• Architecture,  Design Spotlight,  Featured,  Residential

    Design for Sale: Pa Be Shan Lane

    Composed of timber logs and stone, a sprawling residence on the Lake Michigan coastline is a captivating design for sale that offers plenty of room and privacy among the lush lakeside woodlands. The property is listed at $2.49 million with Pat O’Brien and Associates Real Estate, a real estate brokerage firm specializing in Northern Michigan’s luxury, residential, lakefront, and commercial…

  • Featured,  Form

    Linking the lakefront

    In 2003, the office of former Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley initiated an international design competition called “Bridging the Drive,” which aimed to draw major architects for a ground-breaking structural project that would improve pedestrian access to Lake Michigan across Chicago’s South Lakeshore Drive and within its South Side neighborhoods.  After nearly 16 years, the final product, brought to life…

  • Creative Endeavors,  Featured

    Project Atigi

    Nearly one year ago, Canada Goose Inc., a luxury performance wear brand in Toronto, Ontario, launched its social entrepreneurship program known as Project Atigi in partnership with the Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, or ITK. The representational organization is the national voice for the four Inuit regions of Inuit Nunangat, representing Inuvialuit, Nunatsiavut, Nunavut, and Nunavik in northern Canada.   The first…

  • Featured,  Form

    In Vogue

    In Royal Oak, Michigan, a furniture studio of designers and fabricators recalls the past to look toward the future. Known as Vogue Furniture, the 1977-established furniture and millwork workshop is set in a newly renovated shop spanning nearly 45,000 square-feet—allotting plenty of room for new, ambitious projects. The calm, clean office space is full of dark wood hues and clean…

  • Featured,  Form

    Studio Park

    In a burgeoning entertainment district in downtown Grand Rapids, Michigan, a new multi-use complex and its nine-screen movie theater build upon a cinematic history, such as the Midtown Theater’s origins as the Powers Opera House in 1874 designed by Chicago-based architect Oscar Cobb, and capture hints of a bygone era in its design. Known as Studio Park, the multi-use project…

  • Creative Endeavors,  Featured

    Abbreviated design

    In Grand Rapids, Michigan, the full-service architectural, interior, and product design firm Via Design Inc., whose work appears throughout the city’s commercial and residential sectors—and their many sub-categories—has added a new brand to its identity.  Since its establishment in 1989, the firm, which is headquartered downtown, has continually added services to its repertoire, including sustainable design, furniture procurement and design,…

  • Creative Endeavors,  Featured,  Travel

    Modern retrospective

    In December 2019, the Cranbrook Art Museum in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan unveiled three textile and craft-centric exhibitions that will run until March 2020 exploring how innovative people and teaching methods influenced design for generations. One of the exhibitions showcases the lifework of one of Detroit’s formative figures in interior and textile design. The exhibit, titled “Ruth Adler Schnee: Modern Designs for Living,” posits designer…

  • Architecture,  Featured,  Form,  Print Edition,  Residential

    A waterfront study in contrast

    This private waterfront residence located on the shore of Lake Michigan is the culmination of the combined creative and technical talent of Sears Architects, Cannarsa Structure and Design, and Zahn Builders Inc. In a region where certain vernacular styles often reign, it is evident upon first glance—the subdued white stucco exterior combined with bold, dark windows—this home is truly a…

  • Featured,  Print Edition

    Great Lakes By Design: Ergonomics

    Contents: Design Corner Motawi | a handcrafted art tile studio adds to two collections inspired by formative figures in American midcentury art and design Design Spotlight A Better Chicago | a multidisciplinary collaboration looks to elevate and to support the city’s design legacy, community, and resources with a new comprehensive initiative aligned with the debut of NeoCon 2020 Natural advantage…