Nurturing the Desire to Keep
About four years ago I had the rare opportunity to start collaborating with Jonathan Ward, founder of Icon. Jonathan and his team hand build limited edition vehicles in California. Calling them...
View ArticlePreserving the Old School
Carl Olsen was the head of the College for Creative Studies Transportation Design program from 1987-2000. Having previously been Director of Style for Citroen, Director of Design at Ogle Design Ltd.,...
View ArticleDesign Addict Congress: San Luis Potosi, Mexico
Last week I was down in San Luis Potosi, Mexico, to speak at the Design Addict Congress, a series of lectures and workshops focused on industrial design at the The Tecnológico de Monterrey’s SLP...
View ArticleInterview with John Maeda (VIDEO)
Last week we had John Maeda, President of the Rhode Island School of Design and author of "The Laws of Simplicity" in the frog San Francisco studio. John presented to a group of RISD alumni and frogs...
View ArticleLiving in a World of Talismans
A talisman is a physical object that purports powers and meaning beyond the physical. Humans have been making talismans for centuries, we are wired to give physical objects meaning. Take for example an...
View ArticleDiscussing Industrial Design, SFMOMA Panel Discussion at swissnex
A few weeks ago swissnex San Francisco hosted an SFMOMAArchitecture and Design Forum panel discussion on the topic of Dieter Rams and the effect of Modernism on today's design landscape. Panelists...
View ArticleIntegrating the Museum Into the City, the New SFMOMA Expansion
Earlier this year I was asked to join the accessions committee for the Architecture and Design Department of the SFMOMA. It seems it was an opportune time, as the museum is making some exciting...
View ArticleDesign Doing: The Handcrafted Footwear of Nick Maloy
Often we get caught up in talk of Design Thinking, sensemaking and synthesis. While moving post it notes is sometimes a necessary means to an end to sort things out, it always warms my heart to see...
View ArticleThe Path Less Followed; Why I Didn’t Work at Circuit City
A student recently asked me how I got my first professional job as a designer. It reminded me of a particularly difficult journey I hadn’t thought of in years. Looking at my resume my path seems almost...
View ArticleThe Story Behind the 1985 frog FZ750
Every few weeks I get a request for information about the classic frog FZ750 concept designed by our founder Hartmut Esslinger in 1985. The frog FZ was a bit of a superstar, appearing on the cover of...
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