbs | 260 | Cutting Carbon Emissions, Sustainable Building and Design

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I found myself at the Design Hardware on 3rd Street in Los Angeles for a conversation on building sustainability, design, and wellness. I don’t think it will surprise anyone to know that there are a growing and distinct link to be made between sustainable design and designing for wellness. The trouble with the conversations around sustainability is that it’s dry, some say dull and it can be. What is truly exciting about the subject though is what happens in the application of sustainable practices. There is, truly a revolution taking place in the design and architecture space. The focus has completely flipped on its head, in a good way. Where many would once talk about how a structure is to be used and lived in, now we talk about how to design and build to serve the people who use that structure. Design is experiential. The experience is what makes it work.

Tract Metro moderates this chat with Maria McCain from the Natural Resources Design Council, Ben Stapleton of the US Green Building Council and Real Estate pro, Erick Zumwalt. This conversation connects the dots between sourcing, sustainable design, property value and how these elements all work together.

Enjoy this conversation recorded live from Design Hardware moderated by designer and TV host, Tracy Metro.

Maria McCain | Natural Resource Defense Council

Maria McCain’s work encompasses the organization’s entire real estate portfolio. McCain analyzes NRDC’s extensive data on waste, water, energy, and travel to develop and implement strategies that minimize the organization’s carbon footprint. These strategies are also applied to internal green construction projects. Overall, McCain values a methodical and integrated approach to solving challenges. She received a master’s degree in environmental monitoring, modeling, and management from King’s College London and a bachelor’s degree in environmental and natural resource economics from West Virginia University. McCain is based in NRDC’s Santa Monica office.

https://www.nrdc.org/experts/maria-mccain

Ben Stapleton | US Green Building Council

A native Angeleno, Stapleton is a recognized sustainability leader, who brings to this position extensive experience and connections across real estate, technology, and innovation. He led major operational growth, program development, and partnerships to triple revenue for the non-profit. Simultaneously, launched and managed the La Kretz Innovation Campus in Downtown Los Angeles, most recently serving as SVP, Operations & Finance for the LA Cleantech Incubator (LACI). The Campus has become an epicenter for sustainability in the region featuring events with
prominent local, national and international leaders, while being home to a community of cutting-edge businesses and nonprofits.

HOME

Eric Zumwalt

https://www.egcrealestategroup.com

That’s a wrap on this episode of Convo By Design recorded live from Design Hardware featuring Eric Zumwalt, Ben Stapleton, Maria McCain and of course Tracy Metro. Thank you Design Hardware for hosting and putting on such a great event. Thank you, Walker Zanger, for your generous support and of course, thank you for listening. If you haven’t already, subscribe to the show everywhere you find your favorite podcasts. Until next week, Keep creating.

What’s My Line | 259 | How to Create and Take a Design Product Line to Market

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Resetting the scene for you, the WestEdge Design Fair was held, as it is every year, at Barker Hangar in Santa Monica. These conversations were held in the Convo By Design Programming Lounge with custom designs from John McClain, Studio Akiko, Isbell Interiors and Julia Wong Designs. This conversation was transformative for a number of reasons. Interior designers, many if not most, want a line to call their own. That signature line not only creates an opportunity to do business outside of the design studio but it is considered by many to be a legacy proposition, something that extends beyond the design work.

As such, I wanted you to hear from power players in the space, and you are about to hear that conversation featuring Sue Firestone of SFA Design, Arch Interiors, Christopher Grubb, photographer, Gray Malin, designer Xander Noori, and designer Leslie Shapiro Joyal. This group was expertly questioned by journalist and editor, Alex Abramian. This group brings some serious firepower. Enjoy and be inspired.

Sweeten Your Design | 258 | Jean Brownhill

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You listen to Convo By Design for a few reasons, I have been told, and 2 of those reasons are to find inspiration and hear the stories of designers, architects, futurists and creators responsible for the direction of design in So Cal and beyond. I have an amazing guest in Architect, founder and CEO of Sweeten, Jean Brownhill.

