Design
Odyssey: 2Michaels Design
Posted on Oct 7, 2008 by Donna Sapolin
Written by Donna Sapolin.
Like most designers, Jayne and
Joan Michaels, the identical twin principals of New York-based design firm 2Michaels,
probe their prospective clients’ lifestyles and tastes before developing
interior schemes for their rooms. But the project they recently took on in a
They supplemented their
reminiscences with classic notions about what grips children (hanging out on a
bed, for example) and sensitivities uniquely their own—deeply felt ideas about
things that can help twins differentiate themselves from one another and
establish a sense of personal identity in the face of the powerful forces that
conspire to rob of them of individuality.
“The first thing we decided to
do,” says Jayne, “was take these spaces, which were identical, in an unexpected
direction by turning one into a boy’s room and the other into a girl’s room. So
they became spaces for fraternal twins, with each underscoring and celebrating
its occupant’s uniqueness.”
Applying an aesthetic that blurs
the boundaries between art and design, the Michaels treated the spaces more as
art installations than as environments for conventional furniture groupings and
toys. “We injected an air of mystery, irony and fun without compromising
comfort, functionality, or sustainability,” Jayne says. They enlisted the
talents of a team that comprised a dealer of 20th-century antiques
and several artisans and artists (some of whom had been their friends for
years). The result is two eco-conscious settings that veer sharply yet
intriguingly from entrenched ideas about what should be hands-off to children,
what engages them and makes them feel comfortable, and what defines gender. A far
cry from the commonplace bunk bed-, computer station-, baby blue and
pink-filled rooms children outgrow in a heartbeat, children and adults alike
have embraced their beautiful and intelligent distinctiveness.
The designers based the boys’
room on memories of their brother’s childhood passion. “We asked ourselves what
a boy really likes,” says Jayne. “The answer came easily because we had grown
up with a brother who probably saw Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey five
times and had a keen interest in astronomy and science fiction.” To capture the
theme, the designers created a nighttime feeling in the room. Finding
inspiration in the work of painter Yves Klein, Joan determined that the walls
should offer up a “pop” while evoking the dark, other-worldly character of
outer space: “We painted the walls not just any blue,” says Jayne, “but a very
alive and warm blue, the vibrating hue that seems to surround planet Earth when
viewed from a spaceship.” The two projected video artist Eva Lee’s video of
celestial patterns onto the wall and commissioned Christianson Lee to paint
space murals that enhance the cosmic aura. A pair of sculptural ‘70s lamps from
Rose Hill Auctions recall the atomic models used in organic chemistry classes.
“We found these early in the process and they helped solidify our design direction,”
says Jayne.
Curator and antiques dealer Larry
Weinberg, who works with the firm on many of their projects, worked with green
furniture designer Carlos Salgado of Scrapile to
devise a spare desk and separate file cabinet made with scraps of various wood
species. “Carlos understood our desire for simplicity and created something
quite striking—the striations of the wood stand out boldly against the blue,
yet they don’t overtake the space.” The accompanying chair is a ‘40s organic
string chair from Weinberg’s own collection of 20th century
classics.
The designers had to choose
between emphasizing the window, as typical drapes do, or turning the window
wall into a simple plane and diminishing the window’s impact. They opted for
the later and asked Nancy Angel of Angel Threads to create a shade made of
natural linen that would cover the entire wall. “We didn’t want to obliterate
the window—one does see it—but it’s no longer a focal point,” Jayne explains.
They did, however, draw attention to the floor. After testing many different
rugs in the space, the sisters selected a ‘40s wool Berber from Kea Rugs for
the hot-hued counterpoint it provided to the cool blue shell. To its right, a
woven perch made by Thai artist Bannavis Sribyatta out of aluminum strips has all the presence of a
sculpture but magnetically attracts children to climb on it. “Kids run to that
piece and plop right down,” says Jayne.
Low-to-the-ground, slimly
proportioned, and topped by a mattress and bolster tautly wrapped in a Kate Korten-designed fabric, the boy’s bed is both eye-catching
and practical. “This is a ‘40s French daybed designed by Pierre Chapo that functions as a sofa during the day and, at
night, when the sheets come out, as a bed,” says Jayne. “The fabric used in the
cover is made out of water bottles and can handle any spill; the pattern has an
Outer Limits quality to it.” Two plastic screens from a ‘60s bank that Jayne
purchased on eBay act as head and foot boards and lend the seating-cum-sleeping
area a sense of enclosure without hemming it in.“They’re
hung from the ceiling and they create a fort-like feeling; every child wants a
cozy, protected place of their own,” Jayne explains.
