THE KINGSTON WHIG-STANDARD LOCALKarim Rashid. Courtesy karimrashid.com Billed as the first...
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QUEEN'S UNIVERSITY: Designer Karim Rashid brings new creative look to Human Media Lab PETER HENDRA The Whig-Standard With projects ranging from a hotel in Bangkok to a dentist’s of- fice in Calgary, renowned design- er Karim Rashid has a fairly straightforward criteria for which projects he will undertake. “All it takes is somebody who is passionate about what they do,” Rashid said. That’s one of the reasons he took on the redesign of Queen’s University’s Human Media Lab, which will be unveiled Saturday, after meeting its director, Roel Vertegaal, a few years back. But that’s not the only reason, said Rashid, who Time magazine called the “most famous industri- al designer of all the Americas” in 2001. “It’s not every day you get to de- sign something like a media lab,” said Rashid over the phone from his Brooklyn, N.Y., headquarters. “That sort of intrigued me, just the fact that I’m a big advocate of technology, a big believer in tech- nology. I really think technology is humanizing us. All of the sociolo- gists in the 1980s went on about how it was going to dehumanize us. “So when they approached me, and they told me about the kind of experiments and things they were doing, I was thrilled, I said, ‘Sure, I’d love to.’” Rashid, who has been involved with the project for the past two years or so, will be in Kingston to- day for the lab’s unveiling. While Rashid has only been in- volved for the past few years, it has been a five-year process for Vertegaal, who had to find, apply and receive funding among other things (the project did receive a $1-million grant from the Canada Foundation for Innovation and Ontario’s Ministry of Research and Innovation). The revamped Human Media Lab — which counts among its better-known projects a flexible, paper-thin mobile phone proto- type and a holographic image sys- tem (think Star Trek: The Next Generation’s recurring “Holodeck” gimmick) — is being billed as the first “boutique” lab. “The whole point of the space was to up the ante a little bit in terms of office and student labo- ratory design,” Vertegaal ex- plained. “The reason we call it the first ‘boutique’ laboratory is because laboratories are always designed for very, very hyper-functional reasons. They don’t look great usually — there might be wet spaces or all sorts of equipment in there — but we wanted to actually create a space that’s inspiring to the students that allows them to not just have ideas but execute them as well, and hopefully we’ve succeeded.” A renovation of the space was long overdue, Roetegaal said. “It was like this cookie-cutter, mind-numbing, boring environ- ment that does not inspire inno- vation or creativity at all,” he of- fered as a description of the pre- Rashid space. The building in which the lab is housed, Goodwin Hall, is equally charm-free, Vertegaal said. “I’ve spent about 12 years now in Goodwin Hall, and I think it won an award for being the cheapest building ever built on campus, or in Ontario at the time,” he lamented. “It was built in the ’70s and it shows.” But that’s not the case anymore. The lab was gutted, and trans- formed into a main lab and six rooms. In that lab, for example, Rashid placed the “work area” along one wall, while the focal point of the room is a large touch screen, mak- ing it “very flexible space,” he said. There are separate work pods, between which are, at first glance, windows of opaque glass. Opaque, that is, until someone on the other side also looks through, at which point it becomes trans- parent. “The idea is that information flows through the cubicles even though people are sort of in a pri- vate mode they can still connect with each other and talk to each other and see each other,” Verte- gaal said. The traditional lab wasn’t work- ing for Vertegaal and company, who, after all, were doing any- thing but traditional work. “Typically, what’s not very well executed in office designs is the notion of supporting in a flexible manner various activities that you have,” Vertegaal said. “We identified a number of ac- tivities. One is brainstorming and lounging, just relaxing and having good ideas. So we created a space for that. One is group work, so we created a group table (at which they) can work.” The design called for a touch- screen table — which is to be “like a massive iPad,” Rashid said — but, since no one knew how to build one, it will take a bit longer to build. Today’s technology even helped Rashid negotiate a smaller than usual budget, he said. “The budget was relatively tight, so, for example, the floor that’s there, it’s a biodegradable floor. … I found a company in Germany where I can print al- most any pattern I want on it,” he said, adding that he considers his laptop to be like a modern-day loom. “So the printing process is real- ly like paper, it’s like a paper in- fused in the wood. So it’s a very neat technology and it’s incredi- bly inexpensive.” While Rashid said that he found some of his inspiration in the work the lab does. “The technology that they’re doing there is really kind of shift- ing the three dimension into the fourth dimension,” Rashid said. “So the kind of experimenta- tion, the things they do are quite fantastic. I kind of wanted to make a space … I don’t know how to explain … a little bit ethereal, meaning that it feels, although it’s not a big space for a lab, very open intentionally.” Rashid said that he’s not typi- cally inspired by