Brownhill’s story is a complex one full of long shots  successes and uphill battles. A women who is disrupting the construction space by attempting a massive change in the way the business is done. I want you to know that I use the word “disrupting” carefully and with purpose. Because that word has become overused with regard to business changing the status quo and because simply changing something isn’t enough, it has to be positive change or what’s the point? 

Brownhill is addressing some common issues and attacking those issues with thoughtful strategy available via Sweeten, a company that matches clients with vetted contractors in a transparent ecosystem that incentivizes the trade to remain on good terms and Sweeten is compensated through commissions on work transacted within that ecosystem. While I have not experienced the service myself, I like the idea because it provides all parties with positive motivating factors for doing things the right way. That would make Brownhill and Sweeten a truly disrupting company. And regardless of how you feel about that idea, what cannot be denied is that a woman… of color… an architect… in  the construction space… who has raised millions of dollars in VC funding… does make Jean Brownhill a unicorn. She is one of very few, this is her story.

Convo By Design is presented by Walker Zanger….A remarkable company and an equally remarkable design partner.  While the Walker Zanger brand was built on the promise to inspire designers and architects to do their best work, there is far more to it than that. Yes, that promise is fulfilled everyday through a commitment to provide the best ceramic, glass, stone, porcelain, quartz and concrete surfaces and finishes but at the heart of this is a family owned and operated business that provides stunning surfaces for a well designed home.  Walker Zanger started in 1952 and they are absolutely one of the best trade partners a designer can have. Check out their newest collaborative line with designer Pietta Donovan. A collection of Cement and Ceramic tiles inspired by the the patterns and colorways of the 1970’s and created with a comfortable modernity. Walker Zanger is on the cutting edge of design featuring products for every style and architectural feel you can create and they provide homeowners with the materials that dream kitchens and baths are made of. Check out any of their 14 showrooms across the country or shop online, Walker Zanger dot com.

That is a wrap on this episode of Convo By Design featuring Jean Brownhill, this was recorded at the WestEdge Design Fair in Santa Monica in October 2019. Thank you for the time Jean, thank you Walker Zanger for your generous support of the show and of course, thank you for listening. Without you, there is no Convo By Design!  Until next week, keep creating.

Beautiful Together | 257 | Product Partnerships Designed to Succeed

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Every week, you and I go on this journey through the inner workings of the business of design and architecture together. Actually, that’s not completely accurate, it’s not just the business, it is the inner workings of a big complex machine of which the business is an integral part but certainly not the entirety of what we talk about every week. The very DNA of this world is design and architecture. Within that are many detailed and complex inner workings that aren’t always what they seem. I had an opportunity at the WestEdge Design Fair to sit and talk with some people of whom I am extremely fond. They include New Zealand born, Brooklyn based interior and product designer, Pietta Donovan and Walker Zanger Marketing Director, Erika Egede-Nissen. We talked about partnerships.

I get asked about this subject quite often and discuss it on the show equally often, what makes a good partnership between designers, showrooms and manufacturers? What is the best way to approach a line of products while trying to both hit a spot in the market, maintaining brand identity while simultaneously breaking new ground and being innovative. All these things are difficult to do in isolation but combined in a product launch. It’s hard, it’s complex but is also something that is best done in a collaborative framework. You don’t know when I was recording this intro and it’s immaterial to the point of the story but today I had a conversation with a showroom manager and their director of showrooms who was in from out of town. I was explaining how Los Angeles is different than New York, and how we are different compared to Houston, Dallas, Miami and Chicago. Of course we are, and those differences are not just regional, local or national. Design today is all about making our spaces truly unique to us as opposed to making our spaces exactly like the projects found in the trade publications. Listen, as the associate publisher and online editor for Modern Luxury Interiors California Magazine, I see the challenges the industry faces when trying to differentiate themselves from everyone else. Manufacturers, showrooms, designers and architects all face those very same challenges. You listen to the show, and if your new, welcome, you’ll be up to speed very quickly, I believe in brand, differentiation, innovation and that the true value of design lies in the talent of the individuals who create. Today, I offer a story that will touch on all of the above. The collaboration, partnership, innovation, promotion and execution is based on a few universal truths.

