Here, we ask designers to take a selfie and give us an inside look at their life.
Age: 45
Occupation: Artist and designer.
Instagram: @bzippy
Hometown: Chicago.
Studio location: Los Angeles.
Describe what you make: I design ceramic furniture, planters, and vases, and we produce them on site in our Los Angeles facility.
The most important thing you’ve designed to date: The Cloud Series. It’s become a signature shape in our collection and has been incredibly generative from a formal perspective for future collections, including our newest series, the Ruffle & Clover Collection.
Describe the problem your work solves: BZIPPY offers many combinations of ceramic forms and colors, allowing designers to find something that fits into a wide range of project styles while being bespoke and innately unique.
Describe the project you are working on now: We’re excited to work with a prominent California-based architect on a robust hospitality project in Napa Valley. The project includes a series of sconces and several side tables in different colors and will be housed in a beautiful Brutalist-style building that we feel is in direct conversation with our inspiration and style.
We’ve also been developing custom planters for an exciting luxury hotel project that will be featured in several rooms and throughout the lobby. A large-scale project such as this one is incredibly rewarding for us, especially when we get to work closely with a design group to develop something that is completely custom while still retaining the signature BZIPPY style.
A new or forthcoming project we should know about: We’re thrilled to announce the launch of our first new collection in three years; the Ruffle & Clover Collection. Featuring brand new styles built upon the BZIPPY shapes you already know and love, the Ruffle & Clover Collection introduces new vases, planters, and side tables to our catalog. The Collection just launched on April 5. We’re also looking forward to launching Birch, our newest glaze launched in tandem with our new collection. Birch is a mesmerizing formation of chestnut-colored textures on a rich cream surface, and evokes a sophisticated organic quality that is only achievable by the innate complexity of glaze.
What you absolutely must have in your studio: Good earbuds and podcasts are a must! Late afternoon through the evening is my favorite time of day to work in the studio, because it tends to be more quiet, plus some microwave popcorn to snack on. I also have a small collection of my peers’ work throughout the studio, such as Wayne Perry, Joanna Powell, and Jolie Ngo, which is enriching and inspiring to me and my team!
What you do when you’re not working: I’m usually with my family. My eight-year-old son is in Little League, so I often leave the studio to take him to baseball practice or a game. I also like to unwind by cooking with some good TV on in the background, or tend to my garden.
Sources of creative envy: Marisol Escobar, Peter Max, Mario Botta, Varvara Stepanova, and Marimekko.
The distraction you want to eliminate: Not having something fresh to listen to when I’m working in the studio! And long commutes to the Valley.
Concrete or marble? Concrete.
High-rise or townhouse? High-rise.
Remember or forget? Remember.
Aliens or ghosts? Ghosts.
Dark or light? Dark.
