Expert Review

Campion Platt
This designer's use of organic shapes and clean lines create comfortable, refreshing spaces. He uses texture and materials to add to small spaces, making his designs personal, yet easy to relate to. Lighting in the spaces is well incorporated into the designs, making for fantastic contrast within th space. Storage and practicality make his spaces incredible sensible.

Dean Marchetto
The modern lines and shapes of this green designer's spaces are intense, but easy to relax into. Although contemporary, his designs achieve a level of comfort that invites visitors to explore the artistic characteristics of his homes.

Stephen Knollenberg
Beautiful designs. His intelligent blend of clean lines with traditional concepts forms a comfortable, aesthetically pleasing space. His use of unconventional contrast in spaces is stunning, but used carefully to prevent it from becoming overwhelming.

Jaques Grange
I would best describe spaces designed by Jaques Grange as tasteful eclectic. He does a great job of carefully blending international flavors and textures to produce a warm,worldly feel.

David Harvey
This designer has excellent concepts, but uses materials that are too strong from the spaces. They become overbearing and uncomfortable. I love his use of color and art in his rooms.

Professional Pros and Cons

Hiller Architectural Firm- I was blown away by the quality of this website’s design. It was certainly an inspiring, entertaining experience. The site was extremely user friendly, even fun to navigate. The designer utilized white space and color, which allows the eye to travel smoothly across the pages.

Ewing Cole- This site has a very clear layout and excellent use of pattern and color. This site was also very entertaining and immediately grabbed my attention. A changing series of pictures keeps the main page fresh and exciting, while the remainder of the site is straightforward and pleasurable to explore.

Skidmore, Owings, and Merrill LLP- This website features amazing designs which are well presented through a clear, concise layout. The information on the site is comfortably divided into list-like sections following a series of balanced datums.

Opus Group- This was an extremely uncomfortable experience. The small font was accompanied by fast moving photo slides, which made it very difficult to find the focus of the site. The cold blue color scheme boasted little emphasis of any one section the page, forcing it to feel unbalanced and uneasy.

LS3P- This site features a beautiful intro page, but is unclear as to how to actually enter the site. Once past the small text “enter LS3P,” the site is rather cold and corporate. Even so, the site had a tremendously successful layout with interesting lines. The pictures and text were apparent, but somewhat washed out- a negative stylistic choice, in my opinion.

Karlsberger- I was quite impressed with the layout of this site, as it was clear and concise. The pages included text, small pictures, and a large picture, as well as navigation info at to top. Considering the amount of information on each page, they chose successful layouts. The site may have been more successful with less information on each page.

Pei Cobb Freed & Partners Architects LLP- This is a very successful, professional firm, so I would be fitting that such qualities be brought into their website design. As a whole, the site utilizes a very plain font and weak colors. I find that the site speaks poorly of the firm.

Gensler- This website caught my attention immediately. Their use of clear datums ensured clear organization, making it easy to follow. The images on the first page included a largely white room, which was then carried into the text. This flow served to direct the eye across the page. Because the contents of this site was grouped into lists along the side, the website was very pleasant to read.

Perkins + Will- The alternating images and clear labels on this website were incredibly fascinating. The four focuses of the website- Vision, Expertise, Design Solutions, Sustainability immediately show the viewer how to navigate the website.

Callison- Although I really appreciated the designs pictured on their website, Callison immediately struck me as cold and corporate. Because of the cold colors and commercial appearance, I felt very detached from the designs and could not relate to the firm. Despite their stunning designs, I found myself at a loss of interest.

Global Revolution

Diagnostic and Treatment Center, Daimiel, Ciudad Real
Considering the purpose of this building, I feel that it is unbearable cold and industrial. In appearance it is uncomfortable, which seems perhaps unnecessary if not overwhelming for a Diagnostic and Treatment Center. Purpose aside, this building is very abstract is successful in its interesting use of materials.

Filter Perk Parking Garage, Chicago
This parking garage is transparent, designed to span the entirety of the Kennedy expressway. This seems like a brilliant way to eliminate the problem of concrete parking decks, but I am curious to learn what material they could construct such a structure from. The deck itself will have a “filtering” urban garden, but it would be interesting to see if they could use a sustainable material for the massive structure. The use of color could also bring life to this interesting structure.

Architectural Review, 12/07

Cultural Identity

Archithese (German): After reviewing several editions of this journal, I was very impressed with the apparent flexibility within the solid identity of German design. Clean lines and thoughtful lighting and materials enable German architecture to cross from industrial to beautiful. Steel, glass, and concrete are paired with intense hues to produce a hypnotizing rhythm, intelligently used to unite a space. The industrial feel behind German design is a clear reflection of their history, reminiscent of their not so distant industrial era. The design portrayed in these Archithese journals is enticing, leaving me with a desire to learn more.

Abitare (Italian): Thus far, I have learned little about the existence of cultural identity within design, but I felt a strong presence as I opened the pages of Abitare. Unlike german design, Italian designers seem to play off of color and texture more than materials. Here, too, I saw clean lines and the use of steel and concrete, but the industrial feel was overwhelmed by the contemporary design of the space. For example, a solid white room with stainless steel accents was drawn into the realm of contemporary with its use of playful shadows and faint imprints of trees in the white walls. Although I never felt cozy, I certainly felt artistically inspired.

