The Right Angle: A Design Podcast

Welcome to this episode of The Right Angle Podcast. Today, I'm thrilled to have the team of partners from Modellus Novus joining me.

Based in New York City, Modellus Novus is more than just an architecture firm. They're creators of spaces that not only shape but define culture. Their dynamic team, celebrated for their diverse backgrounds and perspectives, is united by a shared optimism and a commitment to design spaces for the many.

At MN, the mission is to redefine what it means to have access to exceptional design. Their projects, ranging from grand public cultural institutions to intimate private homes, always prioritizes the experience of all users . These excellent experiences are driven by precise, pragmatic and daring decisions — regardless of project size or type.

Diversity in perspective is not just an ideal but a cornerstone of their practice. They seek clients who echo their belief that great design is neither elusive nor exclusive. For Modellus Novus, architecture is a collaborative journey, a dialogue between those who create and those who experience.

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Modellus Novus:

Welcome back to our podcast! Today, we're in conversation with artist and designer, Matthew Fisher. Brought up in a family steeped in geology, his early interactions with quarries, dinosaur fossils, and sediment lines imparted a unique understanding of time. This childhood insight fostered a deep love for timeworn materials like stone, a love that shines through in his work today.

Originally trained as a ballet dancer, Matthew’s career took an unexpected turn after a career-ending injury. After enrolling in an Egyptian Art and Architecture course by chance, he developed an interest that soon expanded to include Roman art and architecture. With his design process deeply rooted in the study of ancient cultures, Matthew skillfully distills modern designs, creating pieces that exude an ambiguity of time and place.

His work has caught the attention of esteemed publications like Galerie, Surface, and T Magazine, and has been showcased in the Noguchi Museum's group exhibition “On the Verge”. Join us today as we delve into the fascinating creative process of Matthew Fisher!

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Matthew Fisher:

In this episode of The Right Angle Podcast, Elle Liu interviews Garland deGraffenried, Principal at JMH Development, a real estate development company based in New York City and Miami.

Garland's journey in Real Estate started after earning his Bachelor of Architecture degree from Syracuse University in 2009. He began his career at Alloy Development, where he oversaw the design, planning, and project management of multiple luxury residential buildings in Brooklyn, New York. He later worked at Toll Brothers as a director and at DDG, where he led the development of design-driven residential properties in both New York City and Miami. Before joining JMH , Garland served as the Managing Director at SHVO, a luxury development and investment firm based in New York City.

In addition to his real estate career, Garland is also dedicated to making a positive impact through The deGraffenried Foundation, a non-profit organization he founded and currently serves as board president. By providing award and scholarship programs and facilitating connections with industry leaders, Garland and his team are committed to supporting students in the design industry who are facing financial barriers, and helping them to achieve their career aspirations.

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Garland deGraffenried:

In this episode of The Right Angle Podcast, Elle Liu interviews Richard Felix-Ashman, Founding Principal of Richard Felix-Ashman Design. After studying painting and architecture in England, he moved to San Francisco to pursue his passion for design. He quickly fell in love with interior design, starting with hospitality projects and eventually expanding to residential projects of varying sizes, from modest apartments to large houses.

Richard's approach to design focuses on combining technical precision with artistic flair, ensuring that each space he designs is both functional and aesthetically pleasing. He places great importance on the harmony of scale, tone, and texture in his work, and views the flow of movement within a room as a fundamental aspect of his design philosophy.

His work has been recognized and celebrated by some of the most prestigious publications in the industry, such as Architectural Digest, Galerie Magazine, Mountain Living, Luxe Magazine, Home & Garden UK, and California Home and Interior Design Magazine.

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Richard Felix-Ashman:

In this episode of The Right Angle Podcast, Elle Liu interviews Adam Rolston, Creative & Managing Director, and partner at INC, an open source, multi-disciplinary, architecture and design studio.

Adam Rolston has been engaged in the practice of architecture since 1985, was born and raised in Los Angeles and attended Syracuse University School of Architecture, where he studied both in Syracuse and in Italy under the influence of the northern Italian Rationalists.

