Every profession has intriguing newcomers who produce the kind of work that makes us look at problems and solutions in a new way. Interior design is no exception, but picking its interesting new practitioners is complicated, thanks to the nature of the field.
Unlike most other professions, an interior designer’s final product is almost always contingent on the client. Although a fashion designer or chef has the autonomy to create a product then let the public be the judge, an interior designer usually creates an environment based on the client’s wants and needs. More often than not, the designers’ taste and vision take second stage.
This makes figuring out who the interesting new interior designers are tricky. It takes seeing several projects a designer has completed, which all show a different perspective of that person’s work. Ideally, the work should say something new, showing us an expanded sense of what it means to create a living environment.
That said, here are three relative newcomers who are creating interiors that are interesting and unexpected. Yet they are not interior designers in the traditional sense of the word. In fact, they trained in related disciplines, which may account for their imaginative work.
In any case, we’re predicting you’ll see a lot more work from these three professionals on the pages of design publications in coming years.
Douglas Levine
Vitals: 33 years old, born and raised in Chatham, where he “pushed the limits.
“I was always in the vanguard when it came to style issues,” says Levine, who has a bachelor of arts degree in design and painting from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Career path: Levine got his stripes at Holly Hunt Ltd., working his way up from a sample room clerk to director of design at the Merchandise Mart showroom. He designed the company’s showrooms (there are four in the United States) as well as textiles, lighting, carpets and furniture for its private label line, The Holly Hunt Collection. After eight years he left to start his own firm, and has now been on his own for nearly a year.
Design philosophy: A fan of mid-century Modernism, Levine esteems “its clean lines and calm strong colors” yet believes in an aesthetic that “pays homage to the past while embracing the future.”
The minimalism he admires is merely a starting point. “It’s critical to layer each environment with functional, comfortable trappings that have classic lines but a contemporary bent.”
How it translates: Rooms are well-edited, balanced compositions that tend to read like still lifes, yet are actually very livable, comfortable and cutting-edge. A club chair may evoke a Deco mood but have a larger, more subdued silhouette; simple stark stools made sexy by an exotic fabrication will replace a coffee table or do double duty as seating; or prosaic 2-by-4 planks will become a sumptuous wall treatment.
Specializes in: Exercising restraint without getting too minimal, and unexpected solutions to unusual design problems (see below).
About the room shown on the cover: Despite its swanky tone, this is a temporary, cost-effective solution for a client who wants to shore up a decaying space while waiting to renovate it. It has a bold sort of permanence thanks to the planked walls (inexpensive cedar planks from Home Depot) complete with built-in shelving (the job took about two days) and contemporary classics (mostly pieces by French designer Christian Liaigre that will stand the test of time).
Clients: Besides currently working on the residences for some big-name Chicagoans, Levine is editing, restyling and redesigning the offerings of the Bright Chair Co., a 75-year-old contract furniture company based in New York.
With about 100 active pieces in the Bright Chair Co. line (which includes sofas and tables, despite the company name), at least three new collections a year and a huge crossover into the residential market, he’s busy but ready for new residential challenges.
A pro’s opinion: “He’s a major talent, and has an exceptional eye for classic scale and spatial organization, as well as an affinity for what’s new, edgy, forward and fresh,” says Holly Hunt. “It’s rare to find an interior designer who understands all these aspects of the field.”
Call: 312-440-9363.
Jeanne Gang
Vitals: 33 years old; hails from Belvidere, Ill.; has a bachelor of science degree in architecture from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, a master’s degree in architecture from Harvard University Graduate School of Design and completed a fellowship in urban design at the Swiss Federal University of Technical Studies in Zurich.
Career path: During two years at OMA/Rem Koolhaas in Rotterdam, Gang got to work on projects that ranged from the 1-million-square-foot Grand Palais exposition center in Lille, France, to a residential villa. Two years with Booth/Hansen & Associates in Chicago gave her experience leading projects.
She struck out on her own in 1997 and is an adjunct assistant professor of architecture at the Illinois Institute of Technology.
Design philosophy: “Working in many different scales is important because there are great similarities between projects regardless of size. Good design carries through to all aspects of a project and all disciplines. For instance, there’s no separation between good landscape design, good urban design, a good architectural project and a good interior.”
How it translates: Master strokes of quirky materials–such as room dividers made of metal flooring or industrial welder’s fabric (a fireproof, flexible, translucent glass)–shape large expanses into intimate spaces that can be isolated for privacy or left open to empty into each other.
Specializes in: Arranging volumes of space into sensible, functional living arrangements that maximize the effect of natural light; finding new uses for materials; and creating comfortable and engaging environments.
About the room shown on the cover: Expanded metal flooring is used to create a paneled sliding screen to “curtain” off a study; it is insulated further by a heavy velvet curtain from behind.
Clients: Currently working on a 21-acre park in Colorado for a Chicago developer, and interior renovation, expansion and design work for several local clients.
A pro’s opinion: Donna Robertson, dean of the College of Architecture at IIT, says: “Gang is one of the most innovative of her generation here in town. She’s a creative designer who is very interested in new materials and new applications of architectural technology, and she has a very fine-grained sensibility for spatial modeling and its interaction with the programmatic needs of the client.”
Call: 773-929-7974.
Myla Frohman Goldstick
Vitals: 40 years old, Goldstick was born and bred in the Chicago area, and has a bachelor of arts degree from Stephens College in Columbia, Mo. Grew up in an artistic clan and absorbed it all.
Career path: For the past three years, she has worked as an interior designer with Carol Wolk Interiors in Glencoe.
Before a hiatus to raise two sons, she had several positions in fashion marketing and decorative home accessories merchandising.
Design philosophy: “How (clients) actually (use) their rooms is the starting point for any project, and enhancing both the functional and aesthetic appeal of a space is an ultimate goal. But at the same time, it’s important to make a space inviting and alluring, which keeps it interesting.”
Approach: “It’s possible to make anything look good, or interesting and appealing, by revamping certain pieces, reusing them and mixing it all up in a different way, making a few additions or subtractions–in essence, using what you already have as raw materials.”
How it translates: Basics–such as sofas, tables and chairs–tend to be tailored, neutral and placed in eminently livable configurations, while decorative accessories are used to astonishing impact in tableaux that can be constantly rejiggered.
She has X-ray vision for spotting hidden grace and potential in objects.
Specializes in: Working within the existing parameters of a project; revamping and/or reusing objects in novel ways.
About the room shown on the cover: “It’s almost too symmetrical,” says Goldstick, who softened its lines with texture and pattern but kept its classical appeal with warm, neutral tones and tailored, yet sumptuous furnishings. Christian Liaigre benches are used as coffee tables, and a burnished leather wall hanging is actually an antique headboard from the Philippines.
Clients: Goldstick currently is overseeing five projects for Carol Wolk Interiors.
A pro’s opinion: “She’s creative, has a natural flair for accessorizing, the ability to solve design problems and a great personality for interacting with clients,” says Carol Wolk.
Call: 847-835-5500.
