Patrick Cain on Dwell on Design
And so it begins: Dwell on Design 2015.
For members of the design community or press, the week leading up Dwell on Design is always a bit chaotic. So, as a member of both the press and the design community, this week is a sadomasochistic hell. Long days. Super early mornings. Well, at least I get a calm week next week.
Oh wait, what’s that? I have the Aids/LifeCycle next week and my body will be pushed to the brink every single day for seven days straight. Oh, this is going to be a one hell of a one-two combo.
But so it began with Dwell on Drinks, an unveiling party for three lofts at the Met Lofts building that get taken over by three Southern Californian-based members of the American Society of Interior Designers, or ASID.
These units are as much a showcase for the designer and makers involved (that’s me!) as it is for the corporate sponsors. But if anyone is shocked or appalled at the fact this becomes an LG electronics circle jerk, let me introduce to a thing I like to call The World. This is how it works, and kudos to LG for helping pull the design community together and working with Nate Berkus on a new line of kitchen goods.
You may know Nate Berkus from his line of knick-knacks at Target. He’s as close to a celebrity as it gets in the design world. But when he and I had a chance to sit down and talk, there was an interesting take away that is translatable for most things in life. Nate doesn’t cook. The Berkus doesn’t even like the kitchen. But a multi-billion dollar company had no qualm putting him in charge of the design for their new kitchen line.
And why is that? That’s because Berkus does what most small businesses fail to do: he knows the strength of others and lets them handle those tasks. His team is about 10 people, he said. One guy for example can’t do fabrics, he’s just not good at it, but he is good at other things—it’s capitalizing on each person’s individual talents. So the guy who probably can’t tell you the different between a balloon whisk and a French whisk may be the guy who is figuring out how to get it in your home and make you love it.
And after all, isn’t that what a designer should do?
So, chapeau, Dwell, on the solid kick-off. Look forward to seeing what you have in store for tonight’s “Meet the Architects.” That is if I can stay awake until 7pm. That, at this point, is a big IF.
(And for those dying to know, but too lazy to google it… a balloon whisk is very similar to the French whisk, but the Freedom whisk is used for mixing and aerating thicker things, such as custards, while a balloon whisk you’d use for eggs.)
