Interview with Rick Yestadt
Award winning Principal, Rick Yestadt, founded Yestadt Architecture and Design on the premise that good design creates value and that value spans time. Mr.
Designer Interview
1 November 2016
I wouldn't say a designer as such. I have always had a curiosity about how things work. I grow up near the airport outside of New Orleans and dreamed of flying. My answer up until high school as to what I wanted to "be" was always an aeronautical engineer. My parents were classical musicians with music and art always part of our lives. My father became a successful Maestro conductor and also loved cars. An XKE Jaguar appeared in our driveway and was a turning point for me. My brother and I would sit in our lawn chairs in the afternoon light and marvel at the beauty of this man made object, analyzing, discussing every line and curve. I became aware of the physical environment in which I lived and that humans were making decisions that effected the beauty in the world around me. Of course this activity took second place to convincing my father that it was absolutely necessary for me to drive that car for whatever excuse I could come up with.
Yestadt Architecture + Design was founded 4 years ago with the idea of bringing the highest quality design services to our clients in architecture and product design using technology to make the biggest impact on quality and innovation.
OK, at least you didn't ask what is Good Design! For me, design is creating something improved.
The early stages of creating a design solution that gives me goose bumps.
That is an almost impossible question for me to answer because there are so many....but a common denominator would be those that have an elegance creating something unexpectedly logical and graceful. Arne Jacobsen's Tulip chair, many of Deiter Rams' Braun products, the cubical chapel at the monastery outside of Orvieta, Italy, Diller Scofidio + Renfro's The Brasserie in NYC, The High Line come to mind.
A police station in Maryland.
AutoCAD and Sketchup are amazing tools that can be as complex or simple in execution.
After midnight generally.
Inspiration in the realm of the possible I would say.
If it's for a client, fear and adrenalin. If for my self, utter bliss. Client bliss can come at the end of a project, if all goes according the Grand Plan.