Graphis (Swiss): Perhaps the best way to describe the design I experienced in the Swiss joural, Graphis, is contemporary artistic. I saw the industrial materials and definite lines, characteristic of German design, but there was a very artistic feeling clinging to such design. Detached from the design itself was a heavy layer of modern art, which, in correlation with industrial design, submits the designs into into powerful, sophisticated works of art. Because of this, I felt that they were pleasing to the eye but held little hope of usability.

Zen

My initial feeling of this home was a contented sense of relaxation. The rich, mahogany wood and warm lighting create a spa-like atmosphere, which is set off by the iron-framed glass and large indoor plants. The spherical chandelier ties the room together resulting in a very complete, smooth design. (Architectural Digest, Sep. 2007)

The best of both worlds

This house is not only a beautiful, contemporary take on the traditional farmhouse, but it is also largely sustainable. The house’s interior is expansive, boasting a multitude of far-style windows and planked ceilings with exposed beams. An “inverted gable” acts as a ventilation silo, as it collects and exhausts both hot air and rainwater for the gardens. The silo’s windows are by photovoltaic panels, and the home is geographically positioned to increase energy efficiency. Because of the ventilation from natural convection currents, the home does not require air conditioning, and the silo’s panels trap warm air in the house during the winter months.
(page 300 architectural digest September 2007)

Modern Twist

Staircases are eternal places for improvement in a home. They are near-sculptural pieces begging for an identity. This staircase does an unbelievable job of recognizing its identity. It’s graceful curves offer a modern, artistic flow that transforms its surrounding space into a richly intelligent and dynamic experience. (Wallpaper June/July 2007)

Le Fem Southern

While I have a great fondness of color, I am usually hesitant to consider pink as for a room. It can be difficult to transition pink from its soft, girly tone into a more solid, adult accent. Paired with the antique circular windows and the sleek browns, pink is ideal in this space, creating a warm, feminine feel, absent of its stereotypical childish characteristics. (page 110 southern accents July/Aug 2007)

Clean and Cozy

One may usually consider an asymmetrical fireplace to be a little drastic for a small space, but such a fireplace works beautifully in this space, in perfect sync with the diagonal grains in the dark wood-shelving surround. The room is not overwhelmed by contemporary elements, but certainly has a comfortable contemporary influence. (Page 138 Traditional Home September 2007)

Cityscape

Most design journals are littered with advertisements. They usually catch my eye, but do little to hold my attention. This was not the case with one ad for Marvin windows and doors in the October 2007 edition of Dwell. The Ad was showed the view from a big-city apartment through a beautiful palladian window. The captivating feature of this room was in its brilliant design. The room seemed to flow seamlessly into the skyscrapers beyond the window, and the two were further connected by the inclusion of the buildings’ accents within the interior space. The designer recreated the grid pattern, created by the windows on the skyscrapers, throughout the room, and maintained the same neutral whites and grays found in the city’s landscape. The use of repetition aids in the development of such a space, and the simplicity of the room certainly draws the eye out into the view of the city.

Desert Oasis

This home provides a highly tasteful, well-blended take on its Californian terrain. The crisp lines and organic wood materials mimic the flat plains and weathered textures found naturally in its surroundings. Because the home does not have layer for a foundation, it seems to seep into the rough desert ground beneath it. This home has beautiful lines and a comfortable familiarity with it’s location. (page 130 Architectural Digest September 2007)

Big City Flair

The Merseyside in Liverpool, England, is a perfect blend of comfort and chic. This space has a visible flow and eye-catching use of lines, seen clearly in the central metal hood, windows, and stair rail. The wide variety of materials utilized in the room adds incredible breadth, giving the room a unique identity. The industrial metals, clean tile, and sharp wood offer drastic contrast in texture throughout the room, but balance beautifully in the context of the room. The blend of natural lighting and dim artificial lighting create strong shadows, adding yet another dimension to the room’s dynamic shape. (Page 150 Wallpaper June/July 2007)

Chic Legal Affairs

Law offices are rarely so comfortable and inviting as that of Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman. Designers Felderman Keatinge + Associates did an excellent job incorporating a variety of lush textures into this space, while maintaining a comfortable blend of soft crèmes and neutral begies. The color palette is ideal for this space, as it allows clients a much needed relaxing environment, aided by soft natural light. The space has a very open feel, as the architects made use of curved glass walls, but is offered versatility through the use of privacy screens. (page 137 Contract May 2006)

A Seamless Blend

The architecture of the Colorado residence described in “Where Earth Meets Sky” (10/07 Architectural Digest) maintains a delicate connection with its mountainous landscape. Set in a ridge of the Rocky Mountains, this house was designed to flow seamlessly into its surroundings. The vast number of windows and careful use of materials creates the illusion of no boundaries. While modern elements, such as sharp lines, seem to contrast with the landscape, the natural stone and wood materials act to ground such variations. This is exemplified in the designers choice to use one curved, frosted glass wall, paralleled by a straight, rough stone wall. Each had used materials to blend contemporary and organic to maintain the natural feel of the house.
Because this house is designed around multiple floors (see floor plan), the many different layers imitate the feel of looking down a mountain. Its steep view is interrupted by varying lines and textures, as would the view down a mountain. The house has numerous angles, which creates shadows and depth, further enforcing the dynamic quality of this space.