Dwell September/October 2018

Good design is not applied onto things. It is integral to their essence. It has context. One skill of architects is that they solve problems holistically. They think about the details, obsess over them, and then support a vision to manifest them. Architecture is, after all, a series of decisions. And the impact of those decisions can reach across generations. Take two homes featured in this issue, both from the 1950s and both in need of some work. The first, designed and doted over by beloved modernist Alexander Girard, who aspired to live up to the Japanese ideals of quality and harmony, has aged so gracefully over the years that its most recent restoration required neither an architect nor a general contractor (p. 96). The second, a burly cinder-block duplex…

It’s been more than 10 years since I’ve read Dwell. Not due to disfavor, just busy being a tech nomad. Dwellingless. Post dwelling? Anyway, I just chose the May/June issue from the library shelf because I remembered how I felt when I last read it. So inspired. So resonant. I feel the same way about it now. —T.S. Mayfield I enjoyed reading the questions and answers in “Build the Future” [July/August] and have another question I’d like to see Dwell explore. With 3D printing and increased factory-sourced homes making home building smarter and more efficient, where will the new homes be built? Will these technologies increase suburban sprawl and reinforce preference for single-family homes? Will they lead to more teardowns, and if so, how will we better manage environmental impacts…

I had just exited the freeway on my way to Banning, California, when I saw a man tossing stuff in a large trash bin and what looked like teak legs sticking out of the top. My heart began to pound. I pulled over. The guy asked, “See something you want?” That’s what I wanted to hear. We opened up the bin and there it was: a solid teak, open-back, curved-front Svend Aage Madsen desk in pristine condition. I was beyond excited.Andrew In the mid ’60s, my parents discovered a set of Harry Bertoia Diamond chairs at a garage sale in Casper, Wyoming. Three lounge chairs and a rocker for $5 each. $20 for more modern goodness than you can fit in a pickup. E. In 1980 I rented a cottage…

What sparked the idea of RM-3? The idea of telling the backstory of materials came to me in response to the “Process” stories in Dwell, which tap into craft and materiality. I also like to cook, so the idea of “three ways” comes from that tradition. Do you have a favorite material? I am easily fascinated, so I have many favorites, but steel and I go way back. I love the fact that steel is basically processed dirt, and in time, it will go back to being dirt. But while it’s steel, it’s so proud and industrious. What was the first project you designed? One of the first projects that I led was a high-end barn in Weston, Missouri, in 1996, for one of my all-time favorite clients. The dialogue…

“That the project feels of one piece, to me, is always the first marker of success.”Cary Bernstein, architect In 2012, a home with a water view wasn’t even on Chris and Laura Porter’s wishlist. The couple didn’t think they could find one within their budget in Marin County, California. So when a realtor showed them a 1955 modern house on a forested two-acre lot in Tiburon, facing the San Francisco Bay, they were sold. “It feels like you’re in Tahoe,” says Chris of the site, which has easy access to sea kayaking and cycling loops. Several years later, the couple embarked on a master suite expansion to free up existing space for guests and take greater advantage of the site. Chris asked architect Cary Bernstein, who had redesigned his company’s…

LOCATION Tunis, Tunisia INSTAGRAM @marloisaure Franco-Tunisian Isaure Bouyssonie, 30, and Swiss-Greek Marlo Kara, 28, settled near Tunis after graduating from ECAL to be closer to the craftspeople who manufacture much of their work. Their studio, Marlo & Isaure, has gained success for both their own Mediterranean inflected designs and those of a growing number of international talents whose work they also produce. “We are the link between designers and manufacturers,” Bouyssonie says. Beyond their own creations, they’re currently collaborating on an armchair with Tunisian designer Ashref Chichini and a series of cushions by Swiss graphic and tattoo studio Happypets.…