Adam has served as the Senior Designer and Project Architect for many large-scale, commercial office, residential condominium, private residential, hospitality, and retail projects in Southeast Asia, Europe and New York. He is known for his keen attention to detail, his ability to tackle the design and planning of complex projects at a variety of scales and for his careful attention to client and user needs.

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Adam Rolston:

In this episode of The Right Angle Podcast, Elle Liu interviews Rachel Doriss, Vice President and design director of Pollack. Rachel first studied printmaking and painting, and even taught batik workshops when she first entered college. But it was in the Textile Design department at the Rhode Island School of Design that she realized, for the first time, the practical application of her beloved woven and printed textile techniques.

She graduated with a BFA from RISD in 1999, and designed printed silk scarves at Echo before joining the Pollack Studio in 2000. In 2007, Rachel was appointed Vice President, Associate Design Director. She took the helm as Pollack’s Design Director in 2011, overseeing the Studio and guiding the creative vision for each textile collection.

In the Studio, she and her team always begin a pattern by first creating artwork by hand. Rachel’s designs for Pollack have been featured in national magazines, including Architectural Digest, Interior Design and Elle Décor, and she has been profiled on such sites as Apartment Therapy and House and Home TV. Two of her creations, “Mod” and “Curlycue,” are in the permanent collection of the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum.

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Rachel Doriss:

In this episode of The Right Angle Podcast, Elle Liu interviews Shlomi Avdoo, Founder and Principal of Avdoo & Partners. Shlomi has been involved in New York real estate for over 18 years. He has great love for the industry and a passion for collaborating with various partners to develop projects that create a positive impact on a neighborhood and a community.

Shlomi personifies Avdoo & Partners commitment to designing and building quality projects with great craftsmanship. He believes in developing strong relationships and operating with utmost integrity in working with his partners, contractors and community. Shlomi directs all aspects of the company's acquisitions, strategic development, financing, construction, and marketing. He has deep expertise and understanding of the entire development cycle and has a reputation for having the ability to underwrite and structure complex real estate transactions.

When not working, Shlomi enjoys volunteering with Project Sunshine, a non-profit organization that sends trained volunteers into hospitals to provide companionship and deliver enrichment programming to pediatric patients and their families.

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Shlomi Avdoo:

In this episode of The Right Angle Podcast, Elle Liu interviews Francine Monaco, co-founder and principle architect of D’Aquino Monaco. D’Aquino Monaco is a design firm she established in 1997 with Carl D’Aquino to allow and create more opportunity for the dialogue between “the container” and the “contained.”

As an architect and interior designer, Francine has created a diverse career combining the practical with the magical to create memorable timeless spaces. Her focus on the intersection of architecture and interior design led to a uniquely balanced practice and holistic approach.

For the past 23 years she served as a professor at Pratt Institute's Interior Design Department. Her constant encouragement for students to pursue design in both conceptual and practical matters, easily made her one of my favorite studio professors when I studied there.

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Francine Monaco:

In this episode of The Right Angle Podcast, Elle Liu interviews Benjamin Weaver, Founder and Editor-in-Chief of The London List. The London List is a digital publication exploring art, architecture and interiors, from carefully researched and thought-provoking articles, to interviews with artists, makers and industry insiders. With a particular focus on the defining aesthetic movements of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, the aim of The London List is to provide a voice on design, both past and present, discussing relevant and prescient topics with openness, honesty and balanced academic rigor.

Ben graduated from the University of Cambridge with an MA in Architecture and went on to study at the University of London. Since then he has worked on a number of private residential interior commissions, as well as curating and sourcing art, antiques and decorative arts of the twentieth century. He also has several years’ experience writing and providing guidance on all aspects of architecture, interiors and design.

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Benjamin Weaver:

In this episode of The Right Angle Podcast, Elle Liu interviews Teddy Mayer, Vice President of Design at Virgin Hotels. As Vice President of Design, Teddy oversees the vision and execution for how the Virgin Hotels brand comes to life in the hospitality design environment.

