Top Design Week Six: Wisit’s Out!

Wisit just couldn’t get down and dirty for the Top Design green challenge. We get his opinion on his “bland” office, what makes a space green, and where he's belting opera and sketching designs now.

Written by Leah Konen

This week, you and the other designers had to redecorate an office space to make it more eco-friendly. What did you love about this challenge and what made it so difficult?
I was really looking forward to having another opportunity to express my own individual taste and style while working for a client. The most difficult part for me was in the second half of the challenge having to design for a client that I had actually never met-that and limited resources. You have to come up with a concept, but you also have to race with the other designers to get stuff you want.

After you had already gone shopping and planned out your spaces, you learned that you’d be switching clients. What was that like?
I was actually pretty surprised by the idea, but I think I remained positive, because India was saying that if you’re a good designer you can still create something beautiful. What I was most nervous about was designing something for someone I never had contact with. In that respect, I was a little more conservative in my choices.

You were working with Natalie’s design and the items Natalie bought. Did you get much guidance from her?
Natalie told me about this client who she thought was very young and hip and very artistic. How she had interpreted that was funky and bold, but in my mind I pictured someone a little more stylish. I didn’t use her fabrics because they really did not go together as a color story. There was a metallic zebra print — I don’t mind zebra print, but this one was not attractive. There was dark orange and light iridescent fabric — I don’t see how any of them could work together. If her client had an interest in art, she wouldn’t want tacky choices like that.

Jonathan Adler called the space "bland" — do you wish you had spiced it up a little, maybe with some of Natalie’s fabrics?
I feel that I designed a room that is universally appealing. My own opinion on offices is that they should look a little bit more conservative and a little bit more professional, rather than spiced up. They should be clean, minimal, somewhat stylish, but not overly stylish.

This was first and foremost a green challenge. How did you redecorate and stay eco-conscious?
I reused all of the furniture that was in the room. I kept it very clean, which is very conducive to responsible living. It was an office space that promotes productivity. When I was shopping, I was very conscious of waste. I didn’t buy as much fabric as the other contestants, and I was mindful of my choices.

But do you think you should have taken it to the next level, with more innovative and interesting green projects, like Ondine’s water bottle chandelier?
A lot of the designers reused things by taking them apart, but for me, unless you do a really wonderful job at it- I think that if you chop up furniture, it’s not going to look wonderful. I also wanted it to be functional, so I didn’t include a lot of extraneous decoration in my plan.

MORE DECORATING ARTICLES