SPECIAL FEATURE
Suite 16
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The SAVVY SPACE HAPERS Michael Wilkinson & Richard Blender WHY WE LOVE THEM: Even though a recently finished, snazzy Bucktown renovation-- complete with wind turbines, geothermal and solar energy systems, a stunning green roof and more–just made history by becoming the first residence in Illinois (and eighth in the nation) to attain LEED for Homes Gold (the prestigious United States Green Building Council certification) these pragmatic and grounded architects are proudest of something far more basic: “we’re really adept at maximizing space on tight city lots to meet all a client’s needs,” says Wilkinson. Indeed, the said, fully loaded project was on a sub-standardly sized lot (see it in Dwell magazine’s March issue or Metropolitan Home magazine’s April issue). “People want modern, space-efficient homes. That means no unused spaces or museum-like living rooms, and somewhere to play,” says Blender. WHAT THEY HAVE DONE: Both earned their Master of Architecture degrees at the University of Pennsylvania, where they met, then moved to Chicago. Wilkinson worked at several firms, Blender taught at the Illinois Institute of Technology and the two teamed up eight years ago to focus on their brand of residential design—affordable, flexible but handsomely done structures that show respect for the fabric of their environs, and are environmentally responsible. During their first year in business they were one of seven firms out of 107 entrants to win the Graham Foundation’s prestigious Townhouse Revisited competition. “We got off to a good start,” Wilkinson notes modestly. With a growing office and cool new Bucktown digs (they just moved to a studio above the new Marc Jacobs store), they’ve been going strong ever since. Wilkinson Blender Architecture, |
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Q. What do you like best about working together? A. “We bounce everything off each other. When you use each other as a critic, you get a better project in the end,” insists Blender. Q. What are your key inspirations? A. Wilkinson cites “new technologies” and Blender says “nature” for a perfect combination. Q. How important is function to your work? A.“It comes from the client and informs the design,” notes Wilkinson. “What’s the point of making something that doesn’t respond to needs?” muses Blender. |
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The
GUARDIAN
ANGEL Sonia “Sunny” Fischer WHY WE LOVE HER: Just back from the Sundance Film Festival where she viewed 13 films in four days, Fischer, 63, has had an impressive career—teacher, volunteer at a crisis center, then at a battered women’s shelter. Along the way she earned her Master’s in Social Work degree and became the first and only executive director of the Sophia Fund, one of the first private women’s foundations to address women’s issues. Fischer arrived at the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation as consulting executive director in 1992. She went full-time seven years later, and with her help, the organization doles out buckets of money primarily to architecture and design causes. “Everyone deserves good design, especially those in disadvantaged communities,” she says in her soft-spoken voice with little trace of her native New York accent. WHAT SHE’S DONE: For the 10th consecutive year, the Driehaus Foundation awarded the Richard H. Driehaus Awards for Architectural Excellence in Community Design his past Feb. 7, celebrating buildings, parks and individuals at the community level connected with a nonprofit organization. “The awards have elevated the issue of design. When we first started, 500 people came to the awards presentation; now, 1,400 do,” she says. This year she was excited that Driehaus himself among the honorees, named a “Friend of the Neighborhood.” Fischer’s work at Driehaus has offered other benefits. “Through conversations I’ve heard that developers are hiring more architects to design affordable housing,” she says. She’s also proud that the Foundation funded Archeworks, an alternative design school that works on projects for social good. The TANF, formerly welfare, offices were redesigned. “They seemed symbols of disrespect for clients and staff,” she says. The Richard H. DRIEHAUS FOUNDATION, |
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Q. What are you excited about? A. “Our board has given us some funding to start organizing for a Museum of Public Housing. The museum will be headquartered in the former Jane Addams home at 1322 W. Taylor St., the only building of 32 left, which were constructed in 1938 as part of the Works Progress Administration project. It shows how the idealism of the 1930s tried to make humane living quarters for people who were poor, but it also shows how we need to confront stereotypes,” Fischer says. “We’re trying to find families that lived in Jane Addams and whose lives were illustrative of how public policies affected individuals and families.” Q. What’s been your inspiration? A. “Jane Addams, my parents who always volunteered to try and fix the world, and some Jewish concepts of charity and justice. We didn’t have money in our family but we had time and talent.” Q. What do you hope to do down the road? A. “I see myself still with the Foundation. Some day I’d like to write and publish a few things that have been in my head—some narratives and essays about how to get through the day.” |
