(Another in an occasional series of conversations with L.A’s leading architects and designers)
(Photos by Jonn Coolidge & G. Bruce Smith)
Sean Dougall and Andrew Paulson
Look to the weaving looms in the home/work space of Sean Dougall and Andrew Paulson for the perfect metaphor of their creations and lives – threads of many materials are tightly bound to create cosmic and beautiful works of art, hand crafted with love.
The threads that run through the works of these two men – designers, craftsmen and artists – are like themes in their lives: Reinvention. Love. Interesting Choices. The Universe.
Sean and Andrew – partners in life (actually husbands) as well as in their creative work – recently launched their first major collection, which is an eclectic mix of furniture, sculpture and hand woven pieces. The works in “Dark Matter” are created to “have their own breath” but to work with the other pieces in the collection, they say. They work mostly in metals, but also wood, stone, clay and a wide variety of fibers.
“Supernova” – Desk with built-in light, part of the “Dark Matter” collection
View their debut collection at the Highland Avenue showroom of Blackman Cruz and you will see a stunning, delicately-shaped lighted desk underneath a stellar sculpture and you will understand: the pieces could work together, or not. Mix and match in your head the various works in the showroom and you’ll find pure synchronicity or stand-alone beauty. You’ll find art – and often function – in their creations.
“Dark Matter” is a collection that took three years to create. And its backstory is, of course, the unique narrative of its creators.
Reinvention
Sean has been trained in art – he studied sculpture at Southern Methodist University in Texas – but spent many years in production design for large events. An Emmy nominee, he designed some of the largest musical, awards, and political events of the last decade, including the stage and podium from which President Barack Obama accepted the Democratic nomination.
Sean Dougall
Andrew, a self-taught fiber artist, is a former editor and literary agent who has worked with some of the most talented storytellers of our time. His master’s in French literature is from New York University.
“I’ve always been overwhelmed with the idea of working with my hands,” Andrew says, “but I never really had an outlet, or the space and encouragement, for it.”
Enter Sean.
Love
Sean was working for a production design studio at a warehouse complex on Electric Avenue in Venice Beach. Andrew got a job at a literary firm two doors down. Sean saw Andrew and was immediately smitten. Andrew presented Sean with a tri-colored origami icosahedron, which became a talisman of sorts and a harbinger of the geometric sculptural work they would later create. It was love – and the beginning of an artistic collaboration grounded in love.
“It was really important for us to work together,” Andrew says.
Bronze sculpture/table
“We love each other, and we love our work,” Sean says.
Interesting Choices
Given the nature of their work, they needed a large studio where they could live and create. They found it in 2011, and it was an interesting choice: a former light bulb factory in Watts.
The 2,300-square-foot open space is light and airy and complemented by a 4,000-square-foot rooftop deck. Living and work spaces flow into one another: In one area is a living room next to a space dominated by three handlooms; in another corner rests ceramics and sculpture equipment; and in yet another nook is a large computer where they create branding and visual identities as well as website development.
Their other interesting choice? The eclectic nature of their collection – the mix of materials, the functional furniture, the crafted work, the art pieces.
The Universe
Andrew Paulson at one of his weaving looms. (Photo by G. Bruce Smith)
“Dark Matter” was inspired by the stars and it celebrates, as they explain, the luminous, chaotic energy of the cosmos and the quiet serenity of its vastness. The collection is “meant to evoke the same feeling as gazing up into the night sky, like plunging upward,” they say.
The cosmos is a perfect choice for their inspiration. Theirs is such a symbiotic relationship, their personal and design selves so connected to each other and, indeed, to the universe.
Dare I say their work is pulsing with “cosmic vibrations?” Dare I say that after viewing their work and talking to them about their process that all feels well in the universe?
Yes, I do. Because that’s exactly how I felt.
