MARIA MOYER

$30,000 for Haiti

mariamoyer — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 21:16:02 +0000

To our friends who donated items to the Bureau of Friends auction for Haiti and to those who bid on these items–thank you.

In addition to Heath Ceramics proceeds for Haiti, together we raised nearly $30,000 to support Architecture for Humanity’s ongoing work in Haiti.

Special thanks to the individuals and companies who donated services or products, they are:

Alabama Chanin, Billy Reid, Chadwick Bell, Deborah Lupard, Duckie Brown, Frank&Pardis Stitt, fuseproject, HEATH Ceramics, Heather Heron, Jess Brown, Justine Lynch, Lulan Artisans, Loup Charmant, Lutz & Patmos, PACT Apparel, Riley Etheridge, S. Stein Workbags & Totes, Susan Moyer, Tilonia, Tina Hejtmanek, TINYcrush Society, Tucker by Gaby Basora, West Elm, and Yves Behar.

For Haiti

mariamoyer — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 15:30:58 +0000

After writing checks and texting donations, The Bureau of Friends, and some of its friends, wanted to do more. So, we gathered items and services to auction and we put them on eBay–100 percent of the proceeds go to Architecture for Humanity’s work in Haiti.

Billy Reid for men, rare HEATH collectibles, Lutz & Patmos Cashmere, a Chadwick Bell necklace. . . and more offers coming. Please have a look and help spread the word: http://stores.ebay.com/Bureau-of-Friends-Auction.

We hope these small gestures grow larger, with generous bidding and a little help from our friends.

Henry Varnum Poor (1887-1970)

mariamoyer — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 16:30:01 +0000

Less than an hour north of Manhattan, is the home and studio of Henry Varnum Poor (1887-1970), called Crow House. Henry designed and built Crow House with his own hands.

In 1931, New Yorker magazine named Henry Poor one of America’s finest painters. He was also a craftsman, an architect, an art teacher and a ceramist–in fact, we learned about him recently at Greeenwich House Pottery.

photos: Gjon Mili for LIFE magazine and Henry Varnum Poor estate.

Event: "The Sustainability Equation" Pratt Institute, January 26th, 6 p.m.

mariamoyer — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 19:47:50 +0000

Free panel discussion: “The Sustainabilty Equation.” Moderated by curators, Francecsa Granata and Sarah Scaturro, with Julie Gilhart, Mary Ping, Caroline Priebe.

January 26, 6pm, Room 213, no reservations required, free admission.

The exhibition (through February 20th) surveys the work of artists and designers… who explore the question of integrating sustainable practices into the fashion system.

The panel discussion, on Januray 26th, will include Julie Gilhart, joined by Mary Ping, designer and founder of Slow and Steady Wins the Race; Caroline Priebe, designer and founder of Uluru, moderated by “Ethics + Aesthetics” guest curators Francesca Granata, fashion theorist, and Sarah Scaturro, textile conservator at the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum.

More information about the free panel discussion and the exhibition, here.

(photo: Pratt Institute art class c 1890, photo via Brooklyn Public Library)

The New Luxury

mariamoyer — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 14:09:23 +0000

In 2009, as consumer spending habits swung to a place of extreme reflection, the notion of handmade took on new relevance.

Speaking on a recent panel called “The New Luxury Paradigm,” at the National Retail Federation’s annual conference, Stephen Sadove, CEO of Saks Inc., referred to Louis Vuitton’s advertising focus on workmanship, as a way to bring ‘touch and feel’ of a brand to its buyers. One might suggest that while the NRF and it’s speakers were exploring the concept, there are other more-authentic intentions of ‘new luxury’ that are found elsewhere. For the Bureau, however, it’s this mainstream focus on the subject of ‘handmade’ and well made that we want to note here.

From a slightly different angle, our own Natalie Chanin shares her thoughts in a recent interview, “Does the Art of Craft and Handmade Matter in Fashion?“

We seem to be acknowledging that a beautiful handcrafted object–as an expression of place, material, skill and style–embodies a soulfulness that outlasts decorating trends and economic cycles. At the same time, more of us are getting in on the act of creating objects ourselves.

The television series Craft in America on PBS explores not just the past history of craft in the United States, but the beauty and relevance of what the artist and craftsman are doing today. The Craft in America website features dozens of inspiring stories about artists and teachers–young and old, including this video clip of high school students in NYC.

Video: talented young jewelry artists learn their craft at the 92nd St Y.

The Art of Motorcycle Maintenance

mariamoyer — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 18:01:49 +0000

“…the craftsman is proud of what he’s made and cherishes it, while the consumer discards the perfectly serviceable in pursuit of the new.” from Shop Class as Soul Craft, by Matthew Crawford.

* * *

The Bureau of Friends care about how things are made and we hope to inspire folks to be more savvy buyers. In fact, we have a hunch our own insight as consumers is fast tracked when we learn how to make a few things ourselves, with our own hands. These are a few expert-maker stories we like, including one of our own.