Teddy spent seven years as the senior director of design and development at Morgans Hotel Group where he focused on the expansion of the Delano, Mondrian and Hudson Hotel brands. On the agency side he began his career at SOM in New York where he focused on hospitality interiors projects for brands such as W Hotels and Resorts, Capella and The James to name a few.

Most recently Teddy worked for Gensler in New York as the regional director. He was responsible for establishing a hospitality studio and developing the regional practice.

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Teddy Mayer:

In this episode of The Right Angle Podcast, Elle Liu interviews Yorgo Lykouria, Founder and Creative Director of Rainlight. Rainlight is an integrated design studio with offices in London and New York and client collaborations across North America, Europe, and Asia. Part Laboratory, part workshop, part studio, Rainlight combines inspired design thinking with business acumen to create products that enhance how people live, work, and play in the real world.

Yorgo began his career as an architect working on projects from Airports to high-rises, and became the youngest design director at Helmut Jahn’s office in Chicago. In 2002, he established, the award-winning London studio, Lykouria, which he ran for 12 years as a multidisciplinary practice. 

Yorgo’s broad spectrum of practice includes architecture, design, and filmmaking. He is recognized for his work in automotive interiors for Ferrari, and various works for Vitra, Alape and Dornbracht. Rainlight’s recent design partnerships include collaborations with Allsteel, Arcadia, Tecno, Scavolini, Okamura and Zumtobel.

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Yorgo Lykouria:

In this episode of The Right Angle Podcast, Elle Liu interviews Josh Hollis, Associate Creative Director & Anna Wahlers, Lead Designer at Astek, the leading provider of digital printed and specialty wallcoverings. In our conversation, we discussed their design philosophy and process for creating some of Astek’s signature collections as well as many of their custom designs.

As a company, Astek believes in the power of collaboration. With a team of designers who have backgrounds in illustration, graphic design, textiles, fine art and art history, Astek has the ability to help interior designers, set designers and architects develop custom wallcoverings. From concept to final production, their in-house design and print studio has the capacity to oversee the entire production process.

Astek’s widespread clientele ranges from hospitality to retail to film. Many of their made-to-order collections have been featured in Interior Design magazine, Hospitality Design, Dwell, NYCxDESIGN Awards, Boutique Design and contract magazine.

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Astek:

In this episode of The Right Angle Podcast, Elle Liu interviews Belle Iskowitz and Anthony Asch, Presidents at Pratt + Larson. As a tile company, Pratt + Larson is a team of artists and alchemists at heart. They transform earth into tile, glass into glaze, and environments into experiences.

Pratt + Larson was originally founded in 1982 by husband and wife team Michael Pratt and Reta Larson where the business was built on a passion for art, design, and color. In 2017, after being longtime team members at the firm, Belle and Anthony purchased the company from its original founders: eager to maintain and grow the Pratt + Larson spirit with a unique team culture and commitment to the craft of tilemaking.

Under their leadership, Pratt + Larson has expanded its decades-long reputation as a leading luxury tilemaker to include a number of new contemporary design approaches – blending ancient techniques with modern applications.

In our conversation, Belle and Anthony explain their unique point of view for developing the make-to-order collections, the complex processes behind some of their well-know and custom tiles, as well as their vision for the company moving forward.

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Pratt + Larson:

In this episode of The Right Angle Podcast, Elle Liu interviews Jeannine Russo, Design Director at Jonathan Adler. Jonathan Adler is a global luxury lifestyle brand who’s mission is to bring Modern American Glamour by creating a foundation of timelessly chic furniture and accessorizing with abandon.

In our conversation, we dive into Jeannine’s design philosophy and process she uses when developing new product collections. She also talks us through how creating fictional stories with historical figures guide her throughout the creative process.

At Jonathan Adler, she oversees product development and sourcing for the company’s lifestyle collection as well as their hospitality and interior design projects. Jeannine has over 15 years of experience in the luxury home furnishings market. Her Expertise include: Sourcing, Styling, Trend Analysis, Trend Forecasting, Textile, Furniture & Home Accessories Design.

