Interview – Bladon Conner: Resurrecting Chicago’s Old Furniture

October 31st, 2009 Posted by Dara Katz in Friends, Inspiration, Interview

Sick of that hand-me-down coffee table wilting in the corner of your living room? Dump it in your alley, and hopefully Bladon Conner will find it, bring it to his studio and give it a second chance. And by second chance I mean make it into the hipper, urban-chic version of itself it only dreamed of being back in the day…

As a corporate architect, Bladon Conner never quite felt truly grounded. He worked 70 to 80 hours a week, traveled too much and found himself spending more time on Excel and email than actually designing and drawing. Today, though, it seems that Bladon has found his footing. And he’s running.

Bladon owns and operates his own Chicago studio where he designs and builds a unique kind of sustainable furniture from a combination of discarded material and his own eye for redesign. Originally from a small town in Mississippi, Bladon says that his designs are continuously inspired by Chicago. To him, the monumental skyscrapers contrasted with the grittiness of the ephemeral street art and the humanity that falls between the negative space, keep him enchanted and inspired. Applying the images he photographs himself of chaotic graffiti and geometric buildings to his pieces, Bladon explains that he can bring an urban punch into people’s living spaces.

I asked Bladon about his craft and realized that at the heart of his story is the answer to the every-present question in a young artist’s mind: Can we ever find a working compromise between our passions and “the real world”?
Apologies for the spoiler, but the answer is yes.

1. You originally worked in an architecture firm. What brought about the change of pace, the decision to go back to working with your hands? How have both careers fit into or defined the way you live?

Working with my hands runs in the family and is something I couldn’t escape. My dad is a carpenter, sculptor, and musician, and my mom an artist. I was raised from a very young age to create my own fun. Architecture school seemed to satisfy all of my creative interests.

After graduating I became pretty quickly disenchanted with the profession. School was so much about exploration and experimentation. Work was mostly about coordination, bureaucracy, and a good deal of CYA. On top of that, after 5 or 6 years with corporate firms my work/life balance had gotten pretty out of control… I recall one towards the end where I found that it’s possible to work 110 hours in a single week plus travel…These aspects made it impossible to have any sort of personal life, and I began to feel like I’d lost my identity…So I thought, what have I got to lose? I left on great terms, so the worst that could happen is I try this thing, don’t succeed, and then go back to the corporate life with no regrets… as well as a newfound respect for the structure it offers.

2. You have the ability to turn “trash into treasure.” How do you decide what disregarded, perhaps abandoned and forgotten pieces are worth saving?

This comes as much from experience, trial-and-error, than any natural intuition. It started with finding pieces on a shoestring budget. I had to look for pieces with good bones and only superficial damage. I also had a specific aesthetic that I was looking for. The graphics have the best result (both functionally and aesthetically) with more minimal, clean-lined pieces. I quickly realized that modern, classic designs were the best fit.

Of course, the longer I do this, the more tricks of the trade I learn to make broken down pieces into something new. I started out with simple make-overs, but have since learned enough of finishing, carpentry, welding, upholstery, and so on, that I am now mostly making custom furniture. It’s surprising how much can be learned by taking things apart. I feel that I got to apprentice under all sorts of craftspeople without ever meeting them.

3. More and more these days, creation and business are based on products that are intangible – they exist only through screens and between mouse clicks. How does it feel and what does it mean to you to build something to fruition?

That is the heart of why I am doing this, because I have a real need for that exact tangibility. And for me it’s not just the physical tangibility… there is a mental side as well. As an architect and designer, the projects were often so large and multi-faceted… I was always limited to understanding a design in its components, rather than its entirety. I was also very much limited to the design side. I had little to do with the construction, the realization of these designs. It was an unexpected outcome that I would become a better designer by becoming a better builder. The two work very much in tandem – understanding one is crucial to understanding the other. I think it’s unfortunate that the industry has such a disconnect between the two.

4. Your craft seems to be based in several contrasting concepts: New vs. Old, Form vs. Function, Classical form vs. Street, The art vs. The business etc. How do these contradictions inform your work?

These contrasts are quite liberating. From my experience working with creatives, I’ve concluded that they come from two different angles. One mindset prefers a blank canvas, where they can express some very specific inner voice – they often see limitations as a burden. I would consider this more of the “artist”. The other needs limitations, guiding principles and problems to solve for – they are often afraid of the blank canvas. I would consider this more the “designer”. I much more consider myself the designer than the artist. I need to define limitations and work from a strong concept to keep from spinning my wheels. It’s finding where these contradicting themes overlap, where they can exist in balance, that helps guide my decisions. The more contradicting, the harder the solution, but the better is in the end (when done “right”, anyway).

5. What experiences prepared you for where you are now? What advice have you discovered that you’d tell other young artists with business dreamers?

I honestly had no idea how I was going to make this happen. I just knew I had to – and trusted myself to figure it out. But the key to getting here was staying adaptable, watching carefully what was working and what wasn’t, thinking strategically about my sales and markets. I guess those spreadsheets from the corporate days really did help out in the end.