Ball-Nogues Studio: Beautiful People 2011
By FRANKLIN MELENDEZ
L.A. architecture firm Ball-Nogues has built its reputation almost entirely on temporary structures; an irony not lost on its founders, Gaston Nogues and Benjamin Ball. Since partnering in 2004, they have straddled the line between architecture and installation art with their intrepid structures and unorthodox materials, like using clothes pins and American Apparel overstock to make a tunnel in Shenzhen, China, called "Built to Wear." As Ball notes: "Impermanent projects present opportunities to take more risks than traditional buildings; we don't have to worry about it 'going out of style'."
Their first project defied easy classification: an outdoor canopy of tinted Mylar meant to evoke a black hole in the heart of Silver Lake. It set the pace for a series of interventions, like their kaleidoscopic string structure "Feathered Edge" housed at MOCA's Pacific Design Center. "Some of our projects don't have a use per se," Ball says, "but they propose ideas that intersect with the discourse surrounding architecture."
Their studio has become an experimental lab of sorts, where they test new ideas with abandon, far away from public scrutiny. But that may not be the case for much longer, as the scope of their work increases with their profile, including some permanent structures: they're working on projects like a wildlife observation deck in Woodstock, NY; an outdoor structure made entirely of stainless steel spheres in Edmonton, Alberta,; and a large suspended atmospheric piece for the new Bradley West Terminal at LAX. As for their dream commission? They both immediately agree: "We don't really think in terms of dream projects."
(L-R) GASTON WEARS JACKET BY THE GENERAL STORE, PANTS BY AG ADRIANO
GOLDSCHMIED AND HAT BY STETSON. BENJAMIN WEARS SHIRT BY FIELD SCOUT AND PANTS BY GUESS.
GO BACK TO SEE MORE BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE OF 2011
Their first project defied easy classification: an outdoor canopy of tinted Mylar meant to evoke a black hole in the heart of Silver Lake. It set the pace for a series of interventions, like their kaleidoscopic string structure "Feathered Edge" housed at MOCA's Pacific Design Center. "Some of our projects don't have a use per se," Ball says, "but they propose ideas that intersect with the discourse surrounding architecture."
Their studio has become an experimental lab of sorts, where they test new ideas with abandon, far away from public scrutiny. But that may not be the case for much longer, as the scope of their work increases with their profile, including some permanent structures: they're working on projects like a wildlife observation deck in Woodstock, NY; an outdoor structure made entirely of stainless steel spheres in Edmonton, Alberta,; and a large suspended atmospheric piece for the new Bradley West Terminal at LAX. As for their dream commission? They both immediately agree: "We don't really think in terms of dream projects."
(L-R) GASTON WEARS JACKET BY THE GENERAL STORE, PANTS BY AG ADRIANO
GOLDSCHMIED AND HAT BY STETSON. BENJAMIN WEARS SHIRT BY FIELD SCOUT AND PANTS BY GUESS.
GO BACK TO SEE MORE BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE OF 2011
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