Nobody does this alone, you need others to help you succeed
Luck is something earned by working hard so that you are in the right place at the right time
More is learned by listening than by speaking
True mastery is displayed through application than description, in other words, show me, then tell me.

Todays story is told in two parts, first with Pietta and Erika. They are going to explain the anatomy of this unique and special partnership. Following that, you’ll hear from Jonathan Zanger and his perspective on the same subject.

The Christopher Kennedy Compound in Turlock, CA | 256 | Hosted By Nancy Russert of Les Beaux

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Design houses are one of the elements unique to interior design and architecture. It’s like our version of the runway show in fashion, or the car show in the auto industry. Christopher Kennedy has become quite adept at ideating the design house and executing them. Christopher is a regular fixture in Palm Springs during Modernism Week and you have heard about some of those here on the podcast and even seen some of the interviews on our YouTube channel.  As a side note, before I started the podcast, I produced a design house in Hollywood I called Small Space, Big Style and Christopher was a featured designer on the project. He masterfully designed a 70’s inspired living room and was an absolute pleasure to work with. So when I heard that Christopher was creating a design house in Central California, I really wanted to cover it for you.

I had another idea at the time, I wanted to assign this project to someone who could cover its from a designer’s perspective so I reached out good friend, previous guest and fabulous design talent, Nancy Russert of Les Beaux and Twist Custom to go and see this project. She did, and in the process, created what is really a travel journal to the Central California Valley City of Turlock, definitely NOT a hotbed of design to see this project.

Convo By Design is presented by Walker Zanger….A fantastic company and an equally dependable design partner.  While the Walker Zanger brand was built on the promise to inspire designers and architects to do their best work, there is far more to it than that. Yes, that promise is fulfilled everyday through a commitment to provide the best ceramic, glass, stone, porcelain, quartz and concrete surfaces and finishes but at the heart of this is a family owned and operated business that provides stunning surfaces for a well designed home. Walker Zanger started in 1952 and they are absolutely one of the best trade partners a designer can have. Check out their newest collaborative line with designer Pietta Donovan. A collection of Cement and Ceramic tiles inspired by the the patterns and colorways of the 1970’s and created with a comfortable modernity. Walker Zanger is on the cutting edge of design featuring products for every style and architectural feel you can create and they provide homeowners with the materials that dream kitchens and baths are made of. Check out any of their 14 showrooms across the country or shop online, Walker Zanger dot com.

This is Nancy Russert starting off where most good travel stories begin, the airport. #Design #Interiors #MidCenturyModern #NancyRussert

Your Canvas for Outdoor Memories | 255 | Creating Memory Making Spaces for Outdoor Living

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This is the time of year when many here in California are starting to think about getting back outside. It was cold for a week or two, we got a little rain to clean off the dust from the Santa Ana winds and now it’s time to start thinking about making new outdoor memories. For that, we are going back to the WestEdge Design Fair for a conversation called, Your Canvas for Outdoor Memories presented by Urban Bonfire and featuring; Patty Dominguez, VP of National Sales at Cosentino, Annette Reeves, lifestyle advisor for Pirch and designer, Cesar Giraldo. If you have listened to the show for a while, you know Cesar. This panel was moderated by Urban Bonfire President and Co-Founder, Ryan Bloom.

You are going to hear about collaboration, inspiration, design and putting it all together for a space that is a canvas for creating your outdoor memories. Enjoy this conversation, by design. A note, if you haven’t already please subscribe to the podcast everywhere you find your favorite shows, check out our videos form conversations like this one and engage via the socials. Can’t wait to hear from you and if your’e a designer with a story to tell, email me directly ConvoByDesign@Outlook.com.

#ConvoByDesign #WalkerZanger #Pirch #CesarGiraldo #UrbanBonfire #WestEdgeDesignFair #OutdoorDesign #InsideOut