The Home Front: L.A.'s finest at IDS Vancouver
Credit to Author: rebeccakeillor| Date: Sat, 14 Sep 2019 12:37:38 +0000
Best-selling books with titles containing profanity aren’t uncommon these days, and they grab your attention much the same way L.A. design firm Design, Bitches does.
Architects and co-founders of the firm, Catherine Johnson and Rebecca Rudolph, who will be guest speakers at IDS Vancouver this month, created the name in response to a design competition 10 years ago.
“At the time, we were working together at a small firm,” Rudolph says. “It was in the depths of the recession, and the kind of work everyone was doing was not super exciting. The mood and architecture, in general, was dark and we thought ‘let’s just enter this competition to think about architecture in a fun way’,” says Rudolph.
The pair put together a portfolio of work — some fictional, some real — that expressed what architecture was to them, and came up with “design, bitches”.
“We sort of assumed they would throw it out, but we ended up getting an honourable mention and then we realized that people responded very positively to what we wanted to talk about, which was making architecture more accessible to a broader audience and more inclusive.”
At the IDS interior design show, which takes place Sept. 26 to 29 at Vancouver Convention Centre West, they will be discussing some of their latest projects, such as the new coffee roastery, training facility and restaurant space Verve Roastery Del Sur, in downtown L.A.
L.A. Vietnamese cafe Nong La designed by Design, Bitches. Photo credit: Laure Joliet for The Home Front: LA’s finest at IDS Vancouver [PNG Merlin Archive]
“The founders are also native Californians, as Rebecca and I are, so we sort of played off some of the things that we value in some of our favourite moments in both nature and the built environment,” Johnson says.
L.A. Vietnamese cafe Nong La designed by Design, Bitches. Photo credit: Laure Joliet for The Home Front: LA’s finest at IDS Vancouver [PNG Merlin Archive]
Elements of the natural environment, along with iconic people they’ve idolized over the years, are woven into the design Johnson says.
“There’s actually some trees inside the building that are living really well, which was a fun nod to some exhibitions at the natural history museum,” she says.
Food design is a hot theme at the moment and reflected at IDS Vancouver in the show’s central feature, Seeds, by Dutch food designer Marije Vogelzang, along with the Edible Futures installation, described as “a travelling exhibition curated by the Dutch Institute of Food & Design”, featuring Diasporic Dumplings by Canadian food designer Amanda Huynh.
The first projects Rudolph and Johnson created together were also in the “food space”, including L.A.’s Superba Food+Bread, and their work is known for its use of bold colour and fun prints.
“We love thinking about the psychology of colour in our projects, and how using colour can enhance a space, whether it be through a material that has some colour within it, or painting with bright bold colours. We’re definitely not afraid of colour,” Johnson says.
L.A. restaurant and video game arcade Button Mash designed by Design, Bitches. Photo credit: Laure Joliet for The Home Front: LA’s finest at IDS Vancouver [PNG Merlin Archive]
“And you can use it to expand or contract a space, and play with scale and add depth. There’s interesting things you can do through the addition of colour to help define spaces,” Rudolph adds.
L.A. restaurant and video game arcade Button Mash designed by Design, Bitches. Photo credit: Laure Joliet for The Home Front: LA’s finest at IDS Vancouver [PNG Merlin Archive]
They’re often asked why so many people are drawn to California, says Rudolph.
“We talk about the light quality, and the sort of contrast that comes from the sun. The strong sun and the sun-bleached nature of the colours. Like fading paint. We’re inspired by the colours and the contrasts, the light and shadow that comes from that,” Rudolph says.
There’s also an implied casualness about California, says Johnson, and they can definitely relate to this in terms of not wanting to be too precious about the materials they use or the spaces they create.
“We like to encourage life to happen in the spaces we create. Rather than being overly precious. I actually like it when you can tell someone has being grinding on a piece of marble with their skateboard throughout the years. It’s adding a layer of life. There’s a lot of that in California and the West Coast of North America, in general,” she says.