GAstorino
10-12-2004, 12:47 PM
Article in our local Oregon paper the "Portland Tribune" which seemed like a cool idea for the scottevest. An add on back to the jacket that could convert to an emergency shelter if you are out in inclimate weather.
Designers dream up stylish survival tool
Jacket that converts to shelter and blanket stars in creative confab
By JENNIFER ANDERSON Issue date: Tue, Oct 12, 2004
The Tribune
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Like many ideas, it began on a napkin.
A quick sketch, some talk about the social implications of such a creation, and — voilà! — the überjacket for homeless people was born in under 11 hours.
Challenged to create a piece of architecture within an urban context, students Thomas Kosbau and Andrew Tsai designed a piece of “wearable architecture”: an all-in-one hooded jacket with a padded foam back, water-resistant shell and zippered pouch that folds out into a shelter, blanket and pocket for securing valuables.
The rough prototype wasn’t the sleekest creation — especially among professional entries by Columbia Sportswear, Nike Inc. and Adidas — but it was enough to garner a first-place award last week in the category of “One-of-a-kind fashion” at the second annual Portland Design Festival.
“It’s just a great start; it gives us a chance to get out there and be seen and show that there’s people that are up-and-coming,” said 24-year-old Tsai, a Seattle native. “Sometimes our ideas get stored away in our portfolios or computers.”
Tsai and 25-year-old Kosbau, who has another exhibit in the show, both are studying urban architecture through a Portland-based University of Oregon program.
Mayor’s leadership noted
Kosbau and Tsai were among 200 entrants in this year’s festival, sponsored by the nonprofit Northwest Design Collaborative, a consortium of designers of all stripes: architecture, graphic, industrial, interior, Web and landscape architecture.
The event has taken on a new meaning this year with the end of Mayor Vera Katz’s 12-year tenure on Dec. 31. Katz, an arts enthusiast, has helped fuel the local creative economy in recent years with small grants, conversation groups with young artists and her efforts to spearhead the design collaborative.
She also gave an honorary award to her favorite entry in the design festival last week, Ziba design’s “e-Pen,” a personal wireless text messaging device that looks like a pen.
The event runs through Sunday at the Pacific Northwest College of Art, 1241 N.W. Johnson St.
“What (Katz has) done is given a really significant sense of hope and pride,” said Alicia Johnson, creative director of an international design firm that moved to Northwest Portland in 1991. “It’s quite amazing to have the leader of your community recognize you.”
The arts community will recognize Katz’s contributions Sunday at Memorial Coliseum with a celebration featuring fashion shows, live music and art displays of all types.
“There’s just tremendous respect for our creative community from around the world,” Johnson said. “There’s a great buzz. It’s got a really high ‘hip’ factor. And I think that’s something (Katz) can really be proud of.”
Portland stands on the verge
For Kosbau and Tsai, creativity is more than just style. Kosbau, a Wilson High School graduate who hopes to study research and design in Germany next year on a Fulbright scholarship, said he’s more drawn to the technical side of design than the artsy part.
“I started in chemistry,” he said. “I really liked the scientific approach to a problem.” After his travels, he’d love to return to Portland — in part for his family, but in part because of the creative environment. “Portland is on the verge of something really great,” he said. “We have a great presence. The synergy could be better.”
Tsai, who will look for work in the Northwest after completing his master’s degree this year, cares about the social impact of his work. He loves Portland because “people here just seem to want to share ideas.”
Katz and her creative team at Worksystems Inc. — a Portland nonprofit job resource center — said they have realized that it takes more than just ideas to feed a dream.
Later this fall, they will offer a second round of $20,000 in small grants for up to 25 low-income artists and creative entrepreneurs, intended to help jump-start their business aspirations.
Kosbau and Tsai haven’t heard about the grants but are hoping to pursue marketing their creation, which they’ve dubbed “Homefree.” The all-in-one jacket — which also can be used by hikers, mountaineers or disaster-relief workers — has already received a big response from fellow designers and from homeless people who got a preview downtown one day, Tsai and Kosbau said.
“Socially, they were so amazed that something so simple could do so much for them,” Tsai said. “I didn’t expect it.”
Designers dream up stylish survival tool
Jacket that converts to shelter and blanket stars in creative confab
By JENNIFER ANDERSON Issue date: Tue, Oct 12, 2004
The Tribune
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Like many ideas, it began on a napkin.
A quick sketch, some talk about the social implications of such a creation, and — voilà! — the überjacket for homeless people was born in under 11 hours.
Challenged to create a piece of architecture within an urban context, students Thomas Kosbau and Andrew Tsai designed a piece of “wearable architecture”: an all-in-one hooded jacket with a padded foam back, water-resistant shell and zippered pouch that folds out into a shelter, blanket and pocket for securing valuables.
The rough prototype wasn’t the sleekest creation — especially among professional entries by Columbia Sportswear, Nike Inc. and Adidas — but it was enough to garner a first-place award last week in the category of “One-of-a-kind fashion” at the second annual Portland Design Festival.
“It’s just a great start; it gives us a chance to get out there and be seen and show that there’s people that are up-and-coming,” said 24-year-old Tsai, a Seattle native. “Sometimes our ideas get stored away in our portfolios or computers.”
Tsai and 25-year-old Kosbau, who has another exhibit in the show, both are studying urban architecture through a Portland-based University of Oregon program.
Mayor’s leadership noted
Kosbau and Tsai were among 200 entrants in this year’s festival, sponsored by the nonprofit Northwest Design Collaborative, a consortium of designers of all stripes: architecture, graphic, industrial, interior, Web and landscape architecture.
The event has taken on a new meaning this year with the end of Mayor Vera Katz’s 12-year tenure on Dec. 31. Katz, an arts enthusiast, has helped fuel the local creative economy in recent years with small grants, conversation groups with young artists and her efforts to spearhead the design collaborative.
She also gave an honorary award to her favorite entry in the design festival last week, Ziba design’s “e-Pen,” a personal wireless text messaging device that looks like a pen.
The event runs through Sunday at the Pacific Northwest College of Art, 1241 N.W. Johnson St.
“What (Katz has) done is given a really significant sense of hope and pride,” said Alicia Johnson, creative director of an international design firm that moved to Northwest Portland in 1991. “It’s quite amazing to have the leader of your community recognize you.”
The arts community will recognize Katz’s contributions Sunday at Memorial Coliseum with a celebration featuring fashion shows, live music and art displays of all types.
“There’s just tremendous respect for our creative community from around the world,” Johnson said. “There’s a great buzz. It’s got a really high ‘hip’ factor. And I think that’s something (Katz) can really be proud of.”
Portland stands on the verge
For Kosbau and Tsai, creativity is more than just style. Kosbau, a Wilson High School graduate who hopes to study research and design in Germany next year on a Fulbright scholarship, said he’s more drawn to the technical side of design than the artsy part.
“I started in chemistry,” he said. “I really liked the scientific approach to a problem.” After his travels, he’d love to return to Portland — in part for his family, but in part because of the creative environment. “Portland is on the verge of something really great,” he said. “We have a great presence. The synergy could be better.”
Tsai, who will look for work in the Northwest after completing his master’s degree this year, cares about the social impact of his work. He loves Portland because “people here just seem to want to share ideas.”
Katz and her creative team at Worksystems Inc. — a Portland nonprofit job resource center — said they have realized that it takes more than just ideas to feed a dream.
Later this fall, they will offer a second round of $20,000 in small grants for up to 25 low-income artists and creative entrepreneurs, intended to help jump-start their business aspirations.
Kosbau and Tsai haven’t heard about the grants but are hoping to pursue marketing their creation, which they’ve dubbed “Homefree.” The all-in-one jacket — which also can be used by hikers, mountaineers or disaster-relief workers — has already received a big response from fellow designers and from homeless people who got a preview downtown one day, Tsai and Kosbau said.
“Socially, they were so amazed that something so simple could do so much for them,” Tsai said. “I didn’t expect it.”