An alternative to the conventional approach to public infrastructure work is emerging: Ecomimicry.

Ecomimicry conceives and constructs infrastructure that aligns the needs of society with the needs of nature. It is based on the concept of taking the knowledge we have gained as an industrious society and applying it to create a global culture more in harmony with nature. When I say “nature”, I’m not talking about a vague idyllic notion of the natural world. I mean the nature that science has discovered over the past 150 years.

In this series, I (and a host of co-writers from fields as diverse as conservation biology, re-wilding, architecture, healthcare, academia, design, wildlife conservation, urban planning, and business) will discuss how infrastructure needs to change in fundamental ways.

We will have to re-imagine the very things that have given us our modern day comforts. Don’t worry, none of the ideas discussed within this series will advocate going back into the wild to live as cavemen and cavewomen. Instead, the conversation will focus on new methods of infrastructure. For example, the practice of oyster-tecture uses oysters to help improve water quality, protect shorelines, eliminate erosion, re-generate fish stocks, and shield local coastal economies from collapse. Oyster-tecture, if done correctly, costs less to build and to maintain than standard storm water management techniques.  Oysters have indirect benefits that include carbon sequestration, habitat restoration, and increased tourism.  Oyster-tecture is just one example of this new model.

Photo from NOAA Habitat Conservation

Rather than attempting to make the energy grid smarter or appliances more efficient, ecomimicry aims to eliminate the need for energy all together.  It asks questions like “Why don’t birds use heating oil?” and “Why don’t buffalo build coal plants?” At first these questions may seem silly– but their answers point us toward a way of thinking that outsmarts the accepted practices of dealing with infrastructural systems. We begin to imagine that de-engineering our world could be an option for improving our lifestyles, safety, and financial systems.

The people and political institutions of the United States have lost their taste for billion dollar fixes for necessary services. China is having a bonanza building new infrastructure such as cities, wind turbines, coal plants, and gigantic dams. They are depending solely on out-of-date ideas about urban design, infrastructure, energy, and architecture – and will find that the cost of replacing and repairing these systems in 30 to 50 years is too high, just like Americans are finding today.

Photo by Le Grand Portage

If we intend to live in a world of perpetual growth, we have to depend on services that are deeply integrated into the systems that provide life on this planet.  We will have to stop asking only architects, planners, and engineers how to rethink the built environment and start asking conservation biologists and ecologists. Ecomimicry is working to replace pumps, pipes, conduits, steel, and concrete with ecological intelligence such as wetlands, old growth forests, riparian and riverine habitats.

Unlike technologies with a track record of mere decades or centuries, ecosystem services are proven systems with millions of years of success. We evolved in these places and have a deep biophilic love for them.  Though ancient, we have only realized the empirical truth of ecology in the last hundred years – and the majority of professional fields have yet to apply this new knowledge.

Photo by J. N. Stuart

As farfetched as all this may sound, projects small and large are already practicing this new way of providing the public with needed services. In this series, I will dig deep into these topics to reveal that a future of ecomimicry is more futuristic and more effective than anything yet imagined.

Our society has a problem. It’s called infrastructure–it’s time to replace it.

Neil Chambers, LEED-AP is the CEO and founder of Chambers Design, a research-based, contemporary design company, focused on next generation architectural and technological solutions based in DUMBO Brooklyn. He is the author of Urban Green: Architecture for the Future.  Neil’s work includes urban design, green building design, energy assessment, master planning, and habitat restoration.  He is interested in the relationship between ecosystems, ecological services, buildings and infrastructure. He has taught at NYU and FIT as well as spoken throughout the United States and around the world.

At the University of Minnesota College of Design graduation ceremonies, on Saturday, May 12, John Cary, who received his BA in 1999 from the same school, delivered the 2012 commencement address. After thanking dean Thomas Fisher and the faculty of the educational institution that “has given me so much,” Cary started with his inauspicious beginnings and launched into the story of his inspirational and accomplished life story and career–the two intricately entwined. His trajectory is sharply focused on the growing field of public interest design, an area that he is personally is helping to define. Here is his message to the graduating class, any graduating class in any field in fact, as well as the design professions in search of defining the 21^st century practice.–SSS

I came to the University of Minnesota in 1995, having graduated from a Jesuit high school in Milwaukee’s inner city. Few people, except my parents who are here today, know that my first semester GPA in high school was a whopping 1.9. If you weren’t book smart or an athletic super star at my high school, you kind of fell through the cracks. At least I did.

Thankfully, I landed in the basement, where an inspiring teacher—who was trained as an engineer and taught drafting classes—introduced me to design. It was through that high school teacher that I got involved with Habitat for Humanity, and helped transform an abandoned house into a family’s dream home—to this day one of the most meaningful projects that I’ve ever worked on.

Even though my high school GPA gradually improved, it was still a minor miracle when I got accepted to the University of Minnesota. So I was initially relegated to some remedial courses, but those classes clearly worked because they prepared me to enter the college, where something happened: I came alive. In fact, the more I discovered about design, the more I came alive. Design provided this whole new way of looking at the world and understanding my role in it.

When I eventually graduated from the University of Minnesota in 1999, my classmates and I were almost as excited to hear famed architect Frank Gehry speak as we were to receive our diplomas. Mr. Gehry was receiving an honorary doctorate and was one of two invited speakers—the other being the late great architect, Ralph Rapson, whom the College of Design’s Minneapolis campus building is now named after.

We waited anxiously to hear Mr. Gehry speak. When the time finally came, he accepted the university’s honorary degree and uttered just two words: “Thank you.” Gracious, but not exactly the words of wisdom we were hoping for.

Today is probably the only opportunity I’ll ever have to one-up a starchitect. So rather than two words, I’d like to share three stories.

First, when I was an undergraduate here, every student had a mailbox—as in a physical mailbox to receive actual mail, if you can believe it, not an email inbox, although I’m young enough (barely) that we had those as well.

Our mailboxes were these thin, vertical slots, in a large wooden structure along the perimeter of the courtyard of what is now called Rapson Hall. It was there that a very official newsletter appeared at some unpredictable intervals.

The newsletters looked as if they were type written, listing announcements, deadlines, and such, only to be Xeroxed onto various shades of pastel colored paper.

It was obvious from the stacks of paper and rainbow of colors that amassed by the end of each semester that few students were reading the newsletters. Simultaneously, my peers were complaining that they didn’t know what was going on and were missing out on opportunities. To compound my frustration with the situation, the newsletters were often riddled with spelling and other grammatical errors.

So, not knowing what else to do or perhaps because I was just a sophomore punk, I started editing the newsletters with a red pen, and then sending them back to the Department of Architecture. I’m sure the departmental staff loved that.

Well, after a few episodes of these shenanigans, dean Fisher somehow found out it was me, called me into his office, closed his door, and basically asked what I was trying to prove (he was a 16-year professional editor, mind you, and I had written nothing more than term papers). Dean Fisher ultimately said that if I thought I could do a better job, he’d reassign that staff member. Stunned, I accepted.

A day or two later, I somehow worked up even more audacity to walk into the dean’s office again, and explained that I would need an office myself…and a computer. Dean Fisher replied that some faculty didn’t even have such luxuries at the time

But within weeks, I had a hulking desktop computer in a spacious, two-room, corner office, right above what was then dean’s office, albeit with an emeritus professor’s name on the door. It became something of a clubhouse for my friends and me.

And soon, I had started an email newsletter and was communicating weekly with nearly 1,000 students, staff, faculty, and a growing number of alumni.

That job—including the office—never existed before, not until I made it up.

Turns out, I’ve basically made up every job I’ve ever had, or radically altered the couple that came with position descriptions.

