Port Rhombus Design
An Interview with designer Matt Kennedy
by Katrina Laura Ketchum
“I’ve lived all over the place and have studied all kinds of different things in part. Finally, I discovered an area of study that embraced my preference for a broad spectrum in Industrial Design. I have an amazing cat Charlie and as of April 2012 I now have a cell phone that can accept pictures. I’m of the designer/craftsman genre and producing my objects myself is as valuable to my experience as designing. I want to operate at the intersection of art, craft, design and manufacturing.”
Katrina: Can you tell us about your Port Rhombus and the idea behind it?
Matt: Hmmmmm what am I all about? My studio is constructed of a few key points – Sustainable Practice, Harnessing Digital and Analog Craft Appropriately and Cottage Industry Production. Practical art would some it up nicely in two words, and so would simple and smart. Localized production is important; I always try to make the most of materials available nearby from smaller suppliers. I’m interested in nostalgia and emotional object interactions. I have a lot of clearly defined interests but now that I’m graduating I’m looking forward to developing them a lot further.
Katrina: What advice would you give someone considering a similar artistic path?
Matt: Work your pants off, if you’re not content with what you’re doing you’re in the right mindset and while you need to develop your brand/ideology be sure to keep pushing onto new ground. That’s what I tell myself. Oh yeah, and be smarter.
Katrina: What steps have you taken to market yourself?
Matt: My marketing has been pretty limited as I’ve been operating while in school. There are tons of guerilla marketing articles on the web though that I look at. I avoid taking any crazy plunges; just try to turn a nickel into a dime. Once you have found things that work at a small scale expanding slowly is the way to go. Learn everything you can from other people before investing any capital or time of your own.
Katrina: Can you tell us about your process?
Matt: I just try to pay attention to any little thing for inspiration, a fixture on a park bench, the way a plant is growing, something I misinterpret. I find answers quickest by building asap. I’ll work things out on paper but the sooner I build a prototype the sooner I feel like I know what needs to happen. Getting products into the hands of a variety of people is essential, even far outside of your market for different responses.
Katrina: What inspires you to create?
Matt: That people can afford an object that really means something to them. We’re all susceptible to throw away culture as it’s made so easy for us; I want to make it easier to buy unique, quality items. I want to make things that will inspire people. Sure a generic desk lamp is $30 at the department store but it’s devoid of personal meaning. What’s doubling that when a product becomes an extension of yourself and reinforces your ideology or challenges your perceptions every time you are at your desk?
Katrina: What are some exciting projects are you currently working on? What are you up to right now?
Matt: My shop is my biggest project right now. I’m organizing and tooling for better production potential to launch a new business model to be fully self-employed. I’m looking forward to having the time to develop more complex projects and deal with packaging/retail presentation more as an extension of my studio ideology.
Katrina: What are your future plans?
Matt: Working hard, learning new stuff and building an epic cat tree/fortress/mecca for Charlie.
Katrina: Any words of wisdom?
Matt: It’s going to take a really, really long time before you do anything that’s any good so don’t expect great results immediately. The more ok you are with that, the more productive you’ll be in the meantime. Ira Glass says it simply and perfectly in his short commentary on striving for “Being Wrong”.