Billykirk Leathermakers:

“Their childhood boots sit on the shelf like trophies, as if to remind them of an era when things were made to last…brothers Chris and Kirk Bray have developed a brand that recognizes quality and longevity.” This is from a wonderful piece and a short film about Billykirk, by Tom Ran and The Scout.

Alabama Chanin:

Once considered unsalvageable, this quilt was given a new life. Re-stitched with organic cotton applique and reinvigorated by today’s skilled hands and embroidered stories about women who worked in an American textile factory.

Matthew Crawford and Cole Foster:

Matthew Crawford has our attention. His writing examines what we’ve lost (as individuals and as a society) by ceasing to work with our hands and by not celebrating people who do. He says, “Without the opportunity to learn through the hands, the world remains abstract and distant…”

Still savoring fresh facts presented by Crawford, our Bureau Chief, Maria Moyer, found herself reconnected via Facebook to Cole Foster–an elementary school pal and, as it turns out, a respected designer-maker of vintage-inspired custom cars and motorcycles in California. Like Cole, Crawford is not only an author but his work involves motorcycles with vintage cachet. In 2010, we want to sit down to dinner with both of them. Who’s in?

Author-mechanic, Matthew Crawford, above, and

Cole Foster of Salinas Boys Customs, below,

You don’t need to know anything about motorcycles (we don’t) to love Matthew Crawford’s book. We’ve been talking about it for months. Have you read Shop Class as Soul Craft? How’s it relevant to your life?

Here's to 2010 . . .

mariamoyer — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 16:48:32 +0000

and to finding meaning and pleasure in friendship.

Special thanks to Partners & Spade, Opportunity Green, Cook+Fox and our new and old friends for taking the first steps with the Bureau of Friends in 2009.

: Nicole with Riley Etheridge Jr. on location

Julie at Partners & Spade (top) and (bottom) with Alice at DOSA’s Edible Schoolyard Fundraiser

Natalie on a perfect Fall day in NYC

: Cathy and Robin being celebrated by Cooper-Hewitt Museum

: Nicole with pike

: Maria and long-time pal, architect John Hirsch, at HEATH Ceramics in LA

“You can’t fake quality anymore than you can fake a good meal.”

-William S. Burroughs

Friend Us!

mariamoyer — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 16:48:05 +0000

It’s true. The Bureau of Friends has a Facebook page.

If Facebook is how you roll, pop in, say hello and learn what’s going on with the Bureau of Friends. . .and their friends. Just click right here and sign on.

An Embarrassment of Riches

mariamoyer — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 15:38:34 +0000

This week was an embarrassment of design riches.

On Monday, I finally walked through the front door of Philip Johnson’s 1949 Glass House. It was the last day that the 47-acre property and the house would be open to visitors, until Spring 2010. Wednesday night, I was an honored guest of Leo Marmol and Ron Radziner at the Interior Design Magazine Hall of Fame, in New York City. Wait, there’s more! I sat an arm’s length away from mid-century furniture design hero, Vladimir Kagan and, my fine date for the event was the delightful Hilary Lewis, architecure scholar and long-time colleague of Philip Johnson. It was a starry night in a constellation of wonderful.

If you’re new to Leo and Ron, here’s a primer: The Marmol Radziner boys have some serious cred’ in modernist architecture. They’re well known for their meticulous renovations of Neutra’s Kaufman House, a ranch house by Cliff May built in 1956, and a 1962 Lautner house in L.A. . . and more, but it’s Marmol Radziner’s own designs that are especially moving and relevant, in my opinion.

I was a fan and became a bona fide friend, while learning about their sustainability-focused prefab designs. A few years ago, I enjoyed a Leo-led tour of the Marmol-Radziner prefab factory, which was a lesson in building efficiency, eco-saavy design and an apt elevation of craftsman-builder to artist and steward.

Neutra's house for the Kaufmans; photo by the late Julius Schulman.

Marmol Radziner custom design and Ron's home in Venice, CA. Quintessential indoor-outdoor living.

Ron Radziner's and Robin Cottle's kitchen.

Marmol Radziner prefab home in Palm Springs.

Congratulations to Marmol Radziner—friends of the Bureau and official inductees to the designers Hall of Fame.

ReadyMade Magazine Interview on the Bureau

mariamoyer — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 14:40:04 +0000

Illustration by Katy Lemay for ReadyMade

ReadyMade magazine describes itself as “. . .a do-it-yourself, lifestyle magazine for young people who are smart, upwardly mobile, urban-minded and environmentally conscious. ReadyMade entertains and informs through DIY projects for fast-evolving lifestyles.”

The Bureau of Friends is honored to be featured in the December 2009 issue as part of their “Movers and Makers” series. Special thanks to Caitlan Thornton for getting it just right.

Here’s a link to the 2-page spread “Friends of Change”, which uses the online service Coverleaf to provide a paperless, digital version of ReadyMade and other magazines.

Keep an eye on ReadyMade. We’re expecting great things from them.