I was never interested in having a “job” and I generally eschew the notion of a career.

What I’ve always sought, instead, is a sense of purpose. I look for problems and I try to solve them. That’s essentially the only job description I’ve ever needed to feel inspired. I imagine, at the heart of it, the same will be true for you.

Most of the problems that I’ve identified or worked on in my career have had more to do with communication than design in the traditional sense, though I always felt like I was designing—even if not buildings, products, or other things we typically recognize as design.

The design fields are overloaded with people fighting for the rare chance to design or create the same types of things that we’ve always created—for the same types of clients we’ve always served. I’ll get to that later.

But while others are creating, I’m connecting; there’s a huge need for both, but a disproportionate number of people focused solely on the prior.

If you remember one thing from my talk today, let it be this: The world needs more connectors.

My second story starts a few years later at the ripe age of 26, as I finished my Master of Architecture at UC Berkeley. A glutton for punishment, I started my PhD, but was soon after recruited away to direct an up-and-coming nonprofit design organization, called Public Architecture, based in San Francisco.

It had a visionary founder, no funding, and little more than a mission statement at the time, but I knew it had huge potential. Our mission was simply “to put the resources of architecture in the service of the public interest.” Among other projects or stunts, we built a house out of garbage in front of San Francisco City Hall, and it became the subject of a National Geographic Channel documentary.

But we didn’t just undertake projects ourselves; we did something bigger and much more far-reaching: We launched a pro bono design service program, called “The 1%,” asking design firms nationwide to pledge a minimum of one percent of their time to providing professional services for the public good.

Were every design professional in the country to donate just 1% of their time, it would be [among] the largest design firms in the world—the equivalent of a 10,000-person design firm, working fulltime for the public good.

Imagine what a design firm of that scale could do. Imagine more welcoming community centers, more beautiful public spaces, more healing places, more dignifying public housing. Projects likes these would demonstrate for once and for all that design is a critical public service, not just a luxury for a few.

With over 1,000 firms signed on to date and an estimated $38 million in pledges annually, the real power and potential of The 1% program are to connect designers willing to give of their time with nonprofit organizations and individuals who would not otherwise be able to afford the services of a designer.

We watched with great pride and amazement as our pro bono program grew, but my all-time favorite moment during my work on The 1% program happened in an unlikely place with an unlikely person. I had gone to meet an amazing woman who is now my wonderful wife at a bar in New York City. When I arrived, she immediately introduced me to a friend, a woman she knew, named Rachel Lloyd.

Rachel is the author of a best-selling book about young girls who have been trafficked into sex work, both around the world, but also right here in America, where an estimated 300,000 girls and women are trafficked into commercial sex work each year.

While a teen in the U.K., Rachel was one of those girls, herself trafficked into sex work. In her escape, Rachel came to the U.S., and started this life-saving organization, called GEMS, short for Girls Education & Mentoring Services, based in Harlem.

When I explained to Rachel that I was a designer, she immediately asked if I knew the firm Perkins+Will. Startled, I said “Of course,” but I couldn’t imagine how she knew them.

Turns out, late one night Rachel had looked around her drab and dingy GEMS office (the kind of office most nonprofits occupy), and it occurred to her that she and the girls she was fighting to get off the streets deserved something better. They too deserved a more dignifying environment in which to work and to heal and to rebuild their lives. So that night, Rachel did a Google search and stumbled on an article about a fancy design firm, called Perkins+Will; it had a woman’s email address at the end, so she typed that woman a message.

When Rachel woke up the next morning, she was stunned to discover that the woman from Perkins+Will had responded. And within a couple of days, Perkins+Will—one of the top design firms in the country—agreed to redesign the storefront interior of Rachel’s organization as part of their pro bono pledge through The 1% program.

The space is now filled with color, life, and beauty. Over 60 major manufacturers donated materials—everything from the paint on the walls, to the carpet on the floor.

Rachel has since become one of the most articulate advocates for the power of design that I’ve ever heard. I hope someday, regardless of your exact design field, you have clients like Rachel and her girls.

If you were to remember a second thing from my talk today, let it be this:

The world is filled with deserving clients, like Rachel Lloyd.

But this one comes with a warning: When you seek them out, just be prepared for clients like Rachel to become your favorite clients and your best and most genuine spokespeople. You won’t be disappointed.

Stories like Rachel’s are the basis for my third and final story. It’s a story about us turning Rachel’s chance encounter into a real, deliberate practice. It’s about getting designers, like you, to be proactive and seek out deserving clients, like Rachel, rather than waiting for the phone to ring or an email to appear in your inbox. And rather than wasting your time on design competitions that will never see the light of day.

This is how the field of public interest law works, as does the equivalent in medicine, public health. And we’re on the brink of formalizing this type of practice into an entirely new field of public interest design.

To help make that happen, I’ve joined forces with people like dean Fisher and entities like the College of Design here at Minnesota, as well as foundations, corporations, nonprofit design organizations, and public agencies to formalize a field of public interest design.

Public interest design starts with a belief in the power of design to transform lives. It’s a belief that everyone deserves good design—and, in fact, it’s a belief that every human being needs good design in order to live their best lives.

If you believe in justice, then you believe that everyone should have access to legal services. If you believe in health, then you believe everyone needs access to health care. And if you believe in design—really truly believe in the transformative power of design—then you have to believe that people like Rachel and her girls deserve good design.

I’m here to invite you to be a part of this field. It doesn’t require you to give all of your time away, found a nonprofit, or even work for one. As Perkins+Will has proven, there’s a ton you can do from the comforts of a firm or company or wherever you work. There are also opportunities and huge needs for designers in AmeriCorps, the Peace Corps, in government, in policy, in schools, and so many other settings.

It pains me that there’s not yet a design version of Teach for America to point you to. But just open your eyes, and everywhere you look, there is an unmet need that design very well has the ability to remedy, at least in part. No project is too small; it can take the form of a product for you industrial designers, or a building for you architects, or a landscape or public space, or a fashion campaign, or a communications design campaign, or an interior, like Rachel’s organization in Harlem.

But addressing bigger social challenges will require breaking from the usual way that designers have worked—serving the needs of private individuals, as a doctor would a single patient. Instead, we need to start considering the needs of entire communities, especially ones that can’t afford to pay.

There have been several sensationalized newspaper articles this year about the decline of design jobs, architecture in particular. I take a different view of this purported decline and this purported crisis: I think this may be the moment that design has been waiting for. It’s our chance to break our profession’s bad habit of structuring our professional services solely around a single client, and only to the extent that this client has the means to pay us to serve their interests.

Graduates, you are the next generation of designers. But I think you can be much, much more: You can be the pioneers of an entirely new way of designing for the public good—at a scale and a pace that we’ve never seen before—at a scale and pace that the world needs and deserves.

If we’re going to achieve this, you all as the next generation will need to be far more entrepreneurial and think far more systemically than designers ever have before.

Whether or not you have a job secured and know your exact next steps along your career path, I hope you walk across this stage today energized to discover the many dots left to be connected in this field and beyond.

I hope you have the privilege of meeting and transforming the life of someone like Rachel Lloyd, but be warned, she may transform your life as well.

And I hope you feel like you’re a part of this movement, this public interest design movement in the making.

We need you and so does the world.

And, now, in the immortal words of Frank Gehry, Thank You.

John Cary is the editor of PublicInterestDesign.org and is currently serving as the first guest curator in residence at the Autodesk Gallery in San Francisco.

Business consultant, regenerative systems thinker, planner, business consultant, regenerative systems thinker, and author of The Responsible Business: Reimagining Sustainability & Success (2011), Carol Sanford gave a keynote address on the last day of the Living Future “un-conference” in Portland, Oregon. Working as a land planner, she began to explore ways to think about “the whole system,” which led her to regenerative systems thinking.

She began to believe that the leverage points in our system were often in the business world, and started consulting private companies, such as Kingsford, manufacturers of charcoal for home grills. “We never said ‘you should care about the environment,’ or exhorted concern for ‘the community.’ We just talked about how the entire system worked,” she said. “Looking at the whole system and listening to customers resulted in amazing improvements in the product and its manufacture as well as a vast market share that has persisted to this day.” Sanford’s book has been celebrated as a top business book of last year (not as a green business book), and it’s all about 30 companies that became “green” and socially responsible without being told to do so.

In fact, Sanford shies away from those words (and seems a little peeved that “sustainability” is in the subtitle of her book at all). “I work on creating great businesses; I do not work on corporate responsibility or sustainability,” she said. “The power is moving away from organizations to individuals. This is due in part to social media.” Her next book will be The Responsible Human, and she’s looking for crowd-source input to develop the content.

She is fascinated by what moves people—and what does not. “We often think that people are not paying attention to the data,” she said, “but it turns out that is not usually the barrier when someone appears stuck on a given issue. It’s often a capability issue.” Sanford believes that there are ways to open up people (and the organizations they populate) to a process of capability expansion that can add value—and meaning—to lives and businesses and systems.

Kira Gould, Assoc. AIA, LEED AP, is director of communications for William McDonough + Partners, an architecture firm with studios in Charlottesville, Virginia, and San Francisco. She is also co-author of Women in Green: Voices of Sustainable

This past Sunday evening Emily Pilloton delivered the commencement address at the College of Environmental Design at UC Berkeley, her alma mater. Here is a lightly edited version of her inspirational talk that can apply to everyone in the design field today, not just to new grads, as well as to anyone seeking to put meaning in what they do all day.–SSS

I feel fairly unqualified to be your graduation speaker: I was not a great student during my time here. I am not really a good “adult,” either, as I have no savings account or long-term health insurance. Also, I am not primarily interested in addressing you as architects and designers this evening, but first and foremost as citizens, and only then, as members of a professional community.

So with those disclaimers in mind, I want to share two stories with you. They are not stories of success so much as adventure. Take them as cautionary tales or advice or just stories of a girl who, like you, graduated from this institution and is still trying to find the best modes of operation in design and in life.

First story: Almost five years ago, I quit a corporate retail design job, selecting paint colors and doorknobs, moved in with my parents, and started a nonprofit design agency with no business plan and $1,000 in my bank account. Many people called this impulsive.

I started Project H Design out of frustration: I wanted design to matter. Yes, I wanted to contribute something with my skills, but I also wanted to be challenged. I wanted to push myself and push design to have to grapple with the complexity of reality: of real people, real places, and real problems. I stood in the Secretary of State’s office on January 8, 2008, holding my incorporation documents in my hand, with no business savvy, just a mission statement; no slush fund, just my own checking account. And yet, from impulsiveness, we can learn the importance of starting.

Having put that stake in the ground, in legal corporate form, I was forced to figure it out.  In our first two years, Project H completed over dozen projects in six countries, I wrote a book about humanitarian design, got in an Airstream trailer and drove to 35 cities in 75 days on a Design Revolution Road Show, and picked up a border collie puppy as an impulse buy in Texas along the way. What some call impulse, others call initiative. Ideas are worth little without action. The best way to start is simply to start.

I said these exact words to a design student I met in Detroit, who was working on a project with the homeless population. She asked me, “What’s the best way to get started, to make this a real enterprise and not just a school project?” I gave her the stupidly simple answer: “The best way to start is to simply start.” Now, two years later, her organization, The Empowerment Plan,

is thriving. She has a viable financial plan, a manufacturing facility, and employed numerous homeless individuals using design as the vehicle. She recently sent me an email to thank me for my advice. But I can take no credit. The bravery is all hers: the hardest, but always the most important thing to do, is simply to start.

Second story: In 2009, my Project H partner, Matthew Miller, and I, uprooted the organization from its headquarters in San Francisco (aka our apartment), and moved to a town of 2,000 in the deep South and became high school shop teachers. Most people, including my own grandmother, called this crazy.

We moved to Bertie County, in the impoverished and uber-rural northeastern part of North Carolina, the land of tobacco, cotton, poisonous snakes, and some heartbreaking remnants of slavery-era racism, on the invitation of the visionary public school superintendent. He believed in design, and asked us to help prove that creativity could be a path to progress, in a community with a severe allergy to change.

Over the past three years, Matt and I have gone deep, designing and building new computer labs, a weight room for the football team, plastering countywide graphic campaigns on the sides of buildings, and most importantly, becoming teachers ourselves. Our curriculum, Studio H, teaches high school juniors creativity, critical thinking, citizenship, and construction skills to equip them as job- and college-ready individuals. They do this as part of their school day, earning high school and college credit, and a working wage during on-site construction.

Our Studio H students have designed and built three public chicken coops, a 2,000-square-foot farmers market pavilion for their hometown of Windsor (they also started the market as a local enterprise), and two smaller iconic farm stands that double as community bulletin boards. Matt and I may be trained as architects and designers, but in Bertie County, we also tutored students in pre-calculus, became licensed school bus drivers, rescued stray hunting dogs, fought with the school board, wrote college recommendation letters, ran marathons, organized events with the mayor, attended Rotary club meetings, and accidentally started saying y’all. We take little credit for what our students have built: it was their vision for their hometown. They were given the key to the city for building the farmers market, many are the first in their families to graduate high school or go to college, and they are leaders of their own community.

At the opening ceremony for the farmers market, one of our students said to the mayor, “I hope to bring my kids back here someday and tell them that I built this.” And later he turned and said to us, “Studio H made me see the world, and myself, differently, and I will never be the same.”

Many called this move to the Deep South crazy. We definitely found it uncomfortable as we were pushed to our physical and emotional limits. But from discomfort, we learn that we can only to know the richness of life through active experience.

One of the quotes we love most is from a chapter of Thoreau’s Walden:

“I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life…to cut a broad swath and shave close, to drive life into a corner… and, if it proved to be mean, why then to get the whole and genuine meanness of it; or if it were sublime, to know it by experience.”

We cannot merely talk, we must do. Matthew B. Crawford, who wrote the fantastic book Shopclass as Soulcraft, describes this as not merely knowing that, but knowing how (for example not only teaching our students that the weight of concrete is about 150 pounds per cubic foot, but more importantly how to design, engineer, and pour a concrete foundation footer). It is not merely enough to be well read, to know the facts, and to be able to recount them from a conference podium. We must know how to do things, and the only way to learn how, is to do.

Do something with all you have learned–something for others, something for your family, for the planet, for fun, for love. Just do something. Seek not the glory but the task, not the limelight, but the sunlight. Do not sit idle or live your life through a screen. Stop tweeting and start contributing. With our high school students, we ban the use of two phrases: “I’m bored,” and “I’m done.” You, too, must be never be either.

Despite the seeming misguidance of each of these two moments, they are somehow the proudest of my life (in hindsight, of course). The irresponsible, impulsive, and uncomfortable teach us how to be optimistically disobedient, how to start against all odds, and how to be present and go deep in the world. My hope for each of you is that you seek out and find yourself in similarly irresponsible, impulsive, and uncomfortable situations that solidify your strength of mind and hand as a citizen and as a designer.

Of course, you are graduating into a professional community that is currently facing some challenges: some say growing pains; some say identity crisis. Don’t freak out, but architecture boasts the highest unemployment rate of any industry–you may have seen the recent article that broadcasted this fact. And many of us find ourselves in a crisis of conscience, seeking to shift our role as bearers of a privilege for the 1%, to couriers of a creative resource for everyone.

The good news is that as architects and designers, it is in our fabric to believe in possibility and in building a better future, so in the challenges of our changing profession, we should see only a context in which to find new solutions, to trade in new currencies, and to rewrite our own job descriptions. With our skill sets, what else can we do? Where can we contribute? Can we carry our toolboxes into unexpected roles, architects disguised as high school teachers, public policy makers, and strategists, where creative thinking would be an untapped resource? The thing that will ground us and help us define the next phase of our profession is our citizenship, both personal and collective, and this is why I believe it is the only place to start.

My stories lend two lessons: Start now. Know life through experience. We as architects, designers, builders, are particularly equipped to do these two things. We are both the offenders of culture and the defenders of culture. Environmental design is both an expression of community and a source community. If what we do, at its core, is build responses to context, then we are uniquely poised to be change makers: We build beautiful, crazy, functional physical solutions, and we do it with optimism in the context of the here and now. Start now. Know life through experience.

When we talk about change, we often circle back to the well-known Gandhi quote: “Be the change you wish to see in the world.” I hope we can do him one better: Let’s build the change we wish to see. Thank you very much.

Emily Pilloton is the founder and executive director of Project H and the author of Design Revolution: 100 Products that Empower People (a Metropolis Book).

Various parts of this post was amended to better reflect the speech on Monday May 14, 2012.

Jason McLennan has a potty mouth. The head of the International Living Future Institute, which recently hosted the Living Future conference in Portland, Oregon, says that he regularly uses his keynote to christen the conference’s four-letter word. Last year, there was a lot of talk about composting toilets, so “shit” was the word. This year, he challenged the nearly 1,000 conference participants to find ways to use the most complex one of all: love. “This is the most dangerous word of all,” he said. “My challenge to you: Use this word liberally with meaning and heart. Try to use the word love at least once every 30 minutes. It is essential that we open our hearts to awaken the human spirit. It’s going to take a lot more than PVs and FSC wood to change the world.”

The theme of the conference this year was Women Reshaping the World, which McLennan noted can be uncomfortable for men (and some women) to talk about. But he’s fine with that. “We have to be uncomfortable to make change,” he said. “This is not about ‘women can do it, too,’” he noted. “This is about the fact that women and their leadership are essential to this movement, which will not advance without more equity in political, business, and design leadership.”

He told a great story about the first woman to run the Boston Marathon, Kathrine Switzer. She registered as K. Switzer and was physically attacked by the race organizer when it was clear that she was a woman. But her follow up was to get in touch with that organizer and talk to him. Which wound up changing his mind, and he became instrumental in opening the race to women. “She used love and communication,” McLennan pointed out. Without which, he added, “the green building movement is bullshit.”

Kira Gould, Assoc. AIA, LEED AP, is director of communications for William McDonough + Partners, an architecture firm with studios in Charlottesville, Virginia, and San Francisco. She is also co-author of Women in Green: Voices of Sustainable

The Hunger Games cover design by Tim O’brien

The Hunger Games movie poster designed by Ignition Print

O’Brien is an illustrator and portrait painter who’s work has been featured on the cover of Time, Harpers and Rolling Stone, among others. His paintings are in the collection of the National Gallery, Washington, DC., and he is a winner of the prestigious Hamilton King Award from the Society of Illustrators. His work is intricately detailed and imaginative with a curious balance of realism and fantasy that makes him the perfect fit for The Hunger Games. Not so coincidently, his wife Elizabeth Parisi happens to be the Creative Director at Scholastic.

O’Brien’s depiction of the mockingjay pin is intriguing because it transforms an object used as a symbol in the story to an iconic logo that now represents a multi-million dollar franchise. His illustration informed the actual pin used in the first movie of the series and the logo used for the branding.

In his recent TED talk Chip Kidd tells a similar story of book cover becomes major franchise branding when he talks about his experience designing the Jurassic Park cover. What started as a simple tracing of a T-Rex skeleton for the book cover later became the basis for a brand that now houses an almost never ending film series, clothing line, video games, and comics.

Jurassic Park cover design by Chip Kidd,
Photo courtesy designerstalk.com

Jurassic Park film logo

A lot of film branding often diverges too far from the original vision depicted in the book cover, which might have inspired a much better visual branding. Here is a look at some books that went from book to movie and could have used some help from their original cover designers.

American Psycho book cover design by The Lloyd Ziff Design Group
image courtesy bookcoverarchive.com

American Psycho movie poster designed by Indika Entertainment Advertising

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close cover designed by Gray318,
image courtesy bookcoverarchive.com

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close movie poster designed by BLT COMMUNICATIONS, LLC

On the Road cover design by Greg Mollica,
image courtesy bookcoverarchive.com

On the Road movie poster designed by Le Cercle Noir

Check out the Metropolis Design Guide for Design Week events and highlights from New York’s most design-forward neighborhoods.  And look for the printed version of the Metropolis Design Guide around the city, especially in Chelsea at WantedDesign, in Midtown at the Architects & Designers Building and the Decoration & Design Building, in Flatiron at the New York Design Center, and at the newsstand at ICFF at the Javits Center.

Keep an eye out for what we “like” during NY Design Week. Around the city, you’ll see our lovely signs, produced by 3M Architectural Markets using 3M ™ Crystal Glass Finishes, at all of our editors’ favorite, must-see spots. Throughout our neighborhood listings, you’ll also see a next to our favorites.

METROPOLIS LIKES ICFF
Celebrated hub for the latest trends in international design, the International Contemporary Furniture Fair returns this year to the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center. May 19^th to May 22^nd. Get there: Eleventh Ave. at W. 38th St. Find out more: 800-272-7469 or icff.com (image courtesy Barcelona).

SHOWROOMS

A&D (ARCHITECTS & DESIGNERS) BUILDING
150 E. 58th St.
btw. Third and Lexington Aves.
(212) 644-2766
adbuilding.com
More than 35 showrooms for companies such as B&B Italia, Davis & Warshow, Holly Hunt, Miele, and Poggenpohl.

ALNO
150 E. 58th St., Ste. 1021
btw. Third and Lexington Aves.
(212) 688-8088
alno.com
More than 200 contemporary door styles, 1,700 finishes, and 80 years of “green” manufacturing.

B&B ITALIA
150 E. 58th St., 1st and 2nd fls.
btw. Third and Lexington Aves.
(212) 758-4046
bebitalia.com
Italian furniture, including work by Antonio Citterio, Jeffrey Bernett, and Patricia Urquiola. Also has a location in Soho.

BERNHARDT DESIGN
58 W. 40th St., 3rd fl.
btw. Fifth and Sixth Aves.
(212) 997-6600
bernhardtdesign.com
Furnishings by Arik Levy, Jaime Hayon, Jeffrey Bernett, Suzanne Trocmé, and others.

BILOTTA KITCHENS OF NEW YORK
150 E. 58th St., 9th fl.
btw. Third and Lexington Aves.
(212) 486-6338, bilotta.com
Full-service kitchen design, featuring cabinetry by Rutt, Artcraft, and Bilotta.

BIZHAN HOME
344 W. 38th St., Ste. 503
btw. Eighth and Ninth Aves.
(212) 239-7216, bizhan.com
Contemporary kitchen and bath collections.

CASSINA USA
155 E. 56th St.
btw. Third and Lexington Aves.
(212) 245-2121, cassinausa.com
Modern classics and contemporary furnishings by Le Corbusier, Albini, Rietveld, Lissoni, Bellini, and others.

CLASSIC RUG COLLECTION
979 Third Ave., Ste. 1805
btw. E. 58th and E. 59th Sts.
(212) 832-3338, classicrug.com
High-quality rugs in contemporary designs using natural fibers.

CLIVE CHRISTIAN NEW YORK
150 E. 58th St., Ste. 502
btw. Third and Lexington Aves.
(212) 935-5800, clive.com
Classical, luxurious furniture.

CRESTRON DESIGN
979 Third Ave., Ste. 407
btw. E. 58th and E. 59th Sts.
(212) 223-2434
showroom.crestron.com
Home technology artfully blended into interior design.

D&D (DECORATION & DESIGN) BUILDING
979 Third Ave.
btw. E. 58th and E. 59th Sts.
(212) 759-5408, ddbuilding.com
More than 120 trade-only showrooms for thousands of manufacturers of the finest furnishings and accessories.

DAVID SUTHERLAND
979 Third Ave., Ste. 813
btw. E. 58th and E. 59th Sts.
(212) 871-9717
davidsutherlandshowroom.com
Full-service collection of furniture and accessories.

DECORFIN USA
227 E. 57th St.
btw. Second and Third Aves.
(212) 308-8255, decorfinusa.com
High-end, decorative wall finishes.

DESIGN LINES BY HENRIK HALL, INC
410 Park Ave., 15th fl.
btw. E. 54th and E. 55th Sts.
(877) 354-6362
designlinesbyhhi.com
Sole United States importer of d line hardware and Meinertz hot-water-heating systems.

EGGERSMANN USA
150 E. 58th St., 10th fl.
btw. Third and Lexington Aves.
(212) 688-4910
eggersmannusa.com
Classic and modern kitchens and accessories.

FLEXFORM NY
155 E. 56th St.
btw. Third and Lexington Aves.
(212) 355-2328, flexformny.com
Just opened in March 2012, the Italian manufacturer’s first New York showroom of high-quality modern furniture and accessories.

GE MONOGRAM DESIGN CENTER
150 E. 58th St., 10th fl.
btw. Third and Lexington Aves.
(212) 223-1699
monogram.com
Luxury kitchens with professional ranges and refrigeration products.

GEIGER INTERNATIONAL
152 W. 57th St., 3rd fl.
btw. Sixth and Seventh Aves.
(212) 974-5000, geigerintl.com
Modular, wooden case goods and architectural furniture.

GRACIE
979 Third Ave., Ste. 1411
btw. E. 58th and E. 59th Sts.
(212) 924-6816
graciestudio.com
New and antique hand-painted wallpaper, plus Asian antiques.

GRANDE CENTRAL
141 E. 56th St.
btw. Third and Lexington Aves.
(212) 588-1997
centralplumbingspec.com
See Soho listing.

HASTINGS TILE & BATH
150 E. 58th St., 10th fl.
btw. Third and Lexington Aves.
(212) 674-9700
hastingstilebath.com
Diverse selection of European bath and tile accessories.

HAWORTH
125 Park Ave., 2nd fl.
btw. E. 41st and E. 42nd Sts.
(212) 977-5350, haworth.com
Office furniture and interiors in a showroom designed by Perkins+Will and Eva Maddox Branded Environments.

HERMAN MILLER, INC
1177 Sixth Ave., 17th fl.
btw. W. 45th and W. 46th Sts.
(212) 318-3900, hermanmiller.com
New and classic designs, including My Studio Environments and Teneo storage furniture; appointment recommended.

INNOVATIONS
979 Third Ave., Ste. 1717
btw. E. 58th and E. 59th Sts.
800-576-7229
innovationsusa.com
Designs and manufactures award-winning wall coverings, textiles.

JERRY PAIR
979 Third Ave., Ste. 502
btw. E. 58th and E. 59th Sts.
(212) 546-9001
jerrypair.com
New York outpost of the Atlanta-based design and fabric showroom.

KRAVET
979 Third Ave., Ste. 324
btw. E. 58th and E. 59th Sts.
(212) 421-6363
kravet.com
Fabric, trimmings, furniture, carpets, and lighting.

LARS BOLANDER NY
232 E. 59th St., 3rd fl.
btw. Second and Third Aves.
(212) 924-1000
larsbolander.com
French and Swedish museum-quality antiques and reproductions.

MAHARAM
979 Third Ave., Ste. 1701
btw. E. 58th and E. 59th Sts.
(212) 319-4789
maharam.com
Innovative designs in commercial fabric since 1902.

MICHAEL TAYLOR DESIGNS
979 Third Ave., Ste. 1640
btw. E. 58th and E. 59th Sts.
(646) 497-1502
michaeltaylordesigns.com
Innovative home design.

MIELE
150 E. 58th St., Ste. 951
btw. Third and Lexington Aves.
800-843-7231
miele.com
The world’s largest family-owned appliance company.

MOSS
256 W. 36th St., 10th fl.
btw. Seventh and Eighth Aves.
866-888-6677
mossonline.com
Celebrated retail space expertly curated by founder Murray Moss.

MOURA STARR
979 Third Ave., Ste. 401
btw. E. 58th and E. 59th Sts.
(212) 888-9058
mourastarr.com
Original modern furniture made from sustainable sources.

MSK ILLUMINATION
235 E. 57th St.
btw. Second and Third Aves.
(212) 888-6474
mskillumination.com
Lighting fixtures by Baldinger, Foscarini, Woka, and more.

NOVA STUDIO INTERNATIONAL
150 E. 58th St., 3rd fl.
btw. Third and Lexington Aves.
(212) 624-1400
novastudio.com
Arclinea kitchens, Lema wardrobes, and more.

OASIQ
242 E. 58th St.
btw. Second and Third Aves.
(212) 355-0625
oasiq.com
Outdoor furnishings, including Vladimir Kagan’s Ego Paris line.

POGGENPOHL US
150 E. 58th St., 1st fl.
btw. Third and Lexington Aves.
(212) 355-3666
poggenpohl-usa.com
See Flatiron listing.

POLIFORM USA
150 E. 58th St., 6th fl.
btw. Third and Lexington Aves.
(212) 421-1800
poliformusa.com
Italian manufacturer of kitchen, wardrobe, wall-unit, bedroom, dining-room, and living-room furniture.

PROMEMORIA
232 E. 59th St., 5th fl.
btw. Second and Third Aves.
(646) 588-4409
promemoria.com
Creating luxury furnishings in the finest tradition of quality Italian craftsmanship.

RESOURCE FURNITURE
969 Third Ave., 4th fl.
at 58th St.
(212) 753-2039
resourcefurniture.com
Known for its space-transforming pieces, including wall beds and morphing tables.

RICHARD SCHULTZ DESIGN  
979 Third Ave., 15th fl.
btw. E. 58th and E. 59th Sts.
(212) 688-3620
richardschultz.com
Outdoor-furniture company that makes sculptural classics.

ROBERT ALLEN
979 Third Ave., Ste. 301
btw. E. 58th and E. 59th Sts.
(212) 421-1200
robertallendesign.com
One of the world’s largest fabric designers and producers for the interior design trade.

THE SHADE STORE
200 E. 59th St. at Third Ave.
(212) 645-2424
theshadestore.com
State-of-the-art mini-showroom for custom window treatments.

SHAW CONTRACT GROUP
521 Fifth Ave., 37th fl.
at E. 43rd St.
(212) 953-7429
shawcontractgroup.com
Eco-friendly flooring.

SNAIDERO USA NEW YORK
150 E. 58th St., 8th fl.
btw. Third and Lexington Aves.
(212) 980-6026
snaidero-usa.com
Innovative Italian kitchens, including Kube, a collection by architect Giorgio Borruso.

STEELCASE
4 Columbus Cir. at W. 58th St.
(212) 445-8800
steelcase.com
Ergonomic workplace furniture.

SUB-ZERO/WOLF
150 E. 58th St., 5th fl.
btw. Third and Lexington Aves.
(212) 207-9223
subzero.com
Premier kitchen appliances.

VALLI&VALLI USA
964 Third Ave., Ste. 563/annex
at E. 58th St.
(212) 326-8811
vallievalli.com
Door hardware and accessories by notable designers like architects Frank Gehry and Zaha Hadid.

VIKING SHOWROOM/CARL SCHAEDEL AND CO.
969 Third Ave. at E. 58th St.
(212) 753-5345
vikingrange.com
Top-end kitchen appliances.

WATERWORKS
215 E. 58th St.
btw. Second and Third Aves.
(212) 371-9266
waterworks.com
The brand’s flagship, featuring a two-story showroom.

MUSEUMS & INSTITUTIONS

AMERICAN FOLK ART MUSEUM
2 Lincoln Sq. at W. 66th St.
(212) 265-1040
folkartmuseum.org
International exhibitions that highlight folk art and the work of contemporary self-taught artists.

INSTITUTE OF CLASSICAL ARCHITECTURE & ART
20 W. 44th St.
btw. Fifth and Sixth Aves.
(212) 730-9646
classicist.org
Organization dedicated to the classical tradition in architecture, urbanism, and the fine arts.

JAPAN SOCIETY
333 E. 47th St.
btw. First and Second Aves.
(212) 832-1155
japansociety.org
Bringing Japan and the United States closer through programs in the arts, culture, business, education, and public policy.

MUNICIPAL ART SOCIETY
111 W. 57th St.
btw. Sixth and Seventh Aves.
(212) 935-3960
mas.org
Regular programming on issues of design, architecture, preservation, and public art. Also offers public walking tours of the cityscape.

MUSEUM OF ARTS & DESIGN
2 Columbus Cir. at Eighth Ave.
(212) 299-7777
madmuseum.org
Collection of crafts, decorative arts, and design in Allied Works Architecture’s new adaptation of Edward Durell Stone’s famed Lollipop Building.

MUSEUM OF MODERN ART (MoMA)
11 W. 53rd St.
btw. Fifth and Sixth Aves.
(212) 708-9400, moma.org
Japanese architect Yoshio Taniguchi’s latest iteration of the house that Alfred H. Barr Jr. built, designed with Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates.

SCANDINAVIA HOUSE
58 Park Ave. at E. 38th St.
(212) 779-3587
scandinaviahouse.org
Design lectures and exhibitions, among many other programs, celebrating Scandinavian culture.

WARP & WEFT
145 Madison Ave. at E. 32nd St.
(212) 481-4949
warpandweft.com
A to-the-trade luxury rug showroom headquartered locally.

SHOPS

INTERIEURS
228 E. 58th St.
btw. Second and Third Aves.
(212) 343-0800, interieurs.com
Furniture, lighting, and accessories to create modern and soulful living environments.

MoMA DESIGN STORE
44 W. 53rd St.
btw. Fifth and Sixth Aves.
(212) 767-1050, momastore.org
A sophisticated collection of design objects, gifts, jewelry, personal accessories, furniture, and lighting.

MUJI TIMES SQUARE
620 Eighth Ave.
at W. 40th St.
(212) 382-2300
muji.com
Flagship store for minimalist Japanese design.

RESTAURANTS & BARS

BRASSERIE
100 E. 53rd St.
btw. Lexington and Park Aves.
(212) 751-4840
patinagroup.com
Offering updated French brasserie fare and decadent desserts in a futuristic, cosmopolitan setting.

CASA LEVER
390 Park Ave.
at E. 53rd St.
(212) 888-2700
leverhouse.com
Milanese fare in a contemporary space by Marc Newson, within the iconic Lever House, a Skidmore, Owings & Merrill modern classic.

COMFORT DINER
214 E. 45th St.
btw. Second and Third Aves.
(212) 867-4555
comfortdiner.com
Home cooking and quick service, complete with diner favorites.

FOUR SEASONS
99 E. 52nd St.
btw. Lexington and Park Aves.
(212) 754-9494
fourseasonsrestaurant.com
Featuring an award-winning menu of American seasonal specialties, created from local ingredients.

GRAND CENTRAL OYSTER BAR & RESTAURANT
Grand Central Station, Lower Concourse
at E. 42nd St. and Park Ave.
(212) 490-6650
oysterbarny.com
A 97-year-old landmark.

LE CIRQUE
151 E. 58th St.
btw. Third and Lexington Aves.
(212) 644-0202
lecirque.com
Modern French dining in the classiest of big tops, designed by Adam D. Tihany.

THE MODERN (at MoMA)
9 W. 53rd St.
btw. Fifth and Sixth Aves.
(212) 333-1220
themodernnyc.com
Bauhaus-inspired dining room looks out at the sculpture garden.

ROUGE TOMATE
10 E. 60th St.
btw. Madison and Fifth Aves.
(646) 237-8977
rougetomatenyc.com
Eco-chic modern American dining designed by Bentel & Bentel.

TEODORA
141 E. 57th St.
btw. Third and Lexington Aves.
(212) 826-7101
teodorarestaurant.com Northern Italian specialties in a two-story town house.

The MoMA Design Store on 53 St. in New York City.

Want a chance to be in the Museum of Modern Art? Well, the MoMA Design Store at least. If you are a talented designer based in one of New York City’s five boroughs, then the design store’s open call may just be for you. The store is inviting local New York City designers to submit items for a product collection launching next year. “In addition to working with designers from around the world, the MoMA Design Store has also been a longtime champion of local design right here in our own backyard,” Kathy Thornton-Bias, president of MoMA’s retail division. “We’re proud that many of the designers we’ve nurtured over the years have gone on to achieve incredible success at home and abroad.”

The store is looking for submissions from a wide range of product categories including: home (tabletop, kitchen, home textiles, desk, gadgets/tools), paper (note cards, postcards, journals), kids’ games and toys, personal accessories (bags, jewelry, scarves, wallets, pouches, and other small accessories), furniture (wall clocks, stools, lighting), and books. However, the MoMA Design Store also encourages designers to submit items that fall outside these categories. For submissions to be considered, products must be already, or soon-to-be, in production, manufactured in the continental United States, and able to be delivered to MoMA in saleable condition.

“The open call process was created to make ourselves as accessible as possible to emerging and established designers who represent the diversity, passion, and talent of New York City’s creative community,” says Thornton-Bias. For submissions to be considered, products must be already, or soon-to-be, in production, manufactured in the continental United States, and able to be delivered to MoMA in saleable condition. Interested designers should visit MoMAstore.org/NYC for additional information.

The winning team, Radford University interior design students Lory Marsocci, Anna Beydoun, Kelsey Keller, Kate Croy, and Lauren Reinhard used animation to put their point across. Their approach and their message change the game. Instead of promoting the value of design they focus on why interior designers matter. It tells the story of what interior designers do to improve people’s quality of life through research and education, and references design education as a way to prevent problems in the built environment. The video also focuses on the ability of interior designers to build successful businesses for their clients, by drawing customers in and improving consumer loyalty through branding, research, communication, and psychology (in other words, things interior designers do all the time).

The winning entry, “Why We Matter,” also points out the downside of a world without educated interior designers. “For example, a poorly designed workplace can make you likely to call in sick, or actually become sick, quit your job, or even worse, become an unproductive employee,” says the narrator. “This chain of events could snowball into the loss of the company, demise of the related organizations and partners of that company and more drastically causing the local economy and jobs to crumble.” While this may sound a bit dramatic, the thoughts resonate.

