Con* Art?

My design practice has evolved over the years, and I've become overwhelmed by the desire to make everything I produce Open Source. As a result, writing is the best medium for my *Conceptual Art since it can be digitally reproduced and distributed with little to no waste.

Click here for Articles I’ve written for my Staff.

Click this link for my Inspos (which our Staff writes for each other out of love).

Ⓢ Open Source

Not everything needs to have a monetary profit to justify an investment. For example, a library, community, or hiking trail, is challenging to make—and often comes at a high expense to the creator(s).

Open Source companies commit time and funds to share their discoveries, whether it’s their fabrication contacts, material suppliers, processes, or any other businessy stuff. We want to build more bridges, not bigger moats.

We-commerce > e-commerce.

Staff Radio

Every week we spin our vinyl collection and broadcast live on 98.9 FM (WJNK). By collectively DJ'ing a radio station as a Staff, we create intentional moments throughout the workday. Playing vinyl takes more time out of our day, but the time wasted together shapes our culture.

We've made countless versions of our stereo setup, TuneTown™, and each iteration has removed the obstacles to efficiently playing, choosing, mixing, and jamming.

How did I get here?

Short Story

I make products I want to own.

My products are derived from the combination of minimalism and wit.

I partner with local fabricators to Produce all my products.

Every year, the collection grows from discovering new ways to interact with objects and people.

“My design process is centered on reimagining familiar forms to inspire a new use for ordinary objects. The process involves series of reductions until the design feels effortless.”

Long Story

In 2010, I began developing products for my home in Cincinnati, OH. Two of my first products were a 5ft tall wrist watch (Watch Clock) and a 6ft cantilevering sconce (Crane Light). After quitting my day job to work full-time as a commercial artist, I started scratching the itch to design more products. Since my background was rooted in art, I lacked formal training in product design. The absence of a proper design procedure proved to be an advantage in my practice by keeping my primary focus on conceptual design.

While studying Printmaking at Maryland Institute College of Art (2005–2008), I became obsessed with inventing new ways of experiencing art on a universal level. My early work laid a foundation for his peculiar spin on ordinary mediums; from handmade artist books packaged as the prize inside cereal (Space Junk 2, 2008) to an interactive mural in which the viewers could pick the pockets of characters, and peruse their unique belongings (Pick-a-Pocket, 2008). I went on to develop one of my most successful exhibitions, Color Me (2011–Present), with Andy J. Pizza. The collaborative project enlists the spectators of the mural to become participants by coloring in the black and white mural, drawn on site by Andy and me, with giant 5ft-tall markers.

As the itch to design products kept growing, I woke one morning (in March, 2011) to find that my one-off Crane Light had been featured on several design blogs, resulting in an influx of orders. Excited by the positive response and overwhelmed by the need to make reproductions, I made the first production run out of my studio. As the orders continued to grow, so did the production batches. After exceeding in-house production capacity, I partnered with local and regional fabricators to meet demand.

Following the success of the Crane Light, I developed a full lighting collection based on the same minimal principles. The new lineup became Mobile Collection, a series of pendants and chandeliers to be combined in groupings for use in both commercial and residential spaces. Soon after, architects and designers began realizing the collection to transform lobbies, cafés, dining halls, renowned restaurants, design offices, luxury hotels and boutiques around the World. The collection of products continues to evolve as I fall in love with new mediums and concepts.