predecessors or their ideas. “The space is really not sup- posed to be representative of any period, let’s say, which is a hard thing to do, basically,” explained Rashid. “When I work, I don’t really try to work off old languages. I don’t really want to be inspired from periods. I want to do something spatially that could get them to feel … like they’re producing in the moment in which we live.” One of the vast differences from traditional office spaces is the use of colour, Rashid said. Rashid — who wrote his thesis while at Carleton University on colour, specifically on how colours become duller as one moves away from the equator — thinks that technology deserves the credit for reintroducing bright colours. “I think I started using a lot of colour in my work to kind of com- municate that idea of how beauti- ful the digital age is, and kind of almost a comment on how banal our physical world is,” he ex- plained. Bright colours are now found everywhere, Rashid said. As an example, he pointed to small household appliances such as mixers that are now available in a slew of fluorescent colours in ad- dition to the traditional white. “Something’s happened with us in general, kind of globally, with colour,” said the industrial designer, who has more than 3,000 of his designs in produc- tion, including the popular “Gar- bo” garbage can. “The fact is we’re working off CMYK (cyan, magenta, yellow and key, or black), we’re working on screens now, we’re spending six hours of our day in kind of vir- tual space. It’s amazing I could be in Moscow right now in my hotel and I wouldn’t realize I’m in Moscow for four hours because I’m online. And this is the world we’re living in now.” Vertegaal is particularly fond of his new office, which features bookshelves displaying the col- lection of Apple computers he has accumulated over the years. “It looks awesome,” he said. [email protected] CMYK thewhig Saturday, May 12, 2012 Editor Andrew Carroll • 613-544-5000 ext. 140 • [email protected] 9 THE KINGSTON WHIG-STANDARD LOCAL Karim Rashid. Courtesy karimrashid.com Billed as the first “boutique” lab, the Human Media Lab at Queen’s University has received a complete makeover by renowned designer Karim Rashid, utilizing vibrant colours and a biodegradable floor. The new-look lab will be unveiled today. A whole A whole new level Keeping your family comfortable since 1875 www.rosenenergy.com | 613.546.4242 *CLEANING MUST BE BOOKED AND COMPLETED WITHIN THE MONTHS OF APRIL, MAY OR JUNE 2012. YOUR NAME WILL BE ENTERED INTO A DRAW FOR 500 LITRES OF HEATING OIL OR EQUIVALENT CREDIT FOR EQUIPMENT PURCHASE. WINNER WILL BE DRAWN ON JULY 13, 2012. CALL FOR DETAILS. Let us help you with your Spring Cleaning
Transcript of THE KINGSTON WHIG-STANDARD LOCALKarim Rashid. Courtesy karimrashid.com Billed as the first...
QUEEN'S UNIVERSITY: Designer Karim Rashid brings new creative look to Human Media Lab
PETER HENDRAThe Whig-Standard
With projects ranging from ahotel in Bangkok to a dentist’s of-fice in Calgary, renowned design-er Karim Rashid has a fairlystraightforward criteria for whichprojects he will undertake.
“All it takes is somebody who ispassionate about what they do,”Rashid said.
That’s one of the reasons hetook on the redesign of Queen’sUniversity’s Human Media Lab,which will be unveiled Saturday,after meeting its director, RoelVertegaal, a few years back.
But that’s not the only reason,said Rashid, who Time magazinecalled the “most famous industri-al designer of all the Americas” in2001.
“It’s not every day you get to de-sign something like a media lab,”said Rashid over the phone fromhis Brooklyn, N.Y., headquarters.
“That sort of intrigued me, justthe fact that I’m a big advocate oftechnology, a big believer in tech-nology. I really think technology ishumanizing us. All of the sociolo-gists in the 1980s went on about
how it was going to dehumanizeus.
“So when they approached me,and they told me about the kind ofexperiments and things they weredoing, I was thrilled, I said, ‘Sure,I’d love to.’”
Rashid, who has been involvedwith the project for the past twoyears or so, will be in Kingston to-day for the lab’s unveiling.
While Rashid has only been in-volved for the past few years, ithas been a five-year process forVertegaal, who had to find, applyand receive funding among otherthings (the project did receive a$1-million grant from the CanadaFoundation for Innovation andOntario’s Ministry of Researchand Innovation).
The revamped Human MediaLab — which counts among itsbetter-known projects a flexible,paper-thin mobile phone proto-type and a holographic image sys-tem (think Star Trek: The NextGeneration’s recurring“Holodeck” gimmick) — is beingbilled as the first “boutique” lab.
“The whole point of the spacewas to up the ante a little bit interms of office and student labo-
ratory design,” Vertegaal ex-plained.
“The reason we call it the first‘boutique’ laboratory is becauselaboratories are always designedfor very, very hyper-functionalreasons. They don’t look greatusually — there might be wetspaces or all sorts of equipment inthere — but we wanted to actuallycreate a space that’s inspiring tothe students that allows them tonot just have ideas but executethem as well, and hopefully we’vesucceeded.”
A renovation of the space waslong overdue, Roetegaal said.
“It was like this cookie-cutter,mind-numbing, boring environ-ment that does not inspire inno-vation or creativity at all,” he of-fered as a description of the pre-Rashid space.
The building in which the lab ishoused, Goodwin Hall, is equallycharm-free, Vertegaal said.