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Jeannine Russo:

[This episode was recorded during Covid when Jonathan was the Creative Director at Grain] In this episode of The Right Angle Podcast, Elle Liu interviews Jonathan Elmore, Creative Director at Grain, a studio that crafts beautiful physical and digital experiences to bring to life the visions of architects, designers and property developers. Grain combines the science of architecture with the art of design to create CGI and interactive experiences that their clients fall in love with. As a London based firm, Jonathan joined them to establish their New York City office.

Prior to joining Grain, Jonathan followed a very unconventional career background. He spent 5 years in the Marine Corp, as the Crew Chief of CH53E Super Stallion Helicopter. After his military service, Jonathan graduated with an architecture degree and began his career at Rockwell Group before eventually finding his way into the CGI world.

Jonathan has worked with some of the biggest real estate developers and architecture firms in the world. His diverse visualization projects including 35 Hudson Yards, Manhattan West, Lantern House in NYC; the Coconut Grove in Miami, Florida; M3 condos at MCity in Mississauga, Ontario and Victoria Place in Honolulu, Hawaii.

I’m excited to have Jonathan here with us today, his super power is creating graphical stories for buildings with his rare combination of creative skills from architecture school and problem solving skills that he picked up in the Marine Corp.

[Further Links]

Jonathan Elmore:

In this episode of The Right Angle Podcast, Elle Liu interviews Shelly Goldberg, Executive Creative Director and Senior Vice President at Raj Overseas. Raj started out as a legacy textile factory in India in 1939, and today the company is an international textile enterprise that manufactures and designs high quality products with a focus on sustainability and fair trade.

Shelley joined Raj Overseas in 2008, after being the head of textile design at West Elm. Since then, she established a New York office for the company from ground zero and created 4 annual rug and home decor collections that premiered at New York Market-week and European trade shows. Under her lead, Raj Overseas expanded in to the mid to top tier home retail market where some of her diverse clients include: West Elm, Anthropologie, Serena and Lily, Design Within Reach, Jonathan Adler, Parachute Home, Coach, Michael Kors Visual Teams, Soho House, and many other esteemed brands.

Shelley has a Master degree in textile design from Central Saint Martins and she combines her theoretical background with years of client side practical experience to create designs for the real world. Her super power is partnering with high-end retailers to create exquisite rugs at the right price.

[Further Links]

Shelley Goldberg:

In this episode of The Right Angle Podcast, Elle Liu interviews Jenny Bukovec, VP of Design at Life House. Life House is a group of contextual hotels with narrative, substance, and locally-rooted restaurants and bars.

In our conversation, we dive into Jenny’s philosophy and process for developing a narrative for a physical space and bringing that narrative to not only the visual, but also the other senses through food & beverage, scent and music. Jenny also shares her journey from being an interior designer of the founding design team to the VP of design, in just 3 short years.

During her 3 years with the brand, she has overseen everything from interior design to branding. Aside from interior design, Jenny is also passionate about pattern design where some of her clients including: Saks Fifth Avenue, SBE Group, Kempinski Hotels, Haven Magazine, and Saint Laurent.

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Jenny Bukovec:

In this episode of The Right Angle Podcast, Elle Liu interviews Pauline Brown, longtime leader in luxury goods and former Chairman of LVMH North America.

In our conversation, we dive into Pauline's philosophy behind Aesthetic Intelligence (the other A.I.) and the enormous value in beauty, design and style. We discuss her thought process of using the other A.I. to help spaces, from hospitality to retail, to increase the delight of our senses beyond just the visual. She explains the mindset that design professionals can have to develop better relationship with clients. Pauline also shares the journey she took to discover her personal Aesthetic and how that has helped her to further her career.

Pauline is renowned for acquiring, building, and leading some of the world’s most influential brands. In her groundbreaking new book, Aesthetic Intelligence, she shows businesspeople how to harness the power of their own senses to create products and services that delight their customers and build businesses that last. Her book is based on a course that she designed and taught at Harvard Business School.

