“I look at design as a creation of how humans interpret the natural world. I think there is this connection between the natural world and the built environment, and it is up to us—those in the design field—to interpret what that is, and to create our own values on how we intersect the natural world and the built environment,” said Ernest C. Wong, PLA, FASLA, APA, founding principal and president of site design group, ltd. “I think the general public takes design for granted. They go to places—the parks we design—and say ‘oh, it was just here.’ Nobody really thinks about the effort it takes to design this space. They…
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En Masse
Set amid a row of iconic Greystone buildings along California Ave. in Chicago, Illinois, the grid-like façade of concrete and glass on the En Masse Architecture and Design Ltd. studio presents a bold juxtaposition with its environment at first glance. Its poured-in place, brise-soleil creates a patterned effect where vertical fins of concrete lend an added layer of complexity to the grey-hued limestone of the historic residential building style inherent to Chicago, and bring an energy and dynamic tension to the creative conversation within its architectural landscape. Minimalist in design, the studio is more than a composition of its brise-soleil—an architectural solution popularized and initially designed for climatic challenges by…
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Designed for flight
In 1986, WACO Aircraft Corporation’s first WACO YMF Classic biplane rolled off the assembly line complete with two open cockpits, stacked wings, radial engine, and handcrafted design in faithful homage to a golden age of flight. Based on the design of the popular 1930s biplane and crafted using techniques from the 1920s and 1930s, WACO Aircraft Corporation’s WACO YMF Classic was not a rebuild or a build kit of the vintage aircraft, but rather a modern production with the latest avionics under the original WACO-type certificate, certified by the Federal Aviation Administration, or FAA. WACO Aircraft Corporation, which was founded in 1983 in Lansing before relocating to Battle Creek, Michigan,…
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The Dayton’s Project
Buildings patinaed by time often resonate with a collective memory embedded deep within the bones of its architectural structure. Iconic places and landmark destinations have a way of allowing moments of the past to collide with the present and potentially into the future in the minds of those who have traversed its spaces. It can serve as a tool or vehicle in which stories can exist across generations, anchoring its place in the built landscape and at times the cultural and social history of a community. In Minneapolis, a 120-year-old historic structure located at 700 Nicollet Avenue that served for decades as an integral part of the downtown retail and…
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Humboldt GMT
Designed for the everyday adventurer, the Humboldt GMT is the latest release in Oak & Oscar LLC’s line of Humboldt watches. Its slick design, highly adjustable bracelet, and advanced technology makes this watch a fit for multiple lifestyles and settings. An elevated take on the Humboldt 12-hour, this watch features a GMT complication and 24-hour bezel, allowing its user to keep track of three time zones at once. Incorporating a new anti-shock and anti-magnetic enclosure, and internal systems like a Faraday cage and rubber stabilizer, the Humboldt GMT is designed to neutralize the electromagnetic fields people regularly encounter, as well as reduce the rate of impact and rebound from bumps…
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A showroom celebrating 30 years
Commemorating their 30th anniversary in the Michigan Design Center in Troy, Michigan, Tennant & Associates is a family-owned, trade-only showroom offering custom fabrics, wall coverings, lighting, and furniture for both traditional and contemporary styles across residential and contract applications. “We have a little bit of everything, and nearly everything we sell can be customized,” said Dawn Tennant, co-owner of Tennant & Associates. “It is exclusive products that can only be sold to interior designers.” From leathers, silks, and handwoven natural window coverings to lighting solutions, Tennant & Associates serves as a source for a number of well-known companies like Holly Hunt Enterprises Inc., Hartmann & Forbes Inc., Phillip Jeffries, and…
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Design Within Reach
Design Within Reach Inc., a furniture and furnishings resource and manufacturer, announced on April 15, 2022 its first Michigan location with the opening of a new studio in Grand Rapids, Michigan. While its first brick-and-mortar presence in the state, the roughly 4,440-square-foot space is now the brand’s 35th location within a national footprint. Design Within Reach is a source of modern design solutions for residential and retail customers through retail studios in North America. The company was originally founded in 1998 by Rob Forbes, after he gained an appreciation for clean, simple designs for the home while living in London. Upon moving to the United States, he realized that those…
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Elevated design
A well-designed space often produces a connection between a person and their built environment. SnapCab®, a company that manufactures both elevator interior systems, and in more recent years, WorkSpace pods, defines itself with a new tagline highlighting the flexibility of the design for its pods representative of the connection between a space’s design and its user: “Space to be you.” SnapCab, originally founded by Glenn Bostock, chief executive officer of the company, in 1983 as a company specializing in custom cabinetry, now has headquarters in two locations: one for SnapCab’s elevator interior systems in Warrington, Pennsylvania, and another for the SnapCab Workspace products in Kingston, Ontario in Canada. While both…
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E.W. Kitchens’ 75th anniversary
Celebrating 75 years of business this year, E.W. Kitchens is a family-owned, full-service kitchen and bath design firm founded in 1947. The business is headquartered in Wixom, Michigan, which is also where their warehouse is located, and has a smaller, upscale showroom inside the Michigan Design Center in Troy, Michigan. E.W. Kitchens’ showroom inside the Michigan Design Center features their offerings of high-end cabinetry with kitchen displays showcasing a variety of different design styles, as well as other products such as range hoods and The Galley Workstation, a unique sink design that doubles as a workstation to prepare and serve meals. Although E.W. Kitchens primarily works on kitchen and bath…
