Born and raised amongst the Art and Architecture of the Pacific Northwest, I came to Southern California to study design and haven’t stopped thinking about it since. Excellent design must innovate or improve function, quality, and assembly as well as aesthetics. Making things “Look good” isn’t enough, we must make things “Better.” Even the form of a product should be able to answer objective questions about style decisions. Every interaction with a product is an opportunity to learn about making something that works better and brings delight into the world. I’ve been lucky to work on a broad range of projects over 30+ years but the last 10 have been focused on professional grade products in the Architectural Lighting Fixture space. There is no detail too small, nor structure too big, that doesn’t deserve a discerning judgement, asking “Why?” of its function and aesthetics. My inspiration comes from simple and elegant things, in both aesthetics and function. Every interaction on any given day has me questioning whether it could have been improved.
In my experience I have found it extraordinarily rare to have the luxury of time for extensive research and ideation on projects. More typically, severe constraints of budget and time are the norm. In addition, the package is always being shrunk, wrapping components to achieve the smallest profiles possible. To that end, my process starts in my head and comes out in small doodles to help organize my thoughts. From there I quickly move to CAD for a number of reasons: I can arrange necessary components and see if the idea in my head can fit around them realistically. Using the parametric features of Solidworks I quickly generate models to explore multiple variations of any given concept. Sometimes, the very nature of the precision in CAD can lead to new ideas. I call it "Sketching in CAD." It also allows for excellent interaction with engineering and other stakeholders early in the process. Using this process in conjunction with broader Research and Ideation allows for precise feedback. All in pursuit of ridiculously great products no matter the constraints.