Pauline began her career as a Consultant at Bain and subsequently held senior executive roles at Estee Lauder, Avon and The Carlyle Group. She currently is an Executive-in-Residence at Columbia Business School and a Henry Crown Fellow at the Aspen Institute.

[Further Links]

Pauline Brown:

In this episode of The Right Angle Podcast, Elle Liu interviews Matthew Goodrich, Founder and Principal of GOODRICH. Matthew is an award-winning interior designer and strategist known for projects that feature rich narrative content and foster interaction and human connection. In 2017, he established GOODRICH to create hospitality projects which fuse conscious, meaningful design with operational innovation. His team of fourteen designers and architects are currently developing hotel and restaurant projects throughout the US, South America, Europe and Asia.

Before founding GOODRICH, Matthew was Chief Creative Officer at AvroKO, an interdisciplinary design firm with offices in New York, San Francisco, Bangkok and London. He led the design process for hospitality and retail projects, and provided creative leadership for the internal branding agency Brand Bureau. For each project, he created an underlying narrative – inspired by historical context, cultural movements, and behavioral insights – and used it to organize the design and infuse emotion into the guest experience.

Prior to AvroKO, Matthew was Senior Associate at Rockwell Group, where he developed a wide range of project types, including hospitality, exhibitions, and scenic design. Matthew’s projects have included design for established hotel brands such as Four Seasons and Ritz-Carlton, brand creation for the new Arlo hotels, restaurants for clients including Garces Group and Boka Restaurant Group, food halls such as Gotham West Market, and innovative casual dining experiences for Dean and Deluca, Barnes & Noble, and Panera Bread.

[Further Links]

Matthew Goodrich:

In this episode of The Right Angle Podcast, Elle Liu interviews Frances Calosso, Design Director at Islyn Studio.

As a multidisciplinary, women owned and operated design practice based in Brooklyn NYC, Islyn Studio is a group of creatives who believe experience can be an Art form. They design spaces that honor history and culture, attention to detail, as well as individual sensibility. Founded in 2016, Islyn Studio has worked with a diverse set of clients ranging from Kimpton Hotels, to Dovetail + Co, to Kindbody and their works have been featured in numerous publications including: HD Magazine, Fast Company, Contract Magazine, Dezeen, Arch Daily and Elle Decor.

Frances has over 12 years of experience across all the spectrum of interior design. Prior to Islyn Studio, she was a Senior Interior Designer at Roman and Williams and a FF&E Specialist and Senior Interior Designer at Rockwell Group. Throughout her career, Frances has managed successful projects for industry leaders such as Ace Atelier, Sydell Group, Ian Schrager Company and Union Square Hospitality Group.

Frances is an expert in custom furniture design, sourcing and curation. During her time with WeWork as lead product designer, she developed the physical products and brand standards for their unique, community-focused co-working spaces.

[Further Links]

Frances Calosso:

In this episode of The Right Angle Podcast, Elle Liu interviews Pierre Josselin, Studio Leader at Jeffrey Beer International.

Pierre has 20 years of experience in luxury hospitality and residential design. During his decade-long tenure with HBA as Associate, and as Senior Designer with Wimberly Interiors, he collaborated on many high-profile projects including Fairmont Washington D.C., The Ritz‐Carlton Panama, and the Fairmont Flame Towers in Baku, Azerbaijan.

Pierre is currently working on the extensive renovation of multiple Fairmont and Four Seasons properties in Vail Colorado and Dallas Texas, and a private residence in the Middle East.

[Further Links]

Pierre Josselin:

In this episode of The Right Angle Podcast, Elle Liu interviews Gregor Bugel and Fiona Sanipelli, founding partners of Handwerk Art and Design. In our conversation, we discuss their philosophies, approach and processes as well as what it’s like to build a boutique design practice as a husband and wife team.

Handwerk Art and Design is a multi-disciplined design practice that examines spatial habitation through art, context, nature, and applied curiosity. They value intimate and individual ideas over the mass-produced and conventional, and take pride in collaborating with clients to determine the best design solutions for their space.

