My design work varies from the poetic to the pragmatic. With self-initiated projects, I tend to design for the domestic sphere, at the scale of the individual, and often without a lot of technology. My academic projects involve greater ethnographic research and participatory methods and tend toward systems-, service-, and strategic-design. The images below represents the "making" aspect of my design practice, often in collaboration with Stephanie M. Tharp and our studio, materious.
The Puzzle Tray is the result of a commission by Moët-Hennessy and Newton Vineyard to design and fabricate a limited-edition, environmentally-sensitive wine tray for their 2012 Eco-Chic program. Made of FSC-certified, quarter-sawn walnut, low-VOC wood glue, and finished with mineral oil, the tray reflects the ethos and aesthetic of the 30-plus-year-old Napa Valley winery.
PUZZLE TRAY
Wine tray with removable coasters
Limited edition of 112
Commissioned for Newton Vineyard, Moët Hennessy
Walnut wood, mineral oil, integrated corkscrew
2012
Founded by a British and Chinese couple, the tray reflects the estate’s East and West architectural elements by bounding an Asian motif of intersecting lines within a golden rectangle. The spaces created by the lines represent the 112 separate vineyard ‘blocks’ where five different grape varietals are grown. The terraced landscape is reflected in the contours of the removable coasters/plates. Just as the winery’s Chardonnay caves offer subterranean storage, a corkscrew is stored ‘below grade’ in the tray’s foot. And Newton’s icon wine is called “The Puzzle” and this is obviously referenced with removable coasters/plates that create a fun interaction for users.
ECO-CHIC PROJECT VIDEO