The video ends on a high note, stating that interior designers want to make a difference, “coming to the rescue”. It concludes with the team’s aspirations, “We fight to keep businesses in business. Great spaces, exceptional experiences and creative ideas can help mold a greater local, regional and global economy. That’s why we matter!”

Our profession has a bright future with smart design-thinkers like the Radford University team. I highly recommend viewing their impactful message about the value of design and why interior designers matter. Share it with your associates and clients; they will appreciate it.

Georgy Olivieri is the eastern region director of sustainability, architecture and design for Kimball^® Office. She is co-author of the book Design Does Matter, and holds an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management and is a LEED accredited professional.

Check out the Metropolis Design Guide for Design Week events and highlights from New York’s most design-forward neighborhoods. And look for the printed version of the Metropolis Design Guide around the city, especially in Chelsea at WantedDesign, in Midtown at the Architects & Designers Building and the Decoration & Design Building, in Flatiron at the New York Design Center, and at the newsstand at ICFF at the Javits Center.

Keep an eye out for what we “like” during NY Design Week. Around the city, you’ll see our lovely signs, produced by 3M Architectural Markets using 3M ™ Crystal Glass Finishes, at all of our editors’ favorite, must-see spots. Throughout our neighborhood listings, you’ll also see a next to our favorites.

METROPOLIS LIKES AVENUE ROAD
Newly opened for ICFF, the showroom will launch the latest pieces from Christophe Delcourt and Yabu Pushelberg. Collections include designs by Jacques Guillon, Simone Coste, Moss & Lam, and others. For more information, see listing below (image courtesy showroom).

SHOWROOMS

AF NEW YORK
22 W. 21st St., 5th fl.
btw. Fifth and Sixth Aves.
(212) 243-5400, afnewyork.com
H. T. Chang–designed showcase for kitchen and bath products.

ALLSTEEL
79 Madison Ave., 14th fl.
at E. 28th St.
(212) 779-2146
allsteeloffice.com
Warm, eclectic materials showcase furniture solutions in this space designed by Gensler.

ARCADIA
200 Lexington Ave., Ste. 1500
btw. E. 32nd and E. 33rd Sts.
888-410-4477
arcadiacontract.com
Manufacturer of contract-furniture seating and table options for offices, institutions, and more.

ARTISTIC TILE
38 W. 21st St.
btw. Fifth and Sixth Aves.
(212) 727-9331, artistictile.com
Global selection of imported stone and artisanal tile.

AVENUE ROAD
145 W. 28th St., 5th fl.
btw. Sixth and Seventh Aves.
212-453-9880
avenue-road.com
Classic and contemporary furniture, lighting, and accessories.

BAKER KNAPP & TUBBS
200 Lexington Ave., 3rd fl.
btw. E. 32nd and E. 33rd Sts.
(212) 779-8810
bakerfurniture.com
Celebrated furnishings, from classics to the unexpected.

BAZZÈO CABINETS
6 W. 20th St.
btw. Fifth and Sixth Aves.
(212) 206-7400, bazzeo.com
Kitchen, bath, and cabinet systems made from recycled materials.

BLACKMAN NEW YORK
85 Fifth Ave., 2nd fl.
at E. 16th St.
(212) 337-1000
blackman.com
Kitchen and bath showroom by Shelton, Mindel & Associates.

BOCONCEPT
105 Madison Ave. at E. 30th St.
(212) 686-8188
boconcept.com
One of five city branches of the Danish modular-furniture chain.

BRUETON
200 Lexington Ave., Ste. 1502
btw. E. 32nd and E. 33rd Sts.
(212) 838-1630, brueton.com
Manufacturer of high-quality furnishings, with custom offerings.

CANCOS TILE & STONE
22 W. 21st St.
btw. Fifth and Sixth Aves.
(212) 627-1545, cancos.com
Custom countertops and vanities, plus tile.

CARNEGIE FABRICS
41 W. 25th St., 2nd fl.
btw. Fifth and Sixth Aves.
(212) 627-2060
carnegiefabrics.com
A creative approach to textiles and wall coverings by leading designers.

CHARLES P. ROGERS
55 W. 17th St.
btw. Fifth and Sixth Aves.
(212) 675-4400
charlesprogers.com
America’s oldest bed maker.

CHILEWICH DESIGN STUDIO
44 E. 32nd St., 8th fl.
btw. Madison Ave. and Park Ave. S.
(212) 679-9204
chilewich.com
Innovative textiles with applications from flooring to iPhone cases; by appointment only.

COMMUNITY
at Gibson Interior Products
200 Lexington Ave., Ste. 1310
btw. E. 32nd and E. 33rd Sts.
(212) 685-1077
communityfurniture.com
Furniture for public spaces.

DDC DOMUS DESIGN COLLECTION
136 Madison Ave. at E. 31st St.
(212) 685-0800
ddnyc.com
Contemporary furniture in a 30,000-square-foot showroom.

DDC STUDIO
181 Madison Ave. at E. 34th St.
(212) 685-0800
ddnyc.com
Studios of international designers.

DESIGNLUSH
200 Lexington Ave., Ste. 415
btw. E. 32nd and E. 33rd Sts.
(212) 532-5450
designlush.com
Contemporary custom furniture and home accents.

DURAVIT
105 Madison Ave.
btw. E. 29th and E. 30th Sts.
(212) 686-0033, duravit.us
Ceramic bathroom fixtures designed by Philippe Starck, Norman Foster, and others.

FORTY ONE MADISON
41 Madison Ave. at E. 26th St.
(212) 686-1203, 41madison.com
23 floors of showrooms.

GALLERY R’PURE
3 E. 19th St.
btw. Fifth Ave. and Broadway
(646) 572-3869,  galleryrpure.com
Limited-edition objects, lighting, and furniture.

GLOBAL: THE TOTAL OFFICE
192 Lexington Ave., 3rd fl.
btw. E. 31st and E. 32nd Sts.
(212) 545-9900
globaltotaloffice.com
Affordable office furnishings.

GRACIOUS HOME
45 W. 25th St.
btw. Fifth and Sixth Aves.
(212) 414-5710
gracioushome.com
The biggest downtown location for classic and eclectic housewares.

HÄFELE
25 E. 26th St.
btw. Fifth and Madison Aves.
(212) 897-4460, hafele.com
Cabinetry, hardware, and electronic locking systems.

HBF/HBF TEXTILES
200 Lexington Ave., Ste. 1501
btw. E. 32nd and E. 33rd Sts.
(212) 686-3142, hbf.com
High-quality, sustainable contract furnishings and textiles.

HELLER
149 Fifth Ave.
btw. E. 21st and E. 22nd Sts.
(212) 685-4200, helleronline.com
Design from Frank Gehry, Massimo Vignelli, Mario Bellini, and more.

HENREDON INTERIOR DESIGN
200 Lexington Ave., Ste. 616
btw. E. 32nd and E. 33rd Sts.
(212) 679-5828, henredon.com
Custom-made, quality furniture.

HIGH STYLE STONE & TILE
24 W. 23rd St., 3rd fl.
btw. Fifth and Sixth Aves.
(718) 643-1300
highstylefloors.com
Tile and stone from around the globe.

HIGHLAND PARK
200 Lexington Ave., Ste. 1039
btw. E. 32nd and E. 33rd Sts.
(212) 680-0175
highlandpark20.com
Eclectic mix of modern design, antiques, and fine art.