Prior to co-founding Handwerk Art and Design, Fiona had over ten years of experiences in hospitality design, including spending 4 years with AvroKo as the lead art feature and concept designer. Some of her diverse portfolio includes: the Jue Lan Club in both NYC and Southampton, Casa Apicii in the Greenwich Village and Beauty & Essex in the Lower East Side, NYC. Gregor on the other hand, brings both theoretical and practical experiences from the field of fine arts, museology, and architecture to the firm. Aside from his design practice, Gregor is also passionate about teaching and supporting the next generation of designers. He was one of my studio professors and has been teaching at Pratt Institute for the past 5 years.

[Further Links]

Handwerk Art and Design:

In this episode of The Right Angle Podcast, Elle Liu interviews Alex Williams, Founding Partner and Director of Growth at RBW and Mayela Mujica, Innovation manager at RBW. In our conversation, we go through all the design philosophies, decisions and processes behind the beautiful collections from RBW as well as how they established a successful independent lighting brand.

As an award-winning, independent design and manufacturing company headquartered in Industry City, Brooklyn, RBW is a brand for architects and designers looking for a higher quality of light. They believe in the power of light to create atmosphere, help shape our well-being and improve everyday life: Light can fill a room with a sense of optimism. It can energize and motivate. And at the end of the day, it can also help us relax and unwind.

Meticulously engineered for a broad range of applications, RBW lighting has been installed all over the world, from the renowned Noma restaurant in Copenhagen to Fortune 500 company offices across the United States. Each of their collections embodies a distinct personality while upholding the hallmarks of RBW’s family DNA: Intuitive ease and simplicity. Integrity of craft and material. High-quality lighting with a playful point of view.

[Further Links]

Rich Brilliant Willing:

In this episode of The Right Angle Podcast, Elle Liu interviews Pascale Girardin, Ceramic Artist, Educator and Founder of Pascale Girardin Art Studio. Pascale has contributed to the dynamism of contemporary ceramics through her large-scale architectural installations. Luxury, harmony and balance are the quintessential qualities which define her unique artworks. The exclusive spaces that she invests are inspired by the expression of pure form and her creations subtly highlight our essential relationship with the world around us.

In our conversation, Pascale dives deep into how she uses ceramic to create poetic spaces with the expression of pure form and her original philosophical thinking. She also shares her journey to establish a successful business based on her creative skill and how focusing on the process is much more meaningful than the end result when it comes to educating the next generation of artists.

Pascale’s inquisitive mind and relentless urge to explore have driven her to develop a significant and constantly evolving body of work. She has gained international recognition for her creation of unique artworks for high-end interior design projects at such venues as Nobu Broadway Restaurant in New York, Clement Restaurant in New York, Four Seasons Private Residences in Pudong, Printemps Department Store in Paris and Al Badia Golf Club in Dubai. She has won numerous awards and distinctions for her work as a visual artist and designer, including the Pierre-Pagé Prize and repeated recognition from the Canada Arts Council.

[Further Links]

Pascale Girardin:

In this episode of The Right Angle Podcast, Elle Liu interviews Thom Forsyth, Creative Director at Rockwell Group, an award-winning architecture and design firm. Rockwell is renowned for reshaping the hospitality industry, and increasingly, the New York City skyline.

In our conversation, we dive into Thom's philosophy and process for developing hotel concepts for global hospitality brands and creating unique visual identities for his clients through the use of light, color and material. Thom also shares his journey to becoming the first Creative Director at Rockwell Group, and how his teenage experiences working at Lake George shaped his career.

At Rockwell Group, Thom oversees global hospitality and commercial projects, from concept creation to design development to project completion. Some of his diverse portfolio includes the flagship Equinox Hotel in NYC; the renovation of the iconic Fairmont Le Chateau Frontenac in Quebec City; and a Kempinski Hotel in Chengdu, China. He was also honored as one of Boutique Design Magazine’s Boutique 18.

[Further Links]

Thom Forsyth: