NAME: Michael Chung

AGE: 33

LOCATION: Los Angeles, California

ORGANIZATION YOU WORK FOR: Lettuce

JOB TITLE: Designer (and lecturer at USC School of Architecture)

TIME AT YOUR PRESENT JOB: 3 years as owner principal,

4 years as lecturer

 

Describe what you do.

We have three broad categories of our design projects and services. Our “space” projects include design and project management for ground up buildings, building renovations, interiors, environments, retail and restaurant concepts, and creative office/commercial space. Our “object” projects are designing custom furniture, furniture lines, built-ins, products and accessories. “Media” projects include graphic design, logo design, motion graphics and 3-D renderings.

How did you become interested in architecture?

My dad was an architect and my mom is an interior designer. I guess it’s in the blood.

What’s a typical day like?

Most days are packed with meetings in and out of the studio, correspondences of all sorts and talking to people. Some combination of the following: design, sketch, discuss, debate, produce, sell, craft, strategize, invent, reinvent, lather, rinse, repeat.

What are the perks?

Biggest perk is doing what we love. Design is fundamentally an act of compassion and thoughtfulness, which is not a bad way to spend your energies. We also have dogs in the office, which is an automatic stress reliever.

Where do you find inspiration?

Film and literature are constant touchstones and so are street art and fashion. We try to make it a point to draw from many different wells, as I think that’s a big trap I’ve seen too many creative people fall into — single source references. As long as the antennas are out, there’s really no shortage of points of inspiration.

What projects are you particularly proud of?

Anything that gets built, done, out there in the world. We also tend to fall in love with what we’re working on now. The Buffer House, a residential project in West Los Angeles, has gotten some attention and awards — that’s always gratifying. Also love furniture projects as they go from idea to artifact so quickly.

Describe your work environment.

For a relatively young shop — our median age is about 27 — we take professionalism pretty seriously when it comes to managing and delivering our services. That said, it’s a fun environment. I love music so there has to be good music in the studio to get anything of worth done. We laugh a lot and appreciate the value of not taking everything too seriously all the time, including ourselves. The dogs are a constant source of levity.

What are some of your hobbies?

I’m a film and food junkie so if I have the time, I’m in my home theater watching a movie, reading something or cooking up a storm. I’m also addicted to cooking shows. The latter is what I consider a “serious” pastime a la Julia Child.