The designers based the girl’s
room on two key qualities they sought while growing up—serenity and fun. A
custom canopy bed composed of a thin metal frame crafted by Majestic
Reproductions rises to ceiling height and provides the same sort of airy
enclosure that the boy’s bed embodies. Recycled birch panels painted by
Christianson Lee using eco paints from Mythic Paints form the headboard and
project an upbeat, modern geometry that repeats in the adjacent chest. The bright
citrus tones lend the Modrian-like grid fresh appeal
and show that green furnishings can be both exciting and arty.
“Often when you hear the term
‘green’, you think of being preached to and having to compromise, but we really
embraced the concept and had a lot of fun with it,” says Jayne.
Another playful but meaningful
twist in the room: the doll by artist Keith Edmier,
which he created especially for the project. “The hands and feet are larger
than the norm and so it makes fun of physical perfection that typical dolls
reflect back to little girls,” explains Jayne. “We’re reminding young girls
that they should question the notion of perfection wherever and in whatever
form it occurs.”
In the girl’s room, the window is
intentionally emphasized by means of sheer petal-trimmed natural linen curtains
made by Nancy Angel. “We wanted them to be soft and floaty
to offset all the hard-edged planes in the room and, with that contrast, offer
up a bit of irony,” says Jayne. Other softening touches: the ‘50s biomorphic
Jens Risom table from Lin-Weinberg, pillows wrapped
in vintage fabrics from 4PM (the antiques business that the sisters run with
Larry Weinberg), and an organic wool rug from Sacco Carpet. A vintage glass
fixture from 4PM hangs above the table.
Referencing a hotel designed by
Italian designer Gio Ponti
in the ‘60s in which diamond shapes figured prominently, the Michael sisters
worked with Thai artist Bannavis Sribyatta
to create a riveting wall piece comprising multiple kite forms made out of
recycled hangers—potent reminders of the wind’s energy and carefree fun. “Their
triangular forms counterbalance all the rectangles in the room,” says Jayne. A
Goth Barbie in a photo by David Levinthal stands
sentinel over the scene. “She’s emphatically not sweet,” says Jayne. “We hung
an image that questions the nature of womanhood and young girls’ concepts of
feminine identity.”
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Resource List
BOY’S ROOM: Vintage Canopy
French Bed from Magen H. Gallery, Vintage Screen by
4PM, Sustainable Bed Cover by Kate Korten for Synchonicity by SilverState
Fabrics. Sustainable Bolster Pillow by Angel Threads, Vintage Side Table by Dan
Cooper from 4PM, Recycled Wood Desk by Scrapile,
Vintage Lamps from 4PM, Space Photo by David Levinthal
from Glenn Horowitz Bookseller, Vintage Moon from 4PM, Recycled Aluminum Chair
by artist Bannavis Sribyatte
from PIE at Bridge Gallery, Vintage Coat Hanger from 4PM, Vintage
Science-Fiction Books from 4PM, Space Mural by Christianson Lee Studios,
Projected Image by Eva Lee from Christianson Lee Studios, Curtain Fabric by
Gray Line Linen. Curtain Treatments by Angel Threads, Space Toys from 4PM,
Vintage Bric a Brac from
4pm, Vintage Rug by Kea Carpets and Kilims.
.
GIRL’S ROOM: Bed Frame by
2Michael’s Design, Mythic Paint Colored Panels by Christianson Lee Studios, Bed
Coverlet by Indika Organics, Vintage Pillow Fabric
from 4PM, Recycled Coat Hanger Panels by artist Bannavis
Sribyatte from PIE at Bridge Gallery, Organic Wool
Rug by Sacco Carpet, Vintage Freeform Coffee Table from Lin-Weinberg, Vintage
Hanging Fixture from 4PM, Barbie Photo by David Levinthal
from Glenn Horowitz Bookseller, Vintage Steel Frame Chest by Miguel Saco
Gallery, Curtain Fabric by Gray Line Linen, Curtain Treatments by Angel
Threads, Artwork by Frank Veteran, Little Black Dress Artwork by Keith Edmier fom Friedrich Petzel Gallery.
.
2Michaels portrait by Francois Dischinger. Renderings by Sara Brasseur.
All other photographs Larry Weinberg. Idea House sponsored by Hamptons Cottages & Garden Magazine.
Tags: 2michaels design, 4PM, Angel Threads, Bannavis
Sribyatte, bedroom, Bridgegallery,
Carlos Salgado, Christianson
Lee Studios, Dan
Cooper, David Levinthal, Donna Sapolin,
eco-conscious, Frank Veteran, Friedrich Petzel Gallery, Glenn Horowitz
Bookseller, Gray
Line Linen, Hamptons Cottages & Garden Magazine, Idea House, Indika
Organics, Kate Korten, Kea Carpets and Kilims., Larry Weinberg, Magen
H. Gallery, Miguel
Saco Gallery, Sacco
Carpet, Sacro Carpet, Scrapile,
SilverState Fabrics