During the summer of 1981, I saw a chaise lounge on the cover of the Los Angeles Times Home Magazine. As an artist, it looked more like sculpture to me than furniture. I was amazed that it was just an outline of the form, the essence of its function.
The chaise was from Brown Jordan, a company I would soon discover to be legendary for creating modern outdoor furniture and located just 30 miles from my home. I was so taken by what I had learned about the history of the company that I began drawing chair after chair until I felt ready to ask for a meeting to present my concepts as a freelance designer, only to find out that they were looking for someone like me to work full time. While I wasn’t sure that I wanted to give up my own design business, I realized that if I was there every day I could bring my ideas to life. So, we met and agreed that I would join the company in the fall of 1981 as the newest designer to step into the design legacy of Brown Jordan.
My first project was part of a design challenge within the company that went on to be selected by the Brown Jordan management team from proposals submitted to them by talented in-house and freelance designers to go into production. My design was comprised of three different seating surfaces in one frame design with a full complement of dining and lounging pieces. I called the design Quantum as a reference to my own quantum leap from freelancing to furniture designer within a prominent manufacturing company where my designs would be produced commercially and eventually sold around the world.
As with so many things in life we eventually come full circle. In 2002, I retired from Brown Jordan as their designer and chief creative officer to re-establish my own design firm. Then, in 2010, Brown Jordan became one of our clients. Since then we have created many new collections together. For Quantum’s 30th anniversary, Brown Jordan asked me to collaborate on the release of a limited edition with an integrated parabolic flex sling-seating surface. Today, Quantum is celebrating 39 years of continuous production and remains a favorite of architects and designers.