“I’ve spent about 12 years nowin Goodwin Hall, and I think itwon an award for being thecheapest building ever built oncampus, or in Ontario at the time,”he lamented.
“It was built in the ’70s and itshows.”
But that’s not the case anymore.The lab was gutted, and trans-formed into a main lab and sixrooms.
In that lab, for example, Rashidplaced the “work area” along onewall, while the focal point of theroom is a large touch screen, mak-ing it “very flexible space,” he said.
There are separate work pods,between which are, at first glance,windows of opaque glass.Opaque, that is, until someone onthe other side also looks through,at which point it becomes trans-parent.
“The idea is that informationflows through the cubicles eventhough people are sort of in a pri-vate mode they can still connectwith each other and talk to eachother and see each other,” Verte-gaal said.
The traditional lab wasn’t work-ing for Vertegaal and company,who, after all, were doing any-thing but traditional work.
“Typically, what’s not very wellexecuted in office designs is thenotion of supporting in a flexiblemanner various activities that youhave,” Vertegaal said.
“We identified a number of ac-tivities. One is brainstorming andlounging, just relaxing and havinggood ideas. So we created a spacefor that. One is group work, so wecreated a group table (at whichthey) can work.”
The design called for a touch-screen table — which is to be “likea massive iPad,” Rashid said —but, since no one knew how tobuild one, it will take a bit longerto build.
Today’s technology even helpedRashid negotiate a smaller thanusual budget, he said.
“The budget was relativelytight, so, for example, the floorthat’s there, it’s a biodegradablefloor. … I found a company inGermany where I can print al-most any pattern I want on it,” hesaid, adding that he considers hislaptop to be like a modern-dayloom.
“So the printing process is real-ly like paper, it’s like a paper in-fused in the wood. So it’s a veryneat technology and it’s incredi-bly inexpensive.”
While Rashid said that he
found some of his inspiration inthe work the lab does.
“The technology that they’redoing there is really kind of shift-ing the three dimension into thefourth dimension,” Rashid said.
“So the kind of experimenta-tion, the things they do are quitefantastic. I kind of wanted tomake a space … I don’t know howto explain … a little bit ethereal,meaning that it feels, although it’snot a big space for a lab, veryopen intentionally.”
Rashid said that he’s not typi-cally inspired by predecessors ortheir ideas.
“The space is really not sup-posed to be representative of anyperiod, let’s say, which is a hardthing to do, basically,” explainedRashid.
“When I work, I don’t really tryto work off old languages. I don’treally want to be inspired fromperiods. I want to do somethingspatially that could get them tofeel … like they’re producing inthe moment in which we live.”
One of the vast differencesfrom traditional office spaces isthe use of colour, Rashid said.
Rashid — who wrote his thesiswhile at Carleton University oncolour, specifically on howcolours become duller as onemoves away from the equator —thinks that technology deservesthe credit for reintroducing brightcolours.
“I think I started using a lot ofcolour in my work to kind of com-municate that idea of how beauti-ful the digital age is, and kind ofalmost a comment on how banalour physical world is,” he ex-plained.
Bright colours are now foundeverywhere, Rashid said. As anexample, he pointed to smallhousehold appliances such asmixers that are now available in aslew of fluorescent colours in ad-dition to the traditional white.
“Something’s happened withus in general, kind of globally,with colour,” said the industrialdesigner, who has more than3,000 of his designs in produc-tion, including the popular “Gar-bo” garbage can.
“The fact is we’re working offCMYK (cyan, magenta, yellowand key, or black), we’re workingon screens now, we’re spendingsix hours of our day in kind of vir-tual space. It’s amazing I could bein Moscow right now in my hoteland I wouldn’t realize I’m inMoscow for four hours becauseI’m online. And this is the worldwe’re living in now.”
Vertegaal is particularly fond ofhis new office, which featuresbookshelves displaying the col-lection of Apple computers hehas accumulated over the years.
“It looks awesome,” he said.
CMYK
thewhig
Saturday, May 12, 2012 Editor Andrew Carroll • 613-544-5000 ext. 140 • [email protected]
THE KINGSTON WHIG-STANDARD
LOCAL
Karim Rashid.
Courtesy karimrashid.com
Billed as the first “boutique” lab, the Human Media Lab at Queen’s University has received a complete makeover by renowned designer Karim Rashid, utilizing vibrant colours and a biodegradable floor. The new-looklab will be unveiled today.
A wholeA whole
new level
Keeping your family comfortable since 1875
www.rosenenergy.com | 613.546.4242*CLEANING MUST BE BOOKED AND COMPLETED WITHIN THE MONTHS OF APRIL, MAY OR JUNE 2012.
YOUR NAME WILL BE ENTERED INTO A DRAW FOR 500 LITRES OF HEATING OIL OR EQUIVALENT CREDITFOR EQUIPMENT PURCHASE. WINNER WILL BE DRAWN ON JULY 13, 2012. CALL FOR DETAILS.
Let us help you with your
Spring Cleaning
