January 13, 2023
Six Designers Tell Us What They’re Specifying
Fauzia Khanani Selects Good Design that Does Good, Too
Studio Fōr’s material choices and product selection are the product of its founder’s search for manufacturers that share her values.
By: Fauzia Khanani
Khanani, a member of Design as Protest (a collective aimed at dismantling power structures that misuse architecture and design), founded Studio Fōr to foster a connection between good design and good stewardship among specifiers. Designers “can leverage our positions to be catalysts for change,” she says….Read the full story here.
What They’re Specifying: Kiyonda Powell
Energetic colors and radical patterns are hallmarks of Kiyonda Powell Design Studio’s nontraditional office environments.
By: Kiyonda Powell
After nailing interiors for her first designer show house (the Aspire House in McLean, Virginia) and the Hyattsville, Maryland, mayor’s office, Kiyonda Powell has gained a following for her uniquely vibrant vision….Read the full story here.
What They’re Specifying: Kelly Finley
Her Oakland, California–based firm Joy Street Design emphasizes clever space planning, colorful contemporary forms, and an air of approachability in its interior design.
By: Kelly Finley
Kelly Finley’s experience working as a litigator before launching Joy Street might explain why Finley’s designs feel both uplifting and rooted in the real world. “I believe that design should be purposeful,” she says….Read the full story here.
What They’re Specifying: Tiffany Howell
Period furnishings and handcrafted objects are hallmarks of Los Angeles firm Night Palm’s glam rock interiors.
By: Tiffany Howell
Former music video producer Tiffany Howell cofounded Night Palm with partner William Melton. As the principal designer, Howell draws on her interests in art, music, and fashion to create spaces that appear to have “a personal soundtrack.”….Read the full story here.
For This Shive-Hattery Principal, Curiosity Always Yields Innovation
Flexible, morale-boosting interiors distinguish the work of Michael Davis.
By: Michael Davis
From childhood model-building and electronics tinkering to his first design job planning spaces for a furniture company, Michael Davis brings the full range of his lived experiences to his role as a principal in Chicago for Shive-Hattery. Like Davis, the firm’s 14 offices are known for balancing technical and aesthetic problem-solving. But Davis doesn’t credit his career trajectory to fitting in. “It’s an opportunity to stand out,” says the Ball State University alum….Read the full story here.
8 Products Designer Nina Magon Relies on for Luxurious Interiors
The global aspirational style of world-class spas, resorts, and hotels is Houston-based designer Nina Magon’s stock-in-trade.
By: Nina Magon
As principal of her namesake firm, Nina Magon has spent 14 years mastering materials that make commercial interiors feel luxurious. To ensure her vision of rich textures and seductive curves is universally read as lush, she draws on her extensive travels as a Canadian child born to Indian expats: “The country that inspired me most was India. Silks, chiffons, beadwork, metalwork. I understood that if India had so much to offer, I could learn more from exploring the cultures of other countries,” she says….Read the full story here.
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