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The ITALIAN IMPORT Luca Lanzetta WHY WE LOVE HIM: Nine years ago, Lanzetta arrived in this country to run an engineering company that imports machinery. But don’t think of him as some staid, buttoned-up geek. He’s a cool go-getter who gives multitasking new meaning. His interest in architecture and design inspired him to open a Chicago showroom to import the highly progressive, innovative Ernestomeda kitchen line from Italy, which nobody was representing. His bride Grace, a nurse, helps out. Now most days, except in the dead of winter, this handsome fellow from Milan zips on his BMW motorcycle, wind-swept hair blowing—some days in jeans and sometimes in a suit—from his Wicker Park home to the Merchandise Mart showroom. He strides into the showroom, makes an espresso and brings Italy to the Heartland. WHAT HE’S DONE: The spare lean cabinetry and luxe materials in the showroom quickly tell visitors: This isn’t your grandma’s old-world trattoria. “Italy produces new models at a much faster speed. Something’s already cooking for the future there,” he says. Among his favorite Ernestomeda kitchen collections is “Barrique,” which encourages efficiency, entertaining and allows wine lovers to display bottles in full view. But he’s most excited about the “Silverbox” line with huge islands, which are going into the “Solstice on the Park” high-rise in Hyde Park. And for those who want to see what a $300,000 futuristic kitchen looks like, ask him. He has photos of Zaha Hadid’s “Zisland” special projects kitchen, designed as a collaboration between his company and Dupont. Think aromatic scent dispensers, wavy Corian cabinets, a design fit for a space ship. So cool, in fact, it was exhibited at New York’s Guggenheim Museum. Ciao. Ernestomeda Chicago, |
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Q. Who’s your design inspiration? A. Not a person, but what I see when I’m traveling. Everything catches my eye. The ideas come back to me. Q. What’s your own kitchen like? A. Very modern. It’s at the center of the house. When we have parties, nobody hangs in the living room. They gather around the dark wood kitchen island. |
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The INTREPID DESIGNER Lisa Ewing WHY WE LOVE HER: Nothing seems to daunt the imperturbable Ewing, who has an uncanny ability to bring calm to the havoc of even the most challenging renovation projects and decisiveness to utterly equivocal clients. On the former, she laughingly admits “I thrive in the mayhem of construction sites because I grew up on them. My dad was a developer and coconut plantation owner and I’ve been going to work with him my whole life.” The latter she chalks up to her polar opposite parentage that gave her a singular brand of balance. “My mother is Cuban and my father is German, so I can be passionate and pragmatic at the same time. It’s a great quality when it comes to analyzing design decisions,” she observes. WHAT SHE HAS DONE: Her impetuous side led her to run off to Costa Rica at 18 to run her dad’s plantation and become a pilot; “somebody had to fly our supplies in from San Jose,” she quips. After earning a degree in International Relations from Florida State University in her mid-20s, she started a furniture manufacturing company in Miami with her mother, then followed her currency trader husband to Los Angeles then Chicago. After divorcing, she decided to stay put and turn her avocation into a business. “My friends and family always asked me do their homes, and I did everything...right down to the floor plans,” she points out. In eight years, she has done technically complex gut jobs and stylish interior overhauls. Her current favorite let her give one of those new, pedestrian, cookie-cutter townhouses in Lincoln Park class with pop-star sass. “The client is a smokin’ hot rock star who was recently on the cover of “Rolling Stone,” she confides gleefully. Ewing Design Group, |
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Q. How would you describe your style? A. I’m more interested in how someone wants to feel in a room rather than how it will look, but in general my work is clean-lined, uncluttered and relaxed without being minimal or cold. Q. Which of your early projects was most important to defining your approach to design and why? A. I was 16, but my dad let me do his Miami apartment. He wanted it to show off his accomplishments, so I designed this really dark, mysterious bachelor pad. Everything was cobalt blue, and there were spotlights on all his trophies and treasures. It was really hip at the time. Q. What’s your motto? A. Fear is not an option in design. Q. Is there any designer you appreciate a lot? A. Vicente Wolf. We have a similar cultural background; I admire his style; and like me, he started his business without technical training and just grew it. |