The Second Studio (formerly The Midnight Charette) is an explicit podcast about design, architecture, and the everyday. Hosted by Architects David Lee and Marina Bourderonnet, it features different creative professionals in unscripted conversations that allow for thoughtful takes and personal discussions.
A variety of subjects are covered with honesty and humor: some episodes are interviews, while others are tips for fellow designers, reviews of buildings and other projects, or casual explorations of everyday life and design. The Second Studio is also available on iTunes, Spotify, and YouTube.
This week David and Marina, Partners at FAME Architecture & Design discuss the livability of designer homes. The two cover designing for function and aesthetics, material resilience, lifestyle changes, space efficiency, designing based on reference images, and the benefits of adapting to design-forward living environments.
Highlights and Timestamps
Introduction (00:00)
Durability of different materials and building maintenance (01:53)
Not compromising aesthetics for functionality (05:54)
I saw a kitchen island the other day that had a 6” thick countertop with stools that were cubic blocks of marble. It looked really amazing, but if you were to sit there, it would be the most uncomfortable experience. Those stools would be really difficult to move and your legs wouldn’t fit under the counter because of the counter’s thickness, so you’d have to sit sideways. These would seem like minor details, but if you tried living with that every day with your kids it wouldn’t work. (06:14)
Adapting to new modes of living and minimalistic bathrooms (13:00)
I wish there were more of these designer bathrooms because they question how we live in these spaces. We don’t all need a medicine cabinet. It is not mandatory to have a medicine cabinet. It is not mandatory to have a splash guard. Why don’t we think about these things differently? Why do we try and store so much stuff in a bathroom? I think if clients are willing to explore living differently and become different people then it is very interesting to look at these spaces with a different lens. We can design it so it doesn’t feel like you’re hopping in a tub to take a shower. What if you’re standing in the middle of the room and the rain comes down as you look at the beach or you’re looking at a giant artwork you bought? What if we made those small daily experiences different? (14:10)
The home is the attire of your environment. This is an analogy to clothing. Homes are more expensive and take longer to build than clothing, but it’s the same principle. Creating a home is the opportunity for you to express yourself and if you want to be that way, be that future-self, then build the environment to do that. It’s a missed opportunity if you don’t allow yourself the personal potential and freedom to live a new way. (18:20)
Reference images expectations versus reality (26:38)
Styling (28:15)
The thing that stands out to me when I look at published projects, is how perfectly positioned everything looks in the photo. You have the brush here, the cup there and the flowers are fresh. It is not how people live. It is not how their house looks every day. Those photos you see published… there was a stylist and a photographer that captured that particular moment. The picture was composed. It’s not to say that those elements could not be there on an everyday basis. […] But it goes back to who the client is. You have to be a person who is willing to live, often times, with flowers or books here and a vase there, and not put your own random, and often ugly, items scattered around the house such as photographs of your cousin’s wedding or magnets all over the fridge. That’s all real-life stuff, and it’s important stuff, but it highlights a discrepancy. (28:19)