HON
162 Fifth Ave., 5th fl.
btw. W. 21st and W. 22nd Sts.
(212) 242-8903, hon.com
Office furnishings for small- and medium-sized businesses.

IGUZZINI
60 Madison Ave., 2nd fl.
at E. 27th St.
(212) 481-8188, iguzzini.com
Italian lighting company.

JSI
at Gibson Interior Products
200 Lexington Ave., Ste. 1310
btw. E. 32nd and E. 33rd Sts.
(212) 685-1077, jsifurniture.com
Furniture for business interiors.

KEILHAUER
200 Lexington Ave., 11th fl.
btw. E. 32nd and E. 33rd Sts.
(877) 701-4122, keilhauer.com
Designs, engineers, and manufactures a complete range of office seating.

LEPERE
20 W. 22nd St., Ste. 1105
btw. Fifth and Sixth Aves.
(212) 488-7000, lepereinc.com
Furniture and accessories from European designers.

M2L
135 Madison Ave., 2nd fl.
btw. E. 31st and E. 32nd Sts.
(212) 832-8222
M2Lcollection.com
Fresh, timeless modern furniture.

MANHATTAN CENTER FOR KITCHEN & BATH
29 E. 19th St.
btw. Broadway and Park Ave. S.
(212) 995-0500, mckb.com
State-of-the-art kitchens and bathrooms.

MARAZZI
30 W. 21st St. at Sixth Ave.
(212) 256-1500, marazzi.it/en
Tiles that replicate natural materials like marble or wood. Its first New York showroom.

MILLIKEN
875 Sixth Ave., Ste. 2600
btw. W. 31st and W. 32nd Sts.
(212) 273-1510, milliken.com
Carpets for every setting.

MOHAWK GROUP
71 W. 23rd St., 18th fl.
btw. Fifth and Sixth Aves.
(212) 471-3688
themohawkgroup.com
Eco-friendly options at one of the largest carpet manufacturers.

NEMO TILE COMPANY
48 E. 21st St. at Park Ave. S.
(212) 505-0009
nemotile.com
Eco-friendly and premium tiles.

NIERMANN WEEKS
200 Lexington Ave., Ste. 905
btw. E. 32nd and E. 33rd Sts.
(212) 319-7979
niermannweeks.com
Custom high-end furniture for the interior design trade.

NYDC (New york design center)
200 Lexington Ave.
btw. E. 32nd and E. 33rd Sts.
(212) 679-9500
nydc.com
The country’s longest-standing design building, with more than one hundred top showrooms.

NYLOFT KITCHENS & HOME INTERIORS
6 W. 20th St.
btw. Fifth and Sixth Aves.
(212) 206-7400
nyloft.net
Affordable, contemporary kitchens and home interiors.

ODEGARD
200 Lexington Ave., Ste. 1206
btw. E. 32nd and E. 33rd Sts.
(212) 545-0069
odegardinc.com
Handcrafted wood, metal, and marble furniture; hand-knotted carpets; lighting; and accessories.

OFS BRANDS
12 W. 21st St., 11th fl.
btw. Fifth and Sixth Aves.
(212) 337-9676
ofsbrands.com
Furniture for use in commercial, residential, educational, and healthcare settings.

POGGENPOHL
270 Park Ave. S. at E. 21st St.
(212) 228-3334
poggenpohlusa.com
The world’s oldest luxury kitchen-cabinet manufacturer.

ROBIN REIGI
48 W. 21st St., Ste. 1002
btw. Fifth and Sixth Aves.
(212) 924-5558
robin-reigi.com
Innovative materials for flooring, walls, and acoustical fixtures.

SECONDHAND ROSE
230 Fifth Ave., Ste. 510
at W. 27th St.
(212) 393-9002
secondhandrose.com
Vast selection of antique wallpaper.

THE SLIDING DOOR COMPANY
230 Fifth Ave.
btw. W. 26th and W. 27th Sts.
(212) 213-9350
nyslidingdoor.com
Closet doors and room dividers at affordable prices.

STONE SOURCE
215 Park Ave. S., Ste. 700
btw. E. 17th and E. 18th Sts.
(212) 979-6400
stonesource.com
Natural and engineered stone, plus ceramic, porcelain, and glass tiles.

TECHLINE STUDIO
35 E. 19th St.
btw. Broadway and Park Ave. S.
(212) 674-1813
techlinestudio.com
Full-service, architect-owned studio for modular furniture.

TED BOERNER
200 Lexington Ave., Ste. 515
btw. E. 32nd and E. 33rd Sts.
(212) 675-5665
tedboerner.com
Eponymous showroom of the modern furniture designer.

TRANSFORM
230 Fifth Ave. at W. 27th St.
(212) 584-9580
gotransform.com
Custom closet-organization solutions for home or work.

TROVE
214 W. 29th St., Ste. 1201
btw. Seventh and Eighth Aves.
(212) 268-2046
troveline.com
Wallpaper created with drawings, photographs, and paintings.

TUCKER ROBBINS
200 Lexington Ave., Ste. 504
btw. E. 32nd and E. 33rd Sts.
(212) 355-3383
tuckerrobbins.com
Custom wood pieces, plus Asian- and African-inspired furniture.

WARP & WEFT
145 Madison Ave.
btw. E. 31st and E. 32nd Sts.
(212) 481-4949
warpandweft.com
Custom-made carpets, plus fine antique floor coverings.

WATERWORKS
7 E. 20th St.
btw. Fifth Ave. and Broadway
(212) 254-6025
waterworks.com
Faucets, bathtubs, and more.

MUSEUMS & INSTITUTIONS

AMERICAN INSTITUTE FOR GRAPHIC ARTS (AIGA)
164 Fifth Ave. at W. 22nd St.
(212) 255-4004
aiga.org
National headquarters, featuring regular graphic-design exhibitions.

SHOPS

ABC CARPET & HOME
881 and 888 Broadway
at E. 19th St.
(212) 473-3000, abchome.com
Eclectic, high-end goods with a large selection of sustainable and socially conscious merchandise.

MARIMEKKO NYC
200 Fifth Ave.
btw. W. 23rd and W. 24th Sts.
(212) 843-9121
marimekko.com
Flagship for the Finnish textile and clothing design company.

OPENING CEREMONY/ACE HOTEL
1190-1192 Broadway
at W. 29th St.
(646) 695-5680
ace.openingceremony.us
Multifaceted retail shop’s second New York location.

PROJECT NO. 8/ACE HOTEL
20 W. 29th St. at Broadway
(212) 679-2222
projectno8.com
Travel and hotel store that carries printed matter, candy, clothing, and accessories by designers.

VAN ALEN BOOKS
30 W. 22nd St.
btw. Fifth and Sixth Aves.
vanalen.org/books
The new center for architecture and design publications, in a space designed by LOT-EK.

RESTAURANTS & BARS

CITY BAKERY
3 W. 18th St.
btw. Fifth and Sixth Aves.
(212) 366-1414
thecitybakery.com
Home of the pretzel croissant, among other gourmet foods.

EISENBERG’S SANDWICH SHOP
174 Fifth Ave. at W. 22nd St.
(212) 675-5096
eisenbergsnyc.com
Classic New York deli since 1929.

ELEVEN MADISON PARK
11 Madison Ave. at E. 24th St.
(212) 889-0905
elevenmadisonpark.com
New American and French dining.

LIVE BAIT
14 E. 23rd St.
btw. Broadway and Madison Ave.
(212) 353-2400
A standard for drinks and seafood.

SHAKE SHACK
Madison Square Park
at E. 23rd St. and Madison Ave.
(212) 889-6600
shakeshacknyc.com
A city